Cal Spring Game - DeSean

Cal Spring Game - Surplus Sale

Spring Game - The Start 

 

Before the scrimmage started, the team broke up into positional drills.  The linemen were crashing into those blocking sled thingies.  I hope never to be one of those in a future incarnation.  Kickers were kicking.  Laces out, I can only hope.  Right in front of where we were sitting, the WRs and DBs did their drills.

 

The DBs were mostly practicing running backwards and snagging balls.  They were a bit further away and so I didn’t get too many great shots of them.  Bee Tee Dub, the fact that a large chunk of a DBs job is to run backwards perhaps means that the combine should have a 10 yard backwards run instead of a 40 yard dash for them.  Maybe Hughes stock wouldn’t have fallen so much.  Who knows?

 

 

 

 

 

The WRs were right in front of us.  They were just lined up, awaiting their turns to catch balls.

 

 

 

 

 

DeSean’s on deck!  And he might be making love to the camera.

 

 

 Sad Wide Receiver.  !  Don’t worry, just get back in there!

 

 

 There you go!

 

 

 

3 is Boateng, who says he is like DeSean, but more explosive.  I like the way he thinks!  He looked good out there.  Not DeSean good, but still good.  He doesn’t get to play until 2008, when we are certainly going to need him. 

 

And then they lined up the other way to catch some balls.

 

 

 

A lot of the WR drill photos I took, I already posted in the DeSean thread, so check that one out.  

 

Up next, some actual scrimmage photos with a focus on the special teams.

 

Lastly, DUBS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Moreover, DUBS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

Want more exciting football?  Then move the ball from the 35 yardline back a few yards to the 30 yardline!  What a brilliant idea! 

Take your mind back to last year.  Weren’t kickoffs pretty boring last year?  For the most part, after a team scores a touchdown the game sort of takes a 10 minute break.  Broadcasting stations go to commercials, after the commercials the kickoff is downed for a touchback, and then we’re off to more commercials!

Aside from Tedford actually letting Marshawn Lynch return a kickoff or watching Ted Ginn Jr. take the rock 100 yards to the house in a whopping 3.957 seconds, kickoffs were pretty boring.  In fact, while I wasn’t counting, I’d bet that at least 50% of our kickoffs were just downed in the endzone.  Talk about excitement!

Anyways, now that kickoffs are more likely to get returned I thought it might be interesting to talk about what this rule means for Cal’s kickoff coverage and return teams. 

First off, while the new rule will allow for more returns I wouldn’t expect to see Tedford put our beloved thin-framed Desean Jackson back for any returns.  Tedford has always been a conservative coach and very conscious to not put key players in potentially hazardous injury situations.  Last year Lynch was not only our best runningback but also a fabulous returner, yet despite his skills he rarely returned a kickoff.  Instead, Marcus O’Keith and Daymeion Hughes shared the return responsibilities. 

So you’re probably thinking why Daymeion Hughes was allowed to return kickoffs when Marshawn Lynch wasn’t despite them both being critical key players.  Well, the difference is that Daymeion Hughes plays defense and Marshawn Lynch is on offense.  Getting good field position off of the kick return is important but you don’t want to tire out any offensive players who are about to go out on offense.  Even any Cal fan would have to admit that Marshawn "Money" Lynch probably wouldn’t have been as "Money" running the ball if he also returned kickoffs.  Furthermore, an absense of Lynch in the offense - whether it be due to injury or being winded - would allow the defense to play more balanced and not focus so much on stopping the run. 

If you haven’t ever noticed, when Lynch did return a kickoff for a good return or winded himself after breaking the ankles of the defensive players he sat out the first few snaps of the offense’s possession.  And while Desean Jackson is placed in a dangerous situation as our primary punt returner, the same rule applied to him.  Yup, on the off chance that he didn’t put 6 on the board he usually sat out the first one or two plays of the offensive possession. 

Next year I expect Lavelle Hawkins to be one of the two primary returners next year even though he is a starter on offense.  While I know that Tedford would love to keep Hawkin’s legs fresh for the offensive possession - as well as limiting Hawkins exposure to injury prone situations - Hawkins is one of the best returners on the team.  It’s a dangerous job and somebody has to do it.  And even if Hawkins does sit out the first two plays of the offense’s possession Robert Jordan is more than able to fill in. 

Now in terms of Cal defending the kickoff returns, a fearless, aggressive, yet disciplined coverage team will be crucial.  For most teams, their kickoff coverage squad is already at a disadvantage because the kicker is not much of a defensive factor.  Cal will need its placekickers - Tom Schneider and Jordan Kay - to be a true 11th defender.  Remember David Lonie?  While he was a punter and not a placekicker, he was the ideal 11th defender for kick coverage.  I can’t recall how many times he made a touchdown saving tackle on punt coverage or slowed down the ball carrier just enough to allow a fellow defender to make the tackle. 

Finally, it wouldn’t be too unusual to see a few more starters and key players participating on special teams.  This decision is at the discretion of the coaches but with talented kickoff returners getting more and more opportunities to return the ball, adequate countermeasures must be taken.  Afterall, putting a few more of your starters out on the field for another play instead of resting them is probably better than giving up a 50 yard kickoff return or a touchdown.