So as a thank you to all the people helping out with the travel fund and something I've had to put off due to breaking news and camp stuff I am dropping a Football Team edition WAR ROOM. Let's dive in.
AS ALWAYS THIS STAYS ON HERE, DO NOT POST THIS CONTENT ELSEWHERE
The offseason OTA program has been really big for GT. There has not been enough experienced leadership to lead the player-led voluntary workouts in the past per my sources and they are very excited to get hands-on and work with the players especially with so many new faces and multiple guys who were extremely limited in the spring coming off injuries like Tyson Meiguez or Leo Blackburn for example.
POS by POS
OFFENSE
QBs- Jeff Sims despite being a projected starter going into year three has not had a normal offseason yet and this is the closest it has been to one. Getting the extra work with Chris Weinke and Chip Long has helped him grow and he is still trying to grow into the leadership position on the team as well. Sims likes to be one of the guys but he is realizing per my sources he has to be more of a leader overall now that he isn't a teenager anymore. It is all about what is between the ears and how he processes and staying healthy for Sims. The new offense is geared to make his reads fast and decisive so he won't have to deal with a lot of the issues that led to turnovers in year one and two for him.
Taisun Phommachanh is knocking the rust with the QBs. He hadn't really had the opportunity to work out on the level GT does during his downtime from entering the portal to arriving on campus, almost six months. So he is getting his arm back up to speed. I believe the hope is he can be a solid #2 option in August.
Zach Pyron has healed up from his injury that kept him out of the spring game and is back at work. Ideally, they would like to redshirt him and not press him into action this year. He is still drinking water from a fire hose, but my sources say he works hard as hell and wants to be good.
Zach Gibson is sort of the wild card guy of the three backup QBs. Decent arm strength and he is a funny guy. The dude never stops talking, it is pretty impressive. With Gibson, he has to get the ball out faster and read things faster. That was the bigger issue at Akron as well, just needs to be decisive and put mustard on his throws.
RBs- Dontae Smith is the leader there but this is likely to be a three-headed monster this season again with Smith, Hassan Hall as the flashy APB type and then Dylan McDuffie as the Jordan Mason meat and potatoes back. Long likes to run the rock and that will bode well for all three backs especially if Sims continues to progress. McDuffie has fit in well during his brief time at GT and is picking up the system. Hall and Smith were held back a little in the spring game so you didn't get a real look at what they can do yet.
Antonio Martin is doing really well in adapting to life at GT, he is still not quite there physically, but is progressing. Jamie Felix has a chip on his shoulder because of how his recruitment played out which should motivate him to do well. I could see one of them playing this fall and burning a shirt.
WRs- Leo Blackburn should be ready for contact by Fall Camp, will he be 100% then? Probably not, but at 85% he is still a really solid option for GT on the outside. Landing EJ Jenkins will take some pressure off them to have to play Blackburn if he still needs more time to feel 100% comfortable, but Leo wants to play per my sources badly. He had a hard time missing out last year. Jenkins is really impressive from a personality standpoint and is extremely mature. Hopefully, his play lines up with his measurables and personality, but he is off the charts on both. He is freaky like BayBay Thomas freaky or Darren Waller.
Malachi Carter still has to become more consistent, Kalani Norris really pushed in the spring, but all bets are off with Del Alexander as the new WR coach and guys are on an even footing. James BlackStrain had a strong camp and he gives them more outside size that Long and Alexander like so hopefully he can build on that. It will be interesting to see how Ryan King responds as well because he has the size they want on the outside too, but he has struggled to use his body so far and has played smaller than his size.
In the slot, Long would like to eventually get bigger, but they are excited about the trio of Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Jamal Haynes who have speed. Eventually, you will see GT playing with taller slot receivers more akin to Kalani Norris size.
At tight end, Long is very demanding of his guys and they have a pretty solid trio with Dylan Leonard, Peje Harris and Luke Benson and then Billy Ward is the next guy up. You may see Jenkins line up some as an in-line WR but not technically a TE and the same with King or Blackburn or BlackStrain. Ben Postma is still kind of raw.
The offensive tackle situation is this, Jordan Williams is working LT right now since he has kept his weight off and looks to be quicker. Fall Camp will determine if that sticks or not. At right tackle you have Jakiah Leftwich and Wing Green battling for that job and then behind them you have transfer freshman Corey Robinson, freshmen Bobby Mooney and Tyler Gibson. Gibson has been a bit of a surprise, he is a lot physically stronger than he looked in HS, he apparently was working hard to prepare for college and he might have a leg up in battling for the 4th tackle spot. They could also flip out Paula Vaipulu to tackle if needed to add depth. Who plays left and right tackle is still not set in stone for any of the tackles.
In the guard box, Paul Tchio is nearing getting fully cleared, I believe he will be out of his boot this week or next. That is Tchio and Paula battling at LG and Pierce Quick appears to have settled in at right guard with Mike Maye behind him. Will Lay is cross-trained at both guard spots as well and RJ Adams the transfer from Kentucky is working guard and center. Brandon Best is working a lot of center behind Weston Franklin and they have Will Lay should they need a backup center in a pinch as well. The future of the center position would be Franklin, Best or Adams or both. Best is picking things up fast. Adams moves really well for a guy as big as he is.
AS ALWAYS THIS STAYS ON HERE, DO NOT POST THIS CONTENT ELSEWHERE
The offseason OTA program has been really big for GT. There has not been enough experienced leadership to lead the player-led voluntary workouts in the past per my sources and they are very excited to get hands-on and work with the players especially with so many new faces and multiple guys who were extremely limited in the spring coming off injuries like Tyson Meiguez or Leo Blackburn for example.
POS by POS
OFFENSE
QBs- Jeff Sims despite being a projected starter going into year three has not had a normal offseason yet and this is the closest it has been to one. Getting the extra work with Chris Weinke and Chip Long has helped him grow and he is still trying to grow into the leadership position on the team as well. Sims likes to be one of the guys but he is realizing per my sources he has to be more of a leader overall now that he isn't a teenager anymore. It is all about what is between the ears and how he processes and staying healthy for Sims. The new offense is geared to make his reads fast and decisive so he won't have to deal with a lot of the issues that led to turnovers in year one and two for him.
Taisun Phommachanh is knocking the rust with the QBs. He hadn't really had the opportunity to work out on the level GT does during his downtime from entering the portal to arriving on campus, almost six months. So he is getting his arm back up to speed. I believe the hope is he can be a solid #2 option in August.
Zach Pyron has healed up from his injury that kept him out of the spring game and is back at work. Ideally, they would like to redshirt him and not press him into action this year. He is still drinking water from a fire hose, but my sources say he works hard as hell and wants to be good.
Zach Gibson is sort of the wild card guy of the three backup QBs. Decent arm strength and he is a funny guy. The dude never stops talking, it is pretty impressive. With Gibson, he has to get the ball out faster and read things faster. That was the bigger issue at Akron as well, just needs to be decisive and put mustard on his throws.
RBs- Dontae Smith is the leader there but this is likely to be a three-headed monster this season again with Smith, Hassan Hall as the flashy APB type and then Dylan McDuffie as the Jordan Mason meat and potatoes back. Long likes to run the rock and that will bode well for all three backs especially if Sims continues to progress. McDuffie has fit in well during his brief time at GT and is picking up the system. Hall and Smith were held back a little in the spring game so you didn't get a real look at what they can do yet.
Antonio Martin is doing really well in adapting to life at GT, he is still not quite there physically, but is progressing. Jamie Felix has a chip on his shoulder because of how his recruitment played out which should motivate him to do well. I could see one of them playing this fall and burning a shirt.
WRs- Leo Blackburn should be ready for contact by Fall Camp, will he be 100% then? Probably not, but at 85% he is still a really solid option for GT on the outside. Landing EJ Jenkins will take some pressure off them to have to play Blackburn if he still needs more time to feel 100% comfortable, but Leo wants to play per my sources badly. He had a hard time missing out last year. Jenkins is really impressive from a personality standpoint and is extremely mature. Hopefully, his play lines up with his measurables and personality, but he is off the charts on both. He is freaky like BayBay Thomas freaky or Darren Waller.
Malachi Carter still has to become more consistent, Kalani Norris really pushed in the spring, but all bets are off with Del Alexander as the new WR coach and guys are on an even footing. James BlackStrain had a strong camp and he gives them more outside size that Long and Alexander like so hopefully he can build on that. It will be interesting to see how Ryan King responds as well because he has the size they want on the outside too, but he has struggled to use his body so far and has played smaller than his size.
In the slot, Long would like to eventually get bigger, but they are excited about the trio of Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Jamal Haynes who have speed. Eventually, you will see GT playing with taller slot receivers more akin to Kalani Norris size.
At tight end, Long is very demanding of his guys and they have a pretty solid trio with Dylan Leonard, Peje Harris and Luke Benson and then Billy Ward is the next guy up. You may see Jenkins line up some as an in-line WR but not technically a TE and the same with King or Blackburn or BlackStrain. Ben Postma is still kind of raw.
The offensive tackle situation is this, Jordan Williams is working LT right now since he has kept his weight off and looks to be quicker. Fall Camp will determine if that sticks or not. At right tackle you have Jakiah Leftwich and Wing Green battling for that job and then behind them you have transfer freshman Corey Robinson, freshmen Bobby Mooney and Tyler Gibson. Gibson has been a bit of a surprise, he is a lot physically stronger than he looked in HS, he apparently was working hard to prepare for college and he might have a leg up in battling for the 4th tackle spot. They could also flip out Paula Vaipulu to tackle if needed to add depth. Who plays left and right tackle is still not set in stone for any of the tackles.
In the guard box, Paul Tchio is nearing getting fully cleared, I believe he will be out of his boot this week or next. That is Tchio and Paula battling at LG and Pierce Quick appears to have settled in at right guard with Mike Maye behind him. Will Lay is cross-trained at both guard spots as well and RJ Adams the transfer from Kentucky is working guard and center. Brandon Best is working a lot of center behind Weston Franklin and they have Will Lay should they need a backup center in a pinch as well. The future of the center position would be Franklin, Best or Adams or both. Best is picking things up fast. Adams moves really well for a guy as big as he is.
