It was the last day before full pads for Arizona and the practice was an interesting one. There was a decent amount of energy during the open portion, but at some points it was reminiscent of the first practice. That should change once the pads go on Wednesday evening, but there was still a good amount of things to watch Tuesday night.
I focused my attention on the offensive side of the ball and in particular the skill positions, so that is where the notes for today will be focused for the most part.
* I do want to start with some newcomers who are getting mentions by other players. One of the topics that gets discussed during camp or spring ball is who other players are being impressed by, and while most of the players who have chatted with the media up to this point have been clear that it is early and they are still even learning some names there are a few players who have jumped out as impressive so far through four practices.
- Jalen Johnson: I'm not sure there is a newcomer that has been mentioned more than Jalen Johnson through the first four practices. There have been numerous players who have mentioned the California wideout as someone who has impressed them out of the gate. Special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer named Johnson as someone who will get the chance to play this year for him on special teams. He is someone I mentioned looked the part from the first day and he is inching his way into the rotation and has a shot to get time at receiver this year if he continues his climb.
- Jamari Williams: The offensive lineman from Florida is someone who has come up a bit as well up tot his point. He has good size and I like the toughness he has shown already in camp. He was one of the players who was not afraid to mix it up a bit during the one-on-one portion of practice Monday night and it's good to see that from such a young player. Tuesday he was working with UA's second group at guard, so certainly seems to have made a good impression on the staff already.
- Bobby Wolfe: There has been a lot of talk about Hollywood Bobby Wolfe already in camp. Some of that is because of his personality, but he is another one who looks the part. It will be interesting to see where he's at once the pads go on and if he can make his climb up the depth chart. There is a lot of competition at cornerback right now, but he's someone who could end up being in the mix to get on the field.
- Jaxen Turner, Eddie Siaumau and Derrion Clark are a few other players Springer mentioned Tuesday night that are in line to play on special teams at the very least this season.
* Grant Gunnell is another freshman who has been having his name singled out as of late from a couple different players. Colin Schooler, in particular, noticed the improvements the newcomer has made since taking part in spring ball. Right now the freshman is looking like he will eventually be the backup to Khalil Tate as he continues to show signs of progress running the offense. I watched him quite a bit yesterday and there is a poise that wasn't quite there yet in the spring that is there now. He also looks to have added some good weight and while he has always had the NFL-type height he now looks the part even more with some added bulk.
* Arizona's running back group is more impressive than I originally thought it would be. Even going down to the walk-on players the unit is simply talented. JJ Taylor is, of course, the star but the group this year is as deep as I can remember and the drop off from each player on the depth chart to the next is as small as I can remember in my time covering the team. I wasn't too sure about what Michael Wiley would look like as a freshman coming in this summer, but he looks ready to play right now. He has been impressive in my time watching him and seeing him a little closer Tuesday it's clear he has a bright future ahead of him.
* I'd be surprised if Jamarye Joiner doesn't find himself a good amount of playing time this year. He continues to look the part of a receiver just four practices into his position switch. He worked with what was the first group (Tate's group) during Tuesday's practice and he and Tate had a couple nice connections during some of the 11-on-0 period.
* On the special teams front, considering it was a special teams interview day with Springer and kicker Lucas Havrisik, there are some interesting developments within the unit to watch this month. The Wildcats brought in a scholarship punter, Kyle Ostendorp, and the thinking was he would take over the job right away without much competition. However, Matt Aragon was the lone punter during the spring and he has apparently decided he's not going to give up his job easily. At this point it would be a surprise if he isn't the punter against Hawaii based on what he has shown so far in camp.
Springer said the differences for Aragon since last season are "night and day" and I think his progress has surprised a lot of people.
"He's done a great job developing his body and really taking punting seriously in the last year or so," Springer said Tuesday. "He was playing scout team receiver for so long that he wasn't really working punting. Really since we've taken over he's got so much upside and I think he's finally realized that and he's been working at it. Really his development has been 0-100 to be honest."
Aragon became a father within the last year and he has certainly started to come into his own on the field now this year.
So far the kicking situation is going to belong to Havrisik. He said he always feels like he is in competition, but right now it is his job barring something catastrophic taking place. At the long snapper position the Wildcats do actually have more of a battle going on with veteran Donal Reiter holding the top spot right now but freshman Seth Mackellar getting some attention as well for what he has done so far in camp.
Havrisik said everything with the first unit operation is working out great with Reiter snapping and Aragon holding, so it might end up being that grouping that heads into the season considering how much the kicker sang the praises of that duo Tuesday night.
You can watch the full interviews with Springer and Havrisik below.
Videos
Photos
Practice No. 4 gallery (click link)
I focused my attention on the offensive side of the ball and in particular the skill positions, so that is where the notes for today will be focused for the most part.
* I do want to start with some newcomers who are getting mentions by other players. One of the topics that gets discussed during camp or spring ball is who other players are being impressed by, and while most of the players who have chatted with the media up to this point have been clear that it is early and they are still even learning some names there are a few players who have jumped out as impressive so far through four practices.
- Jalen Johnson: I'm not sure there is a newcomer that has been mentioned more than Jalen Johnson through the first four practices. There have been numerous players who have mentioned the California wideout as someone who has impressed them out of the gate. Special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer named Johnson as someone who will get the chance to play this year for him on special teams. He is someone I mentioned looked the part from the first day and he is inching his way into the rotation and has a shot to get time at receiver this year if he continues his climb.
- Jamari Williams: The offensive lineman from Florida is someone who has come up a bit as well up tot his point. He has good size and I like the toughness he has shown already in camp. He was one of the players who was not afraid to mix it up a bit during the one-on-one portion of practice Monday night and it's good to see that from such a young player. Tuesday he was working with UA's second group at guard, so certainly seems to have made a good impression on the staff already.
- Bobby Wolfe: There has been a lot of talk about Hollywood Bobby Wolfe already in camp. Some of that is because of his personality, but he is another one who looks the part. It will be interesting to see where he's at once the pads go on and if he can make his climb up the depth chart. There is a lot of competition at cornerback right now, but he's someone who could end up being in the mix to get on the field.
- Jaxen Turner, Eddie Siaumau and Derrion Clark are a few other players Springer mentioned Tuesday night that are in line to play on special teams at the very least this season.
* Grant Gunnell is another freshman who has been having his name singled out as of late from a couple different players. Colin Schooler, in particular, noticed the improvements the newcomer has made since taking part in spring ball. Right now the freshman is looking like he will eventually be the backup to Khalil Tate as he continues to show signs of progress running the offense. I watched him quite a bit yesterday and there is a poise that wasn't quite there yet in the spring that is there now. He also looks to have added some good weight and while he has always had the NFL-type height he now looks the part even more with some added bulk.
* Arizona's running back group is more impressive than I originally thought it would be. Even going down to the walk-on players the unit is simply talented. JJ Taylor is, of course, the star but the group this year is as deep as I can remember and the drop off from each player on the depth chart to the next is as small as I can remember in my time covering the team. I wasn't too sure about what Michael Wiley would look like as a freshman coming in this summer, but he looks ready to play right now. He has been impressive in my time watching him and seeing him a little closer Tuesday it's clear he has a bright future ahead of him.
* I'd be surprised if Jamarye Joiner doesn't find himself a good amount of playing time this year. He continues to look the part of a receiver just four practices into his position switch. He worked with what was the first group (Tate's group) during Tuesday's practice and he and Tate had a couple nice connections during some of the 11-on-0 period.
* On the special teams front, considering it was a special teams interview day with Springer and kicker Lucas Havrisik, there are some interesting developments within the unit to watch this month. The Wildcats brought in a scholarship punter, Kyle Ostendorp, and the thinking was he would take over the job right away without much competition. However, Matt Aragon was the lone punter during the spring and he has apparently decided he's not going to give up his job easily. At this point it would be a surprise if he isn't the punter against Hawaii based on what he has shown so far in camp.
Springer said the differences for Aragon since last season are "night and day" and I think his progress has surprised a lot of people.
"He's done a great job developing his body and really taking punting seriously in the last year or so," Springer said Tuesday. "He was playing scout team receiver for so long that he wasn't really working punting. Really since we've taken over he's got so much upside and I think he's finally realized that and he's been working at it. Really his development has been 0-100 to be honest."
Aragon became a father within the last year and he has certainly started to come into his own on the field now this year.
So far the kicking situation is going to belong to Havrisik. He said he always feels like he is in competition, but right now it is his job barring something catastrophic taking place. At the long snapper position the Wildcats do actually have more of a battle going on with veteran Donal Reiter holding the top spot right now but freshman Seth Mackellar getting some attention as well for what he has done so far in camp.
Havrisik said everything with the first unit operation is working out great with Reiter snapping and Aragon holding, so it might end up being that grouping that heads into the season considering how much the kicker sang the praises of that duo Tuesday night.
You can watch the full interviews with Springer and Havrisik below.
Videos
Photos
Practice No. 4 gallery (click link)
