It was back to work for Arizona last night and the team had us there late as practice was originally delayed because of a school obligation that all the athletes had to attend. After that the lightning started and delayed things again, so it wasn't until about 7:30 that things that things got going. Still, we had a chance to catch up with defensive coordinator Marcel Yates afterward and he gave us a good amount of time to ask questions.
Here's a few things that stood out after Monday night's practice.
* There are still quite a few guys not practicing and players I'm sure Arizona would like to have out there on the field. One coach mentioned after practice that his entire group simply needs to get out on the field and he would feel better. Corner is definitely the spot where the numbers remain low with Jace Whittaker, Malcom Holland and Sammy Morrison still not practicing. Jacob Colacion is still not out there this week and Donovan Laie was only out there for about half a practice.
The team did get a few guys back who sat out last weekend with JB Brown, PJ Johnson and Lorenzo Burns getting back on the field Monday night.
* The other big item that was learned Monday was that Tuesday will be the day Arizona learns the fate of its two Texas A&M transfers for the season. It feels like there is a sliver of confidence that it will go Arizona's way with at least one of the players. It's so hard to predict what the NCAA will do with each case it gets, but Santino Marchiol has a legitimate gripe in my mind. We'll see what happens but it's hard to ever be optimistic in these situations, but like I said there seems to be at least a little bit of confidence that the result will be a positive one for UA. At this point I get the sense Marchiol is more likely to happen than Robert Congel in terms of being eligible to play this year, but we shall see.
* It sounds like another name to add to the list of players who have put together strong camps is receiver Brian Casteel. The sophomore from California is someone I have liked going back to high school. He doesn't look like your typical college receiver and last year Theron Aych even joked that Casteel looks more like a linebacker than anything, but he has a knack for getting behind the defense and using his size to his advantage. For as big as he is he has good speed and he has become pretty close with Khalil Tate as well. That can go a long way and it sounds like it has been a good camp for Casteel and his production, or at least opportunities for production, should go up this season.
* Yates was asked about players standing out at the cornerback position and he mentioned Azizi Hearn but he also mentioned McKenzie Barnes again and the freshman could be called into action this year because of the situation at corner and the depth problems there. It certainly sounded like Barnes is going to see some action early in the season from the way Yates was talking. Someone else Yates mentioned as a standout was Christian Young. Dayven Coleman didn't get a mention this time but Young was someone who created some good buzz earlier in camp and Yates didn't hesitate to single out the Texas defensive back as a young standout.
* Troy Young continues to be the Bugs Bunny of Arizona's defense and play with every position group outside of the defensive line. The safety, who played a ton as a freshman last season, made the move to linebacker in the spring and continued that transition during the early part of camp. There is a good amount of depth at linebacker and the chances he got to see the field there are/were not looking good. Still, it's hard to look at him and not wonder if he can help somewhere on the field.
This is just my opinion, but it looked like the nuances of playing the linebacker spot was just too much for Young. Yates was doing a lot of teaching with him when the media was able to watch practice and it just didn't look like Young was picking it all up. Lately he has been working with the cornerbacks and has even been running with the first unit to get him up to speed. He has unique enough size to play the position and while it's not ideal he has a far better shot to play there than he does at linebacker right now.
Another cornerback note, Yates mentioned that the only safety he thinks has the type of skill set to play cornerback is Isaiah Hayes. Outside of that he doesn't envision any other players making that move if needed. Hayes is someone who could move over in a pinch if the staff really needed him to.
Here's a few things that stood out after Monday night's practice.
* There are still quite a few guys not practicing and players I'm sure Arizona would like to have out there on the field. One coach mentioned after practice that his entire group simply needs to get out on the field and he would feel better. Corner is definitely the spot where the numbers remain low with Jace Whittaker, Malcom Holland and Sammy Morrison still not practicing. Jacob Colacion is still not out there this week and Donovan Laie was only out there for about half a practice.
The team did get a few guys back who sat out last weekend with JB Brown, PJ Johnson and Lorenzo Burns getting back on the field Monday night.
* The other big item that was learned Monday was that Tuesday will be the day Arizona learns the fate of its two Texas A&M transfers for the season. It feels like there is a sliver of confidence that it will go Arizona's way with at least one of the players. It's so hard to predict what the NCAA will do with each case it gets, but Santino Marchiol has a legitimate gripe in my mind. We'll see what happens but it's hard to ever be optimistic in these situations, but like I said there seems to be at least a little bit of confidence that the result will be a positive one for UA. At this point I get the sense Marchiol is more likely to happen than Robert Congel in terms of being eligible to play this year, but we shall see.
* It sounds like another name to add to the list of players who have put together strong camps is receiver Brian Casteel. The sophomore from California is someone I have liked going back to high school. He doesn't look like your typical college receiver and last year Theron Aych even joked that Casteel looks more like a linebacker than anything, but he has a knack for getting behind the defense and using his size to his advantage. For as big as he is he has good speed and he has become pretty close with Khalil Tate as well. That can go a long way and it sounds like it has been a good camp for Casteel and his production, or at least opportunities for production, should go up this season.
* Yates was asked about players standing out at the cornerback position and he mentioned Azizi Hearn but he also mentioned McKenzie Barnes again and the freshman could be called into action this year because of the situation at corner and the depth problems there. It certainly sounded like Barnes is going to see some action early in the season from the way Yates was talking. Someone else Yates mentioned as a standout was Christian Young. Dayven Coleman didn't get a mention this time but Young was someone who created some good buzz earlier in camp and Yates didn't hesitate to single out the Texas defensive back as a young standout.
* Troy Young continues to be the Bugs Bunny of Arizona's defense and play with every position group outside of the defensive line. The safety, who played a ton as a freshman last season, made the move to linebacker in the spring and continued that transition during the early part of camp. There is a good amount of depth at linebacker and the chances he got to see the field there are/were not looking good. Still, it's hard to look at him and not wonder if he can help somewhere on the field.
This is just my opinion, but it looked like the nuances of playing the linebacker spot was just too much for Young. Yates was doing a lot of teaching with him when the media was able to watch practice and it just didn't look like Young was picking it all up. Lately he has been working with the cornerbacks and has even been running with the first unit to get him up to speed. He has unique enough size to play the position and while it's not ideal he has a far better shot to play there than he does at linebacker right now.
Another cornerback note, Yates mentioned that the only safety he thinks has the type of skill set to play cornerback is Isaiah Hayes. Outside of that he doesn't envision any other players making that move if needed. Hayes is someone who could move over in a pinch if the staff really needed him to.
