Photo by: Rob Moseley/GoDucks.com
Football Practice Report: Dec. 21
12/21/18 | Football, @GoDucksMoseley
The Ducks held a walk-through Friday and will hold a scrimmage-like practice Saturday morning before breaking for a few days over the holidays.
Venue: Moshofsky Center
Format: Fast Friday
Players pushing for reps in the Redbox Bowl have one last chance to make their case in Eugene.
The Oregon football team held a walk-through Friday morning, gearing up for what sounds like a game-like practice Saturday morning. The team will break for the holidays later Saturday, giving the Ducks one more chance to show out for the coaching staff before the team arrives in the San Francisco Bay Area in advance of the New Year's Eve game against Michigan State (noon, FOX).
UO coach Mario Cristobal said the Ducks will be in full pads for the practice Saturday morning.
"That'll involve a lot of scrimmage-like plays," Cristobal said. "We're trying to get into game mode and playing situational football."
To gear up for Saturday's scrimmage, the Ducks held their standard "Fast Friday" workout the day before. It began as usual with the scrimmage for scout-team players, followed by an hour-plus walk-through for offense, defense and special teams.
The walk-through provided a chance for players coming off injury like linebacker Kaulana Apelu to get in work with the two-deep, without re-aggravating injuries. Apelu is "just about full-go," Cristobal said.
About the only player possibly in danger of missing the game as of now is tight end Kano Dillon, whose recovery from an abdominal issue has been slower than anticipated.
The coaching staff could have some tough decisions to make when it comes to redshirts, under the new NCAA rule allowing players to appear in four games while preserving a year of eligibility. Receiver Bryan Addison, quarterback Braxton Burmeister and safety Billy Gibson (above) all have a redshirt year available and have played in four games already this season.
Addison has had an impressive series of bowl practices so far, and "really pushed himself into playing time," Cristobal said. "But at the same time, we've got to be mindful of the future."
Burmeister, Cristobal said, "is willing to play" should the Ducks need a backup quarterback.
The big star of Friday's developmental-squad scrimmage was receiver Isaah Crocker. It also featured live-action reps for linebacker Andrew Johnson Jr. (below), who was late arriving at Oregon this fall due to a knee injury, and is only now getting cleared for action.
"Through hard work and rehab, he got it done," Cristobal said. "He's a physical presence; he's a big, strong guy — a load. And when he hits you, you feel it."
Cristobal notes that guys like offensive lineman Steven Jones and linebacker D.J. Johnson earned themselves spots with the travel squad this season due to their play in the developmental squad scrimmages earlier this season. There will be one more down in San Francisco, the 16th scrimmage period of the season for those players, adding up to 320-plus reps.
"That's a lot," Cristobal said. "That's like having an extra four to five football games to their credit. And it pays off."
Developmental-squad scrimmage highlights (video available in report above): Crocker (above, right) got the offense into the end zone for the first time in the two scout-team scrimmages held so far this week. On the first play of the fifth and final possession Friday, Mike Irwin threw a deep ball to Crocker's outside shoulder that the receiver caught along the sideline for a gain of about 35 yards to the 5-yard line. These scrimmages are scripted, so four plays later the ball was back out around the 20, and Irwin and Crocker connected again, with the receiver making the touchdown catch. …
Prior to that, KJ Maduike was looking like the star of the day. On the opening possession, he took a handoff from Irwin, exploded through a hole created by Dawson Jaramillo and Charlie Landgraf and ran for about 15 yards. … Tevin Jeannis had a gain of about 11 yards on a pass from Bradley Yaffe, and ran for about 10 yards on a jet sweep. … Jack Vecchi leaped into the air and tipped a ball to keep it alive before making a catch during the last drive, between Crocker's big plays. … Defensively, Steve Stephens broke up a pass toward Vecchi on the first drive, Matt Christman could have had a couple of sacks had the quarterback been live, and Popo Aumavae was involved in stopping a couple runs near the line of scrimmage.
Post-practice interviews:
Head coach Mario Cristobal
Junior offensive lineman Calvin Throckmorton (from Thursday)
Format: Fast Friday
Players pushing for reps in the Redbox Bowl have one last chance to make their case in Eugene.
The Oregon football team held a walk-through Friday morning, gearing up for what sounds like a game-like practice Saturday morning. The team will break for the holidays later Saturday, giving the Ducks one more chance to show out for the coaching staff before the team arrives in the San Francisco Bay Area in advance of the New Year's Eve game against Michigan State (noon, FOX).
UO coach Mario Cristobal said the Ducks will be in full pads for the practice Saturday morning.
"That'll involve a lot of scrimmage-like plays," Cristobal said. "We're trying to get into game mode and playing situational football."
With one more practice tomorrow before the holiday break, the Ducks held their usual "Fast Friday" scrimmage this morning. @DuckFootball talks the "game-like" practice that will be held tomorrow and some highlights from today's developmental scrimmage in the #QuackMinute. pic.twitter.com/l9An7qUGNu
— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) December 21, 2018
To gear up for Saturday's scrimmage, the Ducks held their standard "Fast Friday" workout the day before. It began as usual with the scrimmage for scout-team players, followed by an hour-plus walk-through for offense, defense and special teams.
The walk-through provided a chance for players coming off injury like linebacker Kaulana Apelu to get in work with the two-deep, without re-aggravating injuries. Apelu is "just about full-go," Cristobal said.
About the only player possibly in danger of missing the game as of now is tight end Kano Dillon, whose recovery from an abdominal issue has been slower than anticipated.
The coaching staff could have some tough decisions to make when it comes to redshirts, under the new NCAA rule allowing players to appear in four games while preserving a year of eligibility. Receiver Bryan Addison, quarterback Braxton Burmeister and safety Billy Gibson (above) all have a redshirt year available and have played in four games already this season.
Addison has had an impressive series of bowl practices so far, and "really pushed himself into playing time," Cristobal said. "But at the same time, we've got to be mindful of the future."
Burmeister, Cristobal said, "is willing to play" should the Ducks need a backup quarterback.
The big star of Friday's developmental-squad scrimmage was receiver Isaah Crocker. It also featured live-action reps for linebacker Andrew Johnson Jr. (below), who was late arriving at Oregon this fall due to a knee injury, and is only now getting cleared for action.
"Through hard work and rehab, he got it done," Cristobal said. "He's a physical presence; he's a big, strong guy — a load. And when he hits you, you feel it."
Cristobal notes that guys like offensive lineman Steven Jones and linebacker D.J. Johnson earned themselves spots with the travel squad this season due to their play in the developmental squad scrimmages earlier this season. There will be one more down in San Francisco, the 16th scrimmage period of the season for those players, adding up to 320-plus reps.
"That's a lot," Cristobal said. "That's like having an extra four to five football games to their credit. And it pays off."
Developmental-squad scrimmage highlights (video available in report above): Crocker (above, right) got the offense into the end zone for the first time in the two scout-team scrimmages held so far this week. On the first play of the fifth and final possession Friday, Mike Irwin threw a deep ball to Crocker's outside shoulder that the receiver caught along the sideline for a gain of about 35 yards to the 5-yard line. These scrimmages are scripted, so four plays later the ball was back out around the 20, and Irwin and Crocker connected again, with the receiver making the touchdown catch. …
Prior to that, KJ Maduike was looking like the star of the day. On the opening possession, he took a handoff from Irwin, exploded through a hole created by Dawson Jaramillo and Charlie Landgraf and ran for about 15 yards. … Tevin Jeannis had a gain of about 11 yards on a pass from Bradley Yaffe, and ran for about 10 yards on a jet sweep. … Jack Vecchi leaped into the air and tipped a ball to keep it alive before making a catch during the last drive, between Crocker's big plays. … Defensively, Steve Stephens broke up a pass toward Vecchi on the first drive, Matt Christman could have had a couple of sacks had the quarterback been live, and Popo Aumavae was involved in stopping a couple runs near the line of scrimmage.
Post-practice interviews:
Head coach Mario Cristobal
Junior offensive lineman Calvin Throckmorton (from Thursday)
Players Mentioned
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