http://www.wvusports.com/blogs.cfm?blog=footballBlog&story=28280
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Some team notes and tidbits as preseason training camp gets underway this evening for the West Virginia University football team:
* Coach Dana Holgorsen indicated Monday evening that offensive lineman Russell Haughton-James is no longer on the team. Haughton-James was suspended for violating team rules back in May after appearing in all 12 games last year as a backup tackle.
Other personnel items on day one of fall camp:
- Holgorsen said freshman Dontae Angus has moved to offensive tackle, “He’s 6-6, 320, so he’s big. He’s not ready to play by any means right now but maybe in two years on the O-line he will be what we want him to be because of what he looks like.”
- Maryland athlete Jacquez Adams has been ruled a non-qualifier and will attend prep school this fall, according to Holgorsen. “He’s close enough to where he’s not going to junior college,” he said. “He’s the only one that’s been ruled out.”
Holgorsen is waiting for wide receiver Jovon Durante and junior college defensive back Rasul Douglas to be cleared by the NCAA Eligibility Center.
“That’s a day to day thing,” he noted.
- Overall, Holgorsen indicated his pleasure with the condition of his team heading into his fifth fall training camp at WVU.
“We’re healthy. Nobody is on the injury report. There are 103 guys here and everybody is cleared and ready to go,” Holgorsen said. “We are in as good a shape, as deep and as experienced as we’ve been in the five years I’ve been here.”
- The coach was asked Monday if he thought a deep and experienced defense could with the development of his offense this fall. He said it will while adding, “At no point are they ready to write books about defense yet. There were plenty of games where if we would have played better defensively we win. With that said, we’ve got a lot of experience coming back and those guys are confident – (they) look good; feel good. It’s the second year in the system with all of the coaches coming back.”
- The practice plan for athletic quarterback William Crest will be specific only when it involves quarterback reps, said Holgorsen.
“The only thing that is scripted is quarterback reps. He will get 50 percent of the second team quarterback reps,” Holgorsen explained. “When he’s not in there taking those quarterback reps I can throw him anywhere. He will rep with the running backs and receivers when he’s not taking the quarterback reps.”
Condensing quarterback reps and developing a No. 2 and No. 3 quarterback will happen when players emerge.
“I’ve got to get three ready. I’m not going to rep four today; I’m only going to rep three and then I will rep a different one or a different two,” Holgorsen said. “They’ve got to emerge and they’ve got to separate themselves at some point and we’ve just got to make decisions.”
- Heavy on the practice script today are turnover circuits and punt return work – two sore spots for the Mountaineers in 2014.
“We’ve caught punts for 25 minutes before practice,” said Holgorsen.
- The coach was asked why he has been so successful through the years developing outstanding wide receivers going back to his assistant coaching days at Texas Tech.
He believes there are number of reasons.
“There is a developmental aspect with the way we practice. There are a lot of balls in the air and a lot of guys catching balls and running routes,” he said. “These guys are exhausted at the end of the day. I think we know what we’re doing when it comes to teaching technique and then there is a confidence level that exists between me, the receivers and the quarterback. I’ve got an open line of communication to trust them with what they say as to how we can get them the ball.”
Media was able to observe the first half hour of practice this evening. Tuesday’s practice is closed, but select players will be available for interviews tomorrow at noon.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Some team notes and tidbits as preseason training camp gets underway this evening for the West Virginia University football team:
* Coach Dana Holgorsen indicated Monday evening that offensive lineman Russell Haughton-James is no longer on the team. Haughton-James was suspended for violating team rules back in May after appearing in all 12 games last year as a backup tackle.
Other personnel items on day one of fall camp:
- Holgorsen said freshman Dontae Angus has moved to offensive tackle, “He’s 6-6, 320, so he’s big. He’s not ready to play by any means right now but maybe in two years on the O-line he will be what we want him to be because of what he looks like.”
- Maryland athlete Jacquez Adams has been ruled a non-qualifier and will attend prep school this fall, according to Holgorsen. “He’s close enough to where he’s not going to junior college,” he said. “He’s the only one that’s been ruled out.”
Holgorsen is waiting for wide receiver Jovon Durante and junior college defensive back Rasul Douglas to be cleared by the NCAA Eligibility Center.
“That’s a day to day thing,” he noted.
- Overall, Holgorsen indicated his pleasure with the condition of his team heading into his fifth fall training camp at WVU.
“We’re healthy. Nobody is on the injury report. There are 103 guys here and everybody is cleared and ready to go,” Holgorsen said. “We are in as good a shape, as deep and as experienced as we’ve been in the five years I’ve been here.”
- The coach was asked Monday if he thought a deep and experienced defense could with the development of his offense this fall. He said it will while adding, “At no point are they ready to write books about defense yet. There were plenty of games where if we would have played better defensively we win. With that said, we’ve got a lot of experience coming back and those guys are confident – (they) look good; feel good. It’s the second year in the system with all of the coaches coming back.”
- The practice plan for athletic quarterback William Crest will be specific only when it involves quarterback reps, said Holgorsen.
“The only thing that is scripted is quarterback reps. He will get 50 percent of the second team quarterback reps,” Holgorsen explained. “When he’s not in there taking those quarterback reps I can throw him anywhere. He will rep with the running backs and receivers when he’s not taking the quarterback reps.”
Condensing quarterback reps and developing a No. 2 and No. 3 quarterback will happen when players emerge.
“I’ve got to get three ready. I’m not going to rep four today; I’m only going to rep three and then I will rep a different one or a different two,” Holgorsen said. “They’ve got to emerge and they’ve got to separate themselves at some point and we’ve just got to make decisions.”
- Heavy on the practice script today are turnover circuits and punt return work – two sore spots for the Mountaineers in 2014.
“We’ve caught punts for 25 minutes before practice,” said Holgorsen.
- The coach was asked why he has been so successful through the years developing outstanding wide receivers going back to his assistant coaching days at Texas Tech.
He believes there are number of reasons.
“There is a developmental aspect with the way we practice. There are a lot of balls in the air and a lot of guys catching balls and running routes,” he said. “These guys are exhausted at the end of the day. I think we know what we’re doing when it comes to teaching technique and then there is a confidence level that exists between me, the receivers and the quarterback. I’ve got an open line of communication to trust them with what they say as to how we can get them the ball.”
Media was able to observe the first half hour of practice this evening. Tuesday’s practice is closed, but select players will be available for interviews tomorrow at noon.
