Pace picks up on Day 2 in Mobile
As always, on the 2nd day of any collegiate all-star game event, the pace of the practices see an uptick in speed. It coincides with the fact that the players were in full pads on Wednesday.
Here’s a look at some of the standouts and some observations from Day 2 here at the 2020 Reese’s Senior Bowl.
North Team Practice Standouts/Observations
- WR Quartney Davis (6’2 200, Texas A&M) has a great deal of burst and acceleration for a bigger receiver. He was able to get separation a lot during 1-on-1 drills.
- QB Jordan Love (6’3 225, Utah State), in my opinion, is the most consistent QB on the North Team. He gets great velocity on his passes, which allows him to push the ball at all levels of the field with ease. He’s been driving the ball really well so far this week.
- WR Denzel Mims (6’3 215, Baylor) may not as explosive of an athlete as former Dallas Cowboys WR Dez Bryant, but he definitely plays with the same level of both dog & aggressiveness that #88 used to play with.
- LB Joshua Uche (6’2 250, Michigan) seems like a problem to block for opposing players. He’s a heavy-handed, brickwall rolling downhill on both ends of defense,
- DL Bradlee Anae (6’3 265, Utah) was impressive in Team periods. He is so darn quick off the ball, that it puts OL in a constant bind.
- RB Joshua Kelley (5’11 216, UCLA) has been excellent so far this week. It’s hard not to take notice of how explosive he is as a runner. His vision also has been on display as well, ‘seeing it’ as it is opening up, which yields itself to him constantly finding the ‘right’ hole.
- I’ve been impressed over the 2 Days with Notre Dame safeties Jalen Elliott (6’0 210) and Alohi Gilman (5’10 202). Both guys play with great instincts, and take great angles to the ball.
- WR James Proche (6’0 193, SMU) definitely plays bigger than his size. He has no fear going over the middle of the field, and is able to do a great job of focusing in on the football when it comes his way.
- OL Hakeem Adeniji (6’5 300, Kansas) had himself a strong day during 1-on-1 drills; showed some George Foreman-like power during the period.
- Again, this is a strong TE group for the North Team. Adam Trautman (6’5 253, Dayton), Charlie Taumoepeau (6’3 245, Portland State) and Brycen Hopkins (6’5 245, Purdue) have been really good.
South Team Practice Standouts/Observations
- QB Jalen Hurts (6’1 218, Oklahoma) had a better Day 2 than Day 1 from a consistency standpoint. Where he stood out on Wednesday is during the 7-on-7 and Team periods. He consistently took chances down the field, putting the ball in spots that the other QBs were afraid to attempt. I felt like the other QBs during 7-on-7, immediately sought out the check down or low crosser. That’s not the purpose of the drill. Hurts used that drill to take chances and made some impressive throws.
- LB Akeem Gaither-Davis (6’2 215, Appalachian State) is the type of linebacker you want on your team. He’s instinctive, explosive, and aggressive. He was all 3 on Wednesday.
- S Kyle Dugger (6’2 220, Lenoir Rhyne) plays fast and explosive in all directions. On Day 2, he looked like your ideal ‘matchup piece’ on defense. He has looked extremely strong and comfortable in man-to-man coverage. Also, his explosiveness and speed downhill shows up positively in the run game.
- Small College Tackles Alex Taylor (6’8 305, South Carolina State) and Ben Bartch (6’6 305, Saint John’s) have more than held their own against the pass rushers from the upper levels. Taylor’s footwork and hand technique has been consistent. Bartch anchors well and is able to both reset-and-redirect really well also.
- OL Logan Stenberg (6’6 322, Kentucky) had a banner day in 1-on-1s. His game fits the description of a ‘mauler’.
- C Lloyd Cushenberru III (6’4 315, LSU) has been stellar that past 2 days. He’s able to absorb, anchor and stymie defensive linemen. You can almost see the will to compete leave their body after his stops their initial and subsequent counter move.
- TE Stephen Sullivan (6’5 242, LSU) has quietly shown the ability to get deep and separate from defenders. He was on the receiving end of one of Jalen Hurts dime throws, which Sullivan showed a good deal of athleticism to haul in the grab, getting both feet down in bounds.
- The Texas Longhorn WR duo of Collin Johnson (6’5 220) and Devin Duvernay (5’11 210) just continue to impress. Both guys have been able to stack great days on top of each other. Duvernay has some Deebo Samuel in his game.
- DL Terrell Lewis (6’5 252, Alabama) has been solid both days. He uses length & power better than most EDGE players on the South Team. He’s been an excellent run defender so far.
- WR Van Jefferson (6’2 197, Florida). Good luck getting a handle on his technical savvy at the position. He’s one of the purest route runners out there, with the toughness to make plays; Very AJ Green-like in that regard.