Tuesday (Aug. 25) was the last Fall Camp practice that is open to the media this season and was the first open practice since last Saturday's scrimmage. It was a hot but clear day outside in College Park and today's practice seemed to be more about getting down to business--less music, more deliberate sessions, lots of situational drills (i.e. red zone, 2-minute, lengthy field goals/returning lengthy field goals that come up short).
The defense made some nice plays today and I would say was the better overall unit throughout fall camp, but the offense definitely finished stronger and I believe had the better day on Tuesday. It's not uncommon for offense's to take a few weeks to get on the same page and it appears Maryland's has finally shaken off some rust.
Here are some additional news and notes from today's practice:
The defense made some nice plays today and I would say was the better overall unit throughout fall camp, but the offense definitely finished stronger and I believe had the better day on Tuesday. It's not uncommon for offense's to take a few weeks to get on the same page and it appears Maryland's has finally shaken off some rust.
Here are some additional news and notes from today's practice:
- OL Damian Prince did not practice in what was just a maintenance day for the redshirt freshman. He has looked as good as advertised in camp and his sheer size is something that sticks out immediately. He is poised to have a solid season as a starter. Tight end Andrew Isaacs is another key player that did not practice Tuesday, as has been the case with him all of camp. Coach Randy Edsall said before practiced started that Isaacs has been coming along great in his rehab and is close to returning but has yet to be cleared for contact.
- QB Perry Hills got all of the first team reps. It appears Edsall was not lying when he said Hills is the guy, at least for now. But this was one of Hills' most productive practices that I've seen to date, which perhaps is the result of some newly found confidence from being named the frontrunner in the quarterback competition over the weekend. Hills seems to have excellent chemistry with perhaps the Terps most talented wide receiver Levern Jacobs. The two were in sync all day connecting on slants and comebacks that were thrown on point by Hills. It's clear that the coaches really want whoever plays QB to be able to get the ball out quick to players like Jacobs and let them use their speed and elusiveness to make plays. Hills also completed a couple of nice balls down the field to Amba Etta-Tawo. Another thing that really stood out about Hills today was his decision making. He only threw one pick in 11-on-11 drills and that was because of a nice play that was made by cornerback Sean Davis. But on many occasions Hills made the right choice by either scrambling out of bounds, checking down to a running back/tight end, or throwing the ball away.
- Daxx Garman worked with the second team on Tuesday. He had some nice throws and I still think he throws the prettiest ball out of the three QBs but he does tend to hold on to the ball too long and was picked off in practice today by Darnell Savage Jr., on a deep ball that probably shouldn't have been thrown. Caleb Rowe worked with the third team today and although he didn't do anything terrible, he also didn't do much to stand out.
- With all of that being said about Hills looking better as a thrower, I'm starting to believe what is really separating him from the other two QBs in the eye's of the coaching staff is his athleticism and ability to get outside of the pocket and keep the play alive. We know coach Locksley likes to run the read option and word on the street is he's not ready to completely rid the playbook of it despite not having a "mobile" quarterback like C.J. Brown anymore. There were a few designed runs and read-option plays called for Hills and he did a decent job of moving the ball on them.
- If Brandon Ross isn't the Terps lead back this year, then I'm missing something. Because Ross has been an absolute beast in every practice I've seen, including the scrimmage, and continued that success on Tuesday. Ross got the first few snaps with the first team and was spelled occasionally by Wes Brown. But it was Ross who was finishing his runs and constantly breaking through to the secondary. During one of the 11-on-11 sessions, Ross took one about 70 yards to the house on the second play from scrimmage. He also had several nice catches out of the backfield and appears to be the all-around back the Terps need.
- And with Ross and Brown shouldering most of the load, freshman Ty Johnson could also work his way into the mix and be one of the biggest surprises this season for Maryland. Johnson looks great in practice. He's not very big, but he runs hard, is fast, and can catch the ball out of the backfield. He's mostly doing all of this not against the starters, but Johnson has been rotated in a little bit with the first team and Edsall has continuously praised him for his work this camp.
- As far as the defense goes, the pass rush and secondary looked solid, as they normally do. I'm a bit concerned about the run defense though. All of the success the Maryland running backs have had in practice recently is a positive sign for them but also speaks to the amount of work the defensive line still needs to do when it comes to stuffing the run. Getting better against the run has been the main focus of the defense this offseason, and after speaking with a few DL after practice they appear to feel good about where they're at in that regard. But I'm interested to see how they look against Richmond because if they struggle there Big Ten running backs could present a big issue.
