Robert Morris inched closer to its final scrimmage of camp Thursday, with the highlight a full-scale goal line drill. Let's jump right into it.
THE TWO-DEEP DEPTH CHART
OFFENSE
Quarterback - Jeff Sinclair, Matt Layman/Derik Abbott, Mikal Hall
Running back - Deontae Howard, Justin Brooks
Fullback - Nick Groat, Ryan Thermil
Tight End - Paul Evans, Andrew Smith
Wide Receiver - Donte Jeter, Duane Mitchell
Wide Receiver - Rickeem Jackson, Quinton Pirl
Left Tackle - A.J. Dalton, Dylan Knight
Left Guard - Alex Kirsch, Cory Pitkavish
Center - Nick Faraci, Anthony Lucian
Right Guard - Jon Hill, Sean Guy
Right Tackle - Nate Hargraves, Maxwell Robertson
DEFENSE
Defensive end - Steve Mitchell, Chris Thompkins
Defensive tackle - R.J. Cook, Sam Miller
Defensive end - Nolan Nearhoof, A.J. Holderman
Outside linebacker - Brad Banas, Kimani Smith
Inside linebacker - Kyle Cooper, Dan Mignogna
Inside linebacker - Mike Cook, Mike Neilson
Outside linebacker - Sanchez Faugue, Mark Centofanti
Corner back - Zach Washington, Marcelis Branch
Safety - Cameron Chadwick, Kyler Kenyon
Safety - D.J. Myers, Samuel Collins
Corner back - Antwan Eddie, Malik Johnson
NEWS AND NOTES
The injured and freshly healthy:
Returned to practice - RB Evan Taylor, DT Henry Jartu, DE Connor SullivanStill out - DB Keith O'Kelly, DB Clay Ilkin, DB Ben Ridgeley, FB Marty Thomas, OL Vince Mongelluzzo, TE Cory Nolton, TE D.J. Pearson, WR Chad Dawgiello, TE Justin Kempka, WR Garrett Piekarski, DT Farren Mason
You can tell camp is winding down. The coaching staff is tolerating mistakes less while also conserving the players. Normally, drills like 7-on-7 or 9-on-7 are pretty intense and fast-paced, but today was a day where the 9-on-7 drills were basically a walk-through and the 7-on-7 drills were focused solely on execution, not results. Secondary coach Bill Hurley was watching the defense closely, ensuring they were reacting to routes properly. Joe Walton, meanwhile, was looking for crisply run routes, with cuts coming at the precise time necessary. Whether a QB got a throw off in the coverage or not was actually secondary.
Jeff Sinclair and Matt Layman ran those drills, much like they did the day before. But just like Wednesday, the attitude and the rotation changed as soon as Robert Morris went to 11-on-11 drills. Sinclair and Layman sat the entire session out, observing from the offensive huddle. Freshmen Derik Abbott and Mikal Hall took the snaps in the normal 11-on-11 drills, and then Abbott was the only one to run the goal-line offense. He got 14 plays with the first team offense, all to himself, in a highly significant area of the field. Robert Morris is going to need him, and they need to know what he can do.
We'll get to the results in a moment. First, a little bit about Abbott as a Colonial. He has a good arm, he's accurate, and he's very poised. He certainly doesn't look like a freshman running the offense. That said, he's far from perfect. Abbott has a tendency to pick a receiver - or at least an area of the field - and stare it down. I caught him missing three open receivers on three different plays in 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 drills Thursday, all because he stayed focused elsewhere. Walton caught it too and brusquely reminded Abbott of his reads.
That comes with time and experience. He's not ready to supplant Sinclair or Layman right now, but if Robert Morris had to go to him, I don't think he'd sink like some quarterbacks have in the past. We'll get an even better idea after Saturday's scrimmage.
In the meantime, here's how the goal line drills went. Each "drive" started with a 1st and goal from the 5-yard line. The defense was primarily in a 4-3, with R.J. Cook and Sam Miller inside and Henry Jartu and Zac Bennett spelling them. The first team offense was the only line used, and the offense used a "varsity" rotation of backs, receivers, and tight ends, guys who would be expected to play on any given Saturday. The defense subbed in a second team for about 5 to 6 plays, with the other 8 to 9 belonging to the first team.
Why is this a focus? Because red zone conversion can often determine who wins or loses a game. Robert Morris needs to be better at it on both sides of the ball. Robert Morris scored touchdowns on 48 percent of its red zone possessions last year, down from 77 percent in 2010. The Colonials allowed touchdowns on 60 percent of opponent possessions, up from 48 percent in 2010. Those are huge swings, and no doubt a major factor in RMU's 2-9 season in 2011.
The results:Fullback Nick Groat plunged forward for a yard, stopped quickly by safety D.J. MyersFullback Ryan Thermil lost a yard, stopped again by Myers with significant help from linebacker Sanchez FaugueThermil goes nowhere, swallowed up by linebacker Mike Cook. Loss of down, and if you want to keep score, a "win" for the defense.Abbott's first strike, as he whistles a touchdown pass to Andrew Smith in the back of the end zone. The pass had some definite heat on it, but Smith hauled it in easily. 1-1.Abbott strikes again, finding another tight end in Paul Evans. Abbott put it only where Evans could reach it, as the big senior TE had to leap to get his hands on it. If he hadn't caught it, the pass falls harmlessly incomplete. It was a great connection. 2-1 offense.Groat tried to turn the corner against the second team defense but ran out of real estate, with Sam Miller and Kyle Cooper chasing him down. The 6-foot, 220 pound Groat drew a reprimand from Walton, who loudly exclaimed, "Turn that thing up! Who're you gonna out run to the sideline?"On second down, Abbott ball-faked a hand-off before giving the ball to Deontae Howard on a draw. Howard scored up the middle, and the offense was rolling. 3-1 offense.Abbott was sacked, a group effort on a jailbreak by the defense.Freshman defensive back Marcelis Branch broke off his block to wrap up and toss down Howard for a big loss. Branch looks like a sure-handed tackler, and he's been running with the second team in Clay Ilkin's absence.Howard was then stopped by R.J. Cook for no gain, giving the defense a win. 3-2 offense.Abbott faked everyone out on the first play of the next series, scoring untouched on a bootleg. 4-2 offense.The defense quickly took care of the final series, as defensive tackle Henry Jartu quickly took down William Quarles. Abbott scrambled for a couple yards, lowering his shoulder and initiating contact but failing to gain extra yardage. Abbott then tried to sneak ahead for a touchdown, but he was stood up at the line. The defense won the series, but the offense won the drill 4-3.
Robert Morris wraps up the practice portion of camp with a two-a-day tomorrow. ColonialsCorner will be there, putting together our scrimmage depth chart and preview.
THE TWO-DEEP DEPTH CHART
OFFENSE
Quarterback - Jeff Sinclair, Matt Layman/Derik Abbott, Mikal Hall
Running back - Deontae Howard, Justin Brooks
Fullback - Nick Groat, Ryan Thermil
Tight End - Paul Evans, Andrew Smith
Wide Receiver - Donte Jeter, Duane Mitchell
Wide Receiver - Rickeem Jackson, Quinton Pirl
Left Tackle - A.J. Dalton, Dylan Knight
Left Guard - Alex Kirsch, Cory Pitkavish
Center - Nick Faraci, Anthony Lucian
Right Guard - Jon Hill, Sean Guy
Right Tackle - Nate Hargraves, Maxwell Robertson
DEFENSE
Defensive end - Steve Mitchell, Chris Thompkins
Defensive tackle - R.J. Cook, Sam Miller
Defensive end - Nolan Nearhoof, A.J. Holderman
Outside linebacker - Brad Banas, Kimani Smith
Inside linebacker - Kyle Cooper, Dan Mignogna
Inside linebacker - Mike Cook, Mike Neilson
Outside linebacker - Sanchez Faugue, Mark Centofanti
Corner back - Zach Washington, Marcelis Branch
Safety - Cameron Chadwick, Kyler Kenyon
Safety - D.J. Myers, Samuel Collins
Corner back - Antwan Eddie, Malik Johnson
NEWS AND NOTES
The injured and freshly healthy:
Returned to practice - RB Evan Taylor, DT Henry Jartu, DE Connor SullivanStill out - DB Keith O'Kelly, DB Clay Ilkin, DB Ben Ridgeley, FB Marty Thomas, OL Vince Mongelluzzo, TE Cory Nolton, TE D.J. Pearson, WR Chad Dawgiello, TE Justin Kempka, WR Garrett Piekarski, DT Farren Mason
You can tell camp is winding down. The coaching staff is tolerating mistakes less while also conserving the players. Normally, drills like 7-on-7 or 9-on-7 are pretty intense and fast-paced, but today was a day where the 9-on-7 drills were basically a walk-through and the 7-on-7 drills were focused solely on execution, not results. Secondary coach Bill Hurley was watching the defense closely, ensuring they were reacting to routes properly. Joe Walton, meanwhile, was looking for crisply run routes, with cuts coming at the precise time necessary. Whether a QB got a throw off in the coverage or not was actually secondary.
Jeff Sinclair and Matt Layman ran those drills, much like they did the day before. But just like Wednesday, the attitude and the rotation changed as soon as Robert Morris went to 11-on-11 drills. Sinclair and Layman sat the entire session out, observing from the offensive huddle. Freshmen Derik Abbott and Mikal Hall took the snaps in the normal 11-on-11 drills, and then Abbott was the only one to run the goal-line offense. He got 14 plays with the first team offense, all to himself, in a highly significant area of the field. Robert Morris is going to need him, and they need to know what he can do.
We'll get to the results in a moment. First, a little bit about Abbott as a Colonial. He has a good arm, he's accurate, and he's very poised. He certainly doesn't look like a freshman running the offense. That said, he's far from perfect. Abbott has a tendency to pick a receiver - or at least an area of the field - and stare it down. I caught him missing three open receivers on three different plays in 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 drills Thursday, all because he stayed focused elsewhere. Walton caught it too and brusquely reminded Abbott of his reads.
That comes with time and experience. He's not ready to supplant Sinclair or Layman right now, but if Robert Morris had to go to him, I don't think he'd sink like some quarterbacks have in the past. We'll get an even better idea after Saturday's scrimmage.
In the meantime, here's how the goal line drills went. Each "drive" started with a 1st and goal from the 5-yard line. The defense was primarily in a 4-3, with R.J. Cook and Sam Miller inside and Henry Jartu and Zac Bennett spelling them. The first team offense was the only line used, and the offense used a "varsity" rotation of backs, receivers, and tight ends, guys who would be expected to play on any given Saturday. The defense subbed in a second team for about 5 to 6 plays, with the other 8 to 9 belonging to the first team.
Why is this a focus? Because red zone conversion can often determine who wins or loses a game. Robert Morris needs to be better at it on both sides of the ball. Robert Morris scored touchdowns on 48 percent of its red zone possessions last year, down from 77 percent in 2010. The Colonials allowed touchdowns on 60 percent of opponent possessions, up from 48 percent in 2010. Those are huge swings, and no doubt a major factor in RMU's 2-9 season in 2011.
The results:Fullback Nick Groat plunged forward for a yard, stopped quickly by safety D.J. MyersFullback Ryan Thermil lost a yard, stopped again by Myers with significant help from linebacker Sanchez FaugueThermil goes nowhere, swallowed up by linebacker Mike Cook. Loss of down, and if you want to keep score, a "win" for the defense.Abbott's first strike, as he whistles a touchdown pass to Andrew Smith in the back of the end zone. The pass had some definite heat on it, but Smith hauled it in easily. 1-1.Abbott strikes again, finding another tight end in Paul Evans. Abbott put it only where Evans could reach it, as the big senior TE had to leap to get his hands on it. If he hadn't caught it, the pass falls harmlessly incomplete. It was a great connection. 2-1 offense.Groat tried to turn the corner against the second team defense but ran out of real estate, with Sam Miller and Kyle Cooper chasing him down. The 6-foot, 220 pound Groat drew a reprimand from Walton, who loudly exclaimed, "Turn that thing up! Who're you gonna out run to the sideline?"On second down, Abbott ball-faked a hand-off before giving the ball to Deontae Howard on a draw. Howard scored up the middle, and the offense was rolling. 3-1 offense.Abbott was sacked, a group effort on a jailbreak by the defense.Freshman defensive back Marcelis Branch broke off his block to wrap up and toss down Howard for a big loss. Branch looks like a sure-handed tackler, and he's been running with the second team in Clay Ilkin's absence.Howard was then stopped by R.J. Cook for no gain, giving the defense a win. 3-2 offense.Abbott faked everyone out on the first play of the next series, scoring untouched on a bootleg. 4-2 offense.The defense quickly took care of the final series, as defensive tackle Henry Jartu quickly took down William Quarles. Abbott scrambled for a couple yards, lowering his shoulder and initiating contact but failing to gain extra yardage. Abbott then tried to sneak ahead for a touchdown, but he was stood up at the line. The defense won the series, but the offense won the drill 4-3.
Robert Morris wraps up the practice portion of camp with a two-a-day tomorrow. ColonialsCorner will be there, putting together our scrimmage depth chart and preview.
