EVANSTON-It was an absolutely perfect day at Hucheson Field for Wednesday’s practice. It was hot and mostly sunny, with a slight breeze blowing off the lake. The skyline of Chicago was barely visible in the distance as boats dotted the crystal blue expanse of Lake Michigan.
But enough about the setting. We’re here to talk football! Here are some notes and observations from a nearly three-hour practice session, Northwestern’s first in pads...
- As I reported in the first practice feature, Jared Thomas was starting at left tackle today, with Blake Hance playing on the second team. Fitz downplayed any significance whatsoever, but at the very least he’s trying to light a fire under Hance. One source told me that the staff wouldn’t mind someone else taking that left tackle job, and that other than Tommy Doles and Brad North, the entire O-line is up in the air. The first-team line, then, was left to right, Thomas, JB Butler, North, Doles and Gunnar Vogel. Vogel looks like a player, and I hear that he is the best of the redshirt freshman offensive lineman, followed by Nik Urban. In general, though, the defensive line looked to be ahead of the OL. They got consistent penetration, “sacked” the QB four times in limited scrimmages (there are no true sacks) and really got a push. Given the talent on that side of the ball, particularly in the middle, I don’t think that’s a surprise. The second OL was made up of, from left to right, Thomas, Ben Oxley, Urban, Cam Kolwich and Vogel or Hance. Yes, Thomas and Vogel were pulling a lot of double-duty. Read into that what you will.
- Mark Gooden is the real deal and I’m confident that he will play this season. My main concern was whether he had the size to stop the run, but he assuaged all concerns today. He looks ready to go. He’s just 6-foot-1 and 251 pounds, but that’s about the same size as Xavier Washington. Gooden really thickened up over the winter and looks strong and powerful. He may have the best burst off the ball on the D-line. I saw him completely pancake Andrew Otterman with a bull rush and knife through a double-team before they could even get in position to make a play in the backfield. He had at least one of the whistled sacks when he ran down the QB scrambling outside. I saw Sam Miller completely blow up Hance on one play, too. I think he will be in the rotation, too. The first line was Joe Gaziano and Trent Goens at DE and Jordan Thompson and Tyler Lancaster at DT. The second line was Gooden and Miller at DE with Jake Saunders and Alex Miller at DT. There were a lot of substitutions but those were the groups I saw most consistently. Earnest Brown looks the part physically and is very quick off the ball. I saw him steamroll Jesse Meyler on one play. He seemed to tweak his leg at some point during practice and then sat out the rest.
- Flynn Nagel is getting most of the attention this year, but I keep hearing that Macan Wilson has looked really good. Nagel, as it turns out, was out on Wednesday as he said he had some back spasms that were nothing serious. Wilson left drills about halfway through. The catch of the day belonged to Jalen Brown, who made a leaping, one-hand stab down the sideline. He made a few good catches today and Nagel said that Brown is making the transition smoothly and picking things up quickly. Look out for Riley Lees this year, too. He is backing up Nagel in the slot but will play a lot. He is very athletic and may have the best top-end speed of the entire receiver corps. Nagel called Jelani Roberts the quickest but Lees the fastest in the long haul.
- The running backs looked fantastic and Fitz lauded their preparation and their play today. I don’t have to say much about Justin Jackson. John Moten really caught my eye on a couple runs. He just has a gear that no one else has and can reach the second level quicker than anyone else. He took the ball on a delay up the middle, found a crease and was between the safeties before I could even see his number. He played injured last year and Fitz talked again about Moten’s toughness. The RB position will be in good hands once No. 21 leaves. Jeremy Larkin also captured my attention as a receiver. He caught a dump into the flats and put on a couple moves to get into the clear. He’s not a quick cutter like most of the other backs; he’s more of a smooth, winding runner, but deceptively fast.
- Garrett Dickerson is a man at superback. He caught a slant and turned it up the sideline, so I got a good look at him. He’s a specimen and looks like an NFL tight end. Trey Pugh got a lot of reps, too. He’s definitely the Dan Vitale H-back role. (I am not supposed to report on schemes, so I’ll leave it at that.) He’s got a bright future; he’s very athletic and he’s 6-foot-4 and 236 pounds already.
- Word on the street says that Washington’s legal situation will probably be concluded by the beginning of next month, so that’s probably the earliest he could be reinstated (if he is). He is suspended, as we know, so he’s not around the team. There still hasn’t been any official word about X-Man, and we may not get one until then.
- It was great to see good old No. 10, Zak Kustok, watching practice from the sidelines for a while. He lives nearby and was there with his two sons. He looks like he could step right in and take a few reps.
- Kyric McGowan is much bigger than I expected; ditto Cameron Ruiz, who I expected to be rail-thin. McGown has the body to play early, if he’s ready. I saw him make a good catch in traffic with a defender draped all over him.
- Keith Watkins had some bad déjà vu today. It was last year, during the third practice on the same field, when he tore his ACL. He’s looking to bring some “swagger” back to the defensive backfield this season. He is the No. 1 CB but sat out today as a precaution because he felt some discomfort in the knee. I’ll have a story on him soon.
- I thought that Fitz was punishing the team at the end of practice, when they ran line sprints for about 15 minutes straight. It was pretty grueling. But that was by design. He said they changed “almost the entire practice structure” in an effort to prevent injuries and keep in peak condition. So Wednesday and Saturday are going to be their heavy conditioning days.
- And this one is for CatsDad…I tried to focus on Jango Glackin on several plays. I didn’t really see him make any plays, per se, but I will tell you one thing: he is in command out there. He’s very vocal, making calls, pointing out formations, telling linemen what to do. I know that much of that is his job, but he seems very confident out there. Most of the plays I watched him went the other way or were passes, as luck would have it. They did run a toss to his side once, and he seemed to be responsible for holding the edge, which he did very well, getting penetration, then stopping and holding his ground, to force the runner (Larkin, I think) back inside.
- Missing in action. I mentioned some of the players who were sidelined, but here are some others who were sidelined today: Fred Wyatt, Alonzo Mayo, Trevor Kent, Tommy Carnifax, Cameron Ruiz, Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman.
I was focused more on the lines than anything else today, but please ask questions and I’ll try to answer them.
But enough about the setting. We’re here to talk football! Here are some notes and observations from a nearly three-hour practice session, Northwestern’s first in pads...
- As I reported in the first practice feature, Jared Thomas was starting at left tackle today, with Blake Hance playing on the second team. Fitz downplayed any significance whatsoever, but at the very least he’s trying to light a fire under Hance. One source told me that the staff wouldn’t mind someone else taking that left tackle job, and that other than Tommy Doles and Brad North, the entire O-line is up in the air. The first-team line, then, was left to right, Thomas, JB Butler, North, Doles and Gunnar Vogel. Vogel looks like a player, and I hear that he is the best of the redshirt freshman offensive lineman, followed by Nik Urban. In general, though, the defensive line looked to be ahead of the OL. They got consistent penetration, “sacked” the QB four times in limited scrimmages (there are no true sacks) and really got a push. Given the talent on that side of the ball, particularly in the middle, I don’t think that’s a surprise. The second OL was made up of, from left to right, Thomas, Ben Oxley, Urban, Cam Kolwich and Vogel or Hance. Yes, Thomas and Vogel were pulling a lot of double-duty. Read into that what you will.
- Mark Gooden is the real deal and I’m confident that he will play this season. My main concern was whether he had the size to stop the run, but he assuaged all concerns today. He looks ready to go. He’s just 6-foot-1 and 251 pounds, but that’s about the same size as Xavier Washington. Gooden really thickened up over the winter and looks strong and powerful. He may have the best burst off the ball on the D-line. I saw him completely pancake Andrew Otterman with a bull rush and knife through a double-team before they could even get in position to make a play in the backfield. He had at least one of the whistled sacks when he ran down the QB scrambling outside. I saw Sam Miller completely blow up Hance on one play, too. I think he will be in the rotation, too. The first line was Joe Gaziano and Trent Goens at DE and Jordan Thompson and Tyler Lancaster at DT. The second line was Gooden and Miller at DE with Jake Saunders and Alex Miller at DT. There were a lot of substitutions but those were the groups I saw most consistently. Earnest Brown looks the part physically and is very quick off the ball. I saw him steamroll Jesse Meyler on one play. He seemed to tweak his leg at some point during practice and then sat out the rest.
- Flynn Nagel is getting most of the attention this year, but I keep hearing that Macan Wilson has looked really good. Nagel, as it turns out, was out on Wednesday as he said he had some back spasms that were nothing serious. Wilson left drills about halfway through. The catch of the day belonged to Jalen Brown, who made a leaping, one-hand stab down the sideline. He made a few good catches today and Nagel said that Brown is making the transition smoothly and picking things up quickly. Look out for Riley Lees this year, too. He is backing up Nagel in the slot but will play a lot. He is very athletic and may have the best top-end speed of the entire receiver corps. Nagel called Jelani Roberts the quickest but Lees the fastest in the long haul.
- The running backs looked fantastic and Fitz lauded their preparation and their play today. I don’t have to say much about Justin Jackson. John Moten really caught my eye on a couple runs. He just has a gear that no one else has and can reach the second level quicker than anyone else. He took the ball on a delay up the middle, found a crease and was between the safeties before I could even see his number. He played injured last year and Fitz talked again about Moten’s toughness. The RB position will be in good hands once No. 21 leaves. Jeremy Larkin also captured my attention as a receiver. He caught a dump into the flats and put on a couple moves to get into the clear. He’s not a quick cutter like most of the other backs; he’s more of a smooth, winding runner, but deceptively fast.
- Garrett Dickerson is a man at superback. He caught a slant and turned it up the sideline, so I got a good look at him. He’s a specimen and looks like an NFL tight end. Trey Pugh got a lot of reps, too. He’s definitely the Dan Vitale H-back role. (I am not supposed to report on schemes, so I’ll leave it at that.) He’s got a bright future; he’s very athletic and he’s 6-foot-4 and 236 pounds already.
- Word on the street says that Washington’s legal situation will probably be concluded by the beginning of next month, so that’s probably the earliest he could be reinstated (if he is). He is suspended, as we know, so he’s not around the team. There still hasn’t been any official word about X-Man, and we may not get one until then.
- It was great to see good old No. 10, Zak Kustok, watching practice from the sidelines for a while. He lives nearby and was there with his two sons. He looks like he could step right in and take a few reps.
- Kyric McGowan is much bigger than I expected; ditto Cameron Ruiz, who I expected to be rail-thin. McGown has the body to play early, if he’s ready. I saw him make a good catch in traffic with a defender draped all over him.
- Keith Watkins had some bad déjà vu today. It was last year, during the third practice on the same field, when he tore his ACL. He’s looking to bring some “swagger” back to the defensive backfield this season. He is the No. 1 CB but sat out today as a precaution because he felt some discomfort in the knee. I’ll have a story on him soon.
- I thought that Fitz was punishing the team at the end of practice, when they ran line sprints for about 15 minutes straight. It was pretty grueling. But that was by design. He said they changed “almost the entire practice structure” in an effort to prevent injuries and keep in peak condition. So Wednesday and Saturday are going to be their heavy conditioning days.
- And this one is for CatsDad…I tried to focus on Jango Glackin on several plays. I didn’t really see him make any plays, per se, but I will tell you one thing: he is in command out there. He’s very vocal, making calls, pointing out formations, telling linemen what to do. I know that much of that is his job, but he seems very confident out there. Most of the plays I watched him went the other way or were passes, as luck would have it. They did run a toss to his side once, and he seemed to be responsible for holding the edge, which he did very well, getting penetration, then stopping and holding his ground, to force the runner (Larkin, I think) back inside.
- Missing in action. I mentioned some of the players who were sidelined, but here are some others who were sidelined today: Fred Wyatt, Alonzo Mayo, Trevor Kent, Tommy Carnifax, Cameron Ruiz, Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman.
I was focused more on the lines than anything else today, but please ask questions and I’ll try to answer them.
