Nov 15, 2014; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats place kicker Casey Skowron (41) is congratulated by tight end Blair Tushaus (87) after scoring a touchdown against the Washington Huskies during the first half at Arizona Stadium. Arizona won 27-26. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
This last week ended with Arizona Wildcats Media day for the football team, we would like to bring you some of the highlights, post camp notes and quotes from media and the team.
Quote of the week comes from Arizona freshman Cornerback Sammy Morrison who the media has discusd quite a lot these days so we are dedicating a whole slide to him. He is the son of JoAnn and former Arizona Wildcat football player Darryl Morrison.
Coach David Lockwood discussing Sammy Morrison:
.@CoachDLockDown discussing freshman CB Sammy Morrison. pic.twitter.com/GpMyu9eCDR
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) August 19, 2015
Cody James Martin of Wildcat Authority (Scout.com) got a chance to talk to Sammy yesterday, following is the interview and a few key quotes:
“Coming into college coming from high school you hear a lot about fall camp, ‘fall camp’s hard, fall camp’s hard,’ it really was…I am really encouraged about how it went.”
“The biggest transition was definitely just the speed, my defensive back coach, coach Lockwood, the first thing he said to me is that, ‘Sammy, you and your young guys, the first thing you need to do before you can even worry about playing you learn how to practice’..in a week or so I got it..”
“It’s kinda surreal that I am here in Tucson where my dad went, not only my dad went but my mom went here too..I’ll be walking the halls that they walked, I’ll be reading the books that they read in class, learning the same things, and playing on the field that my dad played on,.it’s a blessing from God honestly.”
Next: Steve Rivera (and Matt Moreno) of GoAZCats.com
Nov 30, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils running back D.J. Foster (8) is tackled by Arizona Wildcats linebacker Jake Fischer (33) in the 87th annual Territorial Cup at Sun Devil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Steve Rivera of GoAZCats.com got together with some key sports writers including fellow writer Matt Moreno, former Arizona Wildcats football player Jake Fischer and former Arizona Baseball Coach Andy Lopez to discuss Arizona football. He asked Jake what it’s like to be in camp at this point:
“In the third week, you’re tired your sore..that last week heading up to the first game they are bowing it down a bit..right now they are figuring out the two deep..right now you are pretty tired.”
Then Rivera asked fellow writer Matt Moreno who sees a lot of practice than anyone else what he thought of the team this year and if there are any surprises:
“This team feels like it’s going to be better than last years team..I think right now it’s looking like it’s going to be potentially a better season than maybe what people thought.”
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They all agreed that Sammy Morrison is coming along nicely, Matt felt he started slow but has come around and Fisher was all in:
“He just tries to blow you up, and that’s what I really liked about him, and those are the kind of guys that coach Rich Rod and his staff really like; The guys who you have to say calm down instead of the guys you have to yell at to go get somebody.”
Rivera had a mentioned something in the article which I wasn’t aware of:
“Last season, no tight end caught a pass.” The article also mentions Matt’s observations on Tight End, “Charlie Ragle has been preparing his tight end group for action and that could very well come this season.”
Overall this season, everyone agreed that the players are more mature this year, they know what they need to do and there isn’t a lot of discipline needed. Sounds like the team is focused, probably why Coach Rich Rod gave them the day off last week.
Next: Hard Edge Practice No. 11
Jul 31, 2015; Burbank, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats safety Will Parks (left), coach Rich Rodriguez (center) and receiver David Richards at Pac-12 Media Day at Warner Bros. Studios. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
ArizonaWildcats.com published Hard Edge Practice No. 11. In the video there were some classic quotes from Devonte’ Neal when asked about the cornerback core:
“I’m still working..as coaches say I haven’t arrived..its twelve weeks straight and I want to get on that field and contribute.”
“I think it’s a blessing for Coach Rich Rod to give me the opportunity to be a Corner and I am going to play it to the best of my abilities”
“If I have the communication with my spurs, my bandits, and my linebackers and my frees then we’re good, then our side is taken care of.”
To understand his second quote, following are some football position definitions for you:
- Spur – hybrid Safety Linebacker position known as the “Spur” is the beating heart of the 4-2-5 defense – and without question is one of the most physically and mentally demanding positions in all of football
- Bandit – A safety also might line up near the linebackers to better defend against the run. In some defenses, a player who often moves around the defensive formation is called a rover or a bandit.
- Free – Free Safety, The free safety tends to watch the play unfold and follow the ball. The free safety is typically assigned to the quarterback in man coverage, but as the quarterback usually remains in the pocket, the free safety is “free” to double cover another player.
And the best quote of the interview?
“People sleep on Tellas [Tellas Jones] but you know what? But that’s one dude that you say he’s silent he’s ain’t saying much, but they say the silent one’s are the deadly ones.”
Next: Gabe Encinas of AZDesertSwarm.com
Dec 31, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Boise State Broncos wide receiver Thomas Sperbeck (82) carries the ball as Arizona Wildcats cornerback Cam Denson (3) defends during the second half in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl at Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Gabe Encinas of AZDesertSwarm.com offered up some general observations from the past week:
“Nate Phillips had the best all-around performance on the day. He seemed to be Anu Solomon’s primary target and was running a variety of routes. It’s good to see him bounce back from his foot injury.”
“DaVonte’ Neal might just be the number one corner for Arizona this year, leaving it up to Cam Denson and Sammy Morrison to compete and split time at the number two spot. With Jarvis McCall’s injuries, it’s hard to rely on him as a consistent option. But Morrison looks good for now, and another guy in the secondary worth noting is Anthony Mariscal, that according to Jamar Allah.”
“An interesting formation that I really liked seeing was a dual-back set. It was run with Jarrett Mitchell and Branden Leon. It left the defense guessing on read options, since the ball could have gone to either back, or kept by the quarterback. This also leaves a slot receiver on the field, giving the quarterback many different options.”
And if you were wondering which players use which emoji’s, Gabe put together player stats for emoji’s which I think is a first, I thoroughly enjoyed this tweet and look forward to future emoji stats during the season:
https://twitter.com/Gabe_Encinas/status/635524980902465536
Next: Brad Allis of CBS's 247Sports.com - Wildcats Sports Report
Sep 4, 2014; San Antonio, TX, USA; Azona Wildcats quarterback Anu Solomon (12) looks to throw against the UTSA Roadrunners during the first half at Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Brad Allis interviewed Shun Brown during the recent Wildcats media day, following are some of Brad’s observations and Shun’s quotes that should give you some insight on how it is to come from Louisiana and aclimate to Tucson:
“Back home you step outside and you know it is hot, you are drenched in sweat right away,” Brown said. “Here it sneaks up on you. You know it is hot, but you don’t really sweat right away and the next thing you know your getting dehydrated,” – Shun Brown
“Everything goes fast,” Brown admitted. “Not just the offense or practice, but workouts and everything.” – Shun Brown
“Brown is a great fit for the offense. He’s a smaller, speedy receiver who can take a hit and make things happen after a grab.” – Brad Allis
“He [Shun] had a great fall camp and will likely be in the rotation when the season starts in a week and a half.” – Brad Allis
Allis also gave us his notes on the last day of fall camp and the scrimmage which was played to close it out:
“Cayman Bundage continued to get all the first team reps at center, but Rodriguez was not ready to call him the starter just yet.”
“It was a tough day for [Jerrard] Randall. His first three drives resulted in two three-and-outs and the pick. He eventually led the offense to a score late in the scrimmage.”
“Anu Solomon was off on his first two passes, but a penalty gave him and offense second life. He completed three straight passes to Nate Phillips then found tight end Josh Kern in the seam for a long gain to give the offense first and goal at the eight.”
Next: Javier Morales of AllSportsTucson.com
Dec 31, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Samajie Grant (10) stands on the field during the first quarter against the Boise State Broncos in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl at Phoenix Stadium. The Broncos won 38-30. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Javier Morales has been giving us the ‘Arizona Wildcats’ Top 50 games in the program’s history‘ for the last 40 days along with tidbits regarding current and past players. If you haven’t read any of these you must check it out!
Player Notes from Javier:
“Samajie Grant started 11 games and played in 13 at the receiver and slot positions. He totaled 718 yards on 45 receptions with six scores. He averaged 16.0 yards per catch and 55.2 yards per game. Grant recorded his first career 100-yard game vs. UNLV in last year’s season opener. He also hauled in two touchdowns vs. ASU, including a career long 69-yard score. He also returned three kickoffs for 52 yards.”
“Nick Foles is Arizona’s career passing leader with10,011 yards from 2009-11. He is the only quarterback to eclipse the 10,000-yard barrier although he played only three seasons with the Wildcats. Anu Solomon is on pace to throw for 15,172 yards in his career.”
About the ‘off’ weeks (not bye weeks):
“If you want to get technical about it, Rodriguez and his staff can use the next two weeks as “weeks off” before playing Texas-San Antonio in the season opener Sept. 3. And at least Arizona has nine days between playing the Roadrunners and traveling to Nevada to play the Wolfpack on Sept. 12.”
“Between now and the season opener, expect Arizona’s coaches to keep things lighter than usual without very physical tackling drills heading into the season. This will be a grind of a season. Why put the players through a grind before the season starts?”
And there you have it Wildcats fans! Hope you enjoyed these writers opinions as much as we did, you should now officially be well versed to talk Arizona Football!