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 Posted: Mon Mar 21, 2005 3:32 pm Post subject: Southern University Jaguars Wide Receivers |
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From: The Advocate
| Quote: | SU receivers hit stride
By JOSEPH SCHIEFELBEIN
Advocate sportswriter
One season of college football has done wonders for Southern's wide receivers.
There's a smoothness to the way they run routes, a faster tempo.
And they can feel the difference.
"We feel the game now," said Emile Bryant, who will be a senior in the fall, as Southern finished its spring workouts last week. "We understand what needs to be done now."
A year ago, only James Vernon, an All-Southwestern Athletic Conference first-teamer, had made a catch.
But Bryant and Antonio Overstreet, both juniors last season, emerged. Bryant had 498 yards and four touchdowns on 37 catches, making a nice run at his goals of 600 yards and six touchdowns. Overstreet had 500 yards and seven TDs on 38 catches.
"I had to grow up real quickly," Bryant said.
Freshmen Rogers Taylor (301 yards and three TDs on 24 catches), Gerard Landry (164 yards and two TDs on 17 catches) and Edward Robinson (35 yards on six catches) all contributed, all got valuable experience.
There's a pleasure in not having to rebuild this unit again for wide receivers coach Eric Dooley.
"It's good to have young leaders because now you know you can just continue on with those guys, we can continue to grow with them," Dooley said. "They didn't play selfishly last year. They have to continue to work to get better. And most of all, they have to continue to do the things they're supposed to do on and off the field. The sky is the limit for those guys, as long as they continue to work."
This spring, SU has gotten back LSU transfer Junior Joseph, ruled ineligible just before the start of last season, and two transfers have added depth: Brian Thomas-Miller from Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Greg Lowe from Eastern Michigan.
Of Joseph, Dooley said, "He'll be a great help. It looks like he hasn't missed a beat."
In one of the major wrinkles, SU will move Vernon (730 yards and six TDs on 56 catches) outside, moving the bigger Overstreet inside. That's so Vernon, who missed spring practice after having knee surgery that kept him out of much of the second half of the season, can avoid having to tussle with linebackers and all the traffic in the middle of the field.
Though the wide receivers look great dissecting a young secondary, the group has had only one season together.
"As a receivers coach, I always look for those guys to get faster, to have better hands, to improve on their route-running and to be a veteran," Dooley said. "For this group, to be a complete receiving corps we have to come up on the blocking aspect, realize that will make us complete receivers. Not just catching the passes and making the touchdowns, but making the key block for another receiver or a running back.
"We've got to keep their head on their shoulders, let them know they have to continue to work hard, because we didn't come back from Birmingham (Ala.) without the big prize (the SWAC title)."
So, further polish is needed. But the foundation is set, helping SU transition to sophomore J.C. Lewis as the new starting quarterback.
"Last year was the start of a young group starting to develop," Overstreet said. "We did pretty good to say we were inexperienced. But now we know the system, know the game. It feels a whole lot different.
"Now we know what to expect. Last year, we were still shaking off the butterflies. As the season went on, we got stronger."
The good and the bad
Southern's new secondary (for the second straight season) still looms as problem area. But coaches didn't expect that unit to be close to solidified at the end of three weeks.
"I'm still concerned, especially in the secondary," Richardson said. "We have a lot of individuals who have a way to go. There's a lot of work to do in that area."
Meanwhile, the accuracy and confidence of Lewis -- another key watch area in the spring -- drew praise.
"Our quarterback directed our offense effectively," Richardson said. "He absorbed what we thought he should. He took control of the offense. Now, it's a matter of him coming back in the fall and getting ready to go."
The newcomers
In addition to wide receiver Greg Lowe, the Jaguars had four other Division I-A transfers on defense: ends Julian Lowe (Tulane) and Joe Sykes (West Virginia) and linebackers Garnet Smith (Texas) and Travis Berry (Colorado signee).
Smith and Sykes drew the best reviews, though Julian Lowe started to come around the deeper into spring practice Southern got. Berry has spent the most time away from the game, so more will be expected of him by August.
"I thought they meshed in well with what we were trying to do," Richardson said. "Once they started to digest some of the scheme, we got what we expected of them.
"Most of them have a tremendous amount of quickness, and that's what we were looking to add. They're going to add something to our defense."
Lagniappe
Southern did not stage a spring game, mostly because the Jaguars didn't have enough healthy offensive linemen to go a lengthy game-like session. Senior center Brandon Jones (ankle) and senior guard Lunda Wells (ankle) never dressed. And junior tackle Tremaine Johnson (ankle) went down early. That left SU with only five offensive linemen. "It's a big loss, because he needed the work," Richardson said of Johnson. ... The Jaguars' original spring schedule had them finishing by Saturday, but with the weather cooperating, Richardson got the 15 practice days in by Thursday, allowing practice not to spill into spring break. ... SU's running back corps was also thinned by injuries. Sophomore Devin Herbert (feet) and Jamaal Huff (knee) never participated. Then junior Bobby Rose (ankle) and senior Steel Adams (shoulder) went out with injuries. That left sophomore Larry Nicholls as the only healthy veteran. |
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