Excuse any typos as wrote this up quickly. Much of what we saw was special teams work so we have a limited perspective, but here are some notes broken down by position:
• Quarterback: If you want the order in which they threw passes, it was redshirt sophomore Matt McKay, redshirt freshman Devin Leary, redshirt sophomore walk-on Micah Leon, redshirt sophomore Bailey Hockman and freshman Ty Evans. McKay certainly had his moments throwing and Leon does not look like your typical walk-on, but it’s hard not to be most impressed with the zip that Leary and Hockman throw the ball with. Leary in particular can sling it, and Hockman seemed to get more comfortable as the practice unfolded.
• Running back: Limited by injuries so hard to say much about this position. Redshirt freshman Trent Pennix was running with the ones.
• Wide receiver/tight end: No surprises as junior Emeka Emezie and redshirt junior C.J. Riley on the outside and redshirt sophomore Thayer Thomas in the slot were leading the way in reps. Physically the starters look outstanding. Also thought that redshirt junior Cary Angeline was one of the better performers at the practice.
Offensive line: To start, it appears redshirt sophomore Grant Gibson is the leader on the interior, snapping while redshirt junior Joe Sculthorpe, who may be emerging as the leader on the offensive line, plays guard. At left tackle it seemed to be alternating between fifth-year seniors Tyrone Riley and Emanuel McGirt Jr. Both look like a million bucks, but the question is can they man the position.
On the second line left-to-right was redshirt junior Kendall Brown, redshirt sophomore Bryson Speas, walk-on redshirt sophomore Charles Fletcher, redshirt junior Justin Chase and early enrollee Timothy McKay.
Defensive line: In person you get an appreciation for just how big freshman Joshua Harris is. Once he gets fully conditioned by Thunder Dan in the weight room his potential is exciting. That said, the early enrollee who seemed to be flying through the drills was defensive end Savion Jackson.
Also there was soon-to-be Wolfpacker Jeffrey Gunter, who watched practice. Gunter will be a junior when he arrives from Coastal Carolina.
Linebacker: Physically it’s the best-looking linebacker group we have seen in a while. Redshirt sophomore Isaiah Moore and redshirt junior Brock Miller were running with the ones while junior Louis Acceus and redshirt freshman C.J. Hart were second team. First chance to look at junior USC transfer Levi Jones, who apparently goes by “Vi,” and he looks bigger than the 197 pounds listed.
Early enrollees Drake Thomas and Jaylon Scott both looked solid. Scott was in better shape than when we watched him in his opener last year, and Thomas has a body-builder’s physique.
Defensive back: Senior corner Nick McCloud did not practice, so junior Chris Ingram and sophomore Teshaun Smith were running ones at corner. Fifth-year senior Stephen Griffin (nickel) and fifth-year senor Jarius Morehead and senior Tim Kidd-Glass were also first string.
New safeties coach Tony Gibson jumped right in, more so than we noticed from Ted Roof last year who looked like he was sort of feeling his way around.
• Quarterback: If you want the order in which they threw passes, it was redshirt sophomore Matt McKay, redshirt freshman Devin Leary, redshirt sophomore walk-on Micah Leon, redshirt sophomore Bailey Hockman and freshman Ty Evans. McKay certainly had his moments throwing and Leon does not look like your typical walk-on, but it’s hard not to be most impressed with the zip that Leary and Hockman throw the ball with. Leary in particular can sling it, and Hockman seemed to get more comfortable as the practice unfolded.
• Running back: Limited by injuries so hard to say much about this position. Redshirt freshman Trent Pennix was running with the ones.
• Wide receiver/tight end: No surprises as junior Emeka Emezie and redshirt junior C.J. Riley on the outside and redshirt sophomore Thayer Thomas in the slot were leading the way in reps. Physically the starters look outstanding. Also thought that redshirt junior Cary Angeline was one of the better performers at the practice.
Offensive line: To start, it appears redshirt sophomore Grant Gibson is the leader on the interior, snapping while redshirt junior Joe Sculthorpe, who may be emerging as the leader on the offensive line, plays guard. At left tackle it seemed to be alternating between fifth-year seniors Tyrone Riley and Emanuel McGirt Jr. Both look like a million bucks, but the question is can they man the position.
On the second line left-to-right was redshirt junior Kendall Brown, redshirt sophomore Bryson Speas, walk-on redshirt sophomore Charles Fletcher, redshirt junior Justin Chase and early enrollee Timothy McKay.
Defensive line: In person you get an appreciation for just how big freshman Joshua Harris is. Once he gets fully conditioned by Thunder Dan in the weight room his potential is exciting. That said, the early enrollee who seemed to be flying through the drills was defensive end Savion Jackson.
Also there was soon-to-be Wolfpacker Jeffrey Gunter, who watched practice. Gunter will be a junior when he arrives from Coastal Carolina.
Linebacker: Physically it’s the best-looking linebacker group we have seen in a while. Redshirt sophomore Isaiah Moore and redshirt junior Brock Miller were running with the ones while junior Louis Acceus and redshirt freshman C.J. Hart were second team. First chance to look at junior USC transfer Levi Jones, who apparently goes by “Vi,” and he looks bigger than the 197 pounds listed.
Early enrollees Drake Thomas and Jaylon Scott both looked solid. Scott was in better shape than when we watched him in his opener last year, and Thomas has a body-builder’s physique.
Defensive back: Senior corner Nick McCloud did not practice, so junior Chris Ingram and sophomore Teshaun Smith were running ones at corner. Fifth-year senior Stephen Griffin (nickel) and fifth-year senor Jarius Morehead and senior Tim Kidd-Glass were also first string.
New safeties coach Tony Gibson jumped right in, more so than we noticed from Ted Roof last year who looked like he was sort of feeling his way around.
