Arizona went back to the morning for Wednesday's practice and the energy was back more than it was on Monday so Rich Rodriguez was pleased with that. It was a defense day so the media was able to get a chance to talk with defensive staff and players. Here are today's quick notes from after the morning practice.
* There was only a couple media members at practice today (myself and the Star's Michael Lev) so it presented a chance to talk more at length with Rodriguez and the staff and players a bit more than usual. That meant digging more into some stuff that doesn't get talked about as much. One topic I wanted to hit on with Rodriguez was recruiting and how much Arizona has changed its approach after what it had to go through last season loading up in the spring but then losing a lot late. Rodriguez had an interesting answer I thought.
* The linebackers were brought up quite a bit Wednesday and Rodriguez said the room is completely different now and there is a lot about the group that is different. One name that came up and has come up consistently has been that of freshman Tony Fields II. Brandon Rutt mentioned that the Las Vegas-based standout has been impressive this spring and Dane Cruikshank made sure to single out Fields as well from his perspective about who has done well.
As you guys know I have been a big fan of Fields since I first saw him and so far he is doing a good job of proving me right from the sounds of it. It will be really surprising if he doesn't play and he has a chance to start as well this season if he keeps it up.
* Marcel Yates said today that Arizona was probably in man defense 70 percent of the time last season and he would much rather have that split down the middle with 50 percent man and 50 percent zone. The issue was that he needed to use extra players to blitz and it meant sticking with man to make up for that. The hope this season is that more experience on the defense with an improved pass rush will help let the team play more zone and allow for more plays on the back end. Cornerback Dane Cruikshank said having an improved pass rush would allow the team to play more zone and it will help the players on the back end.
* Keeping with that theme Luca Bruno said having an extra set of hands with Brian Knorr now helping out with the defensive line some when it comes to pass rush is helping the interior defensive linemen because Vince Amey is able to work with them more. The end goal of course being the group is better this season. So far the work sounds like it is being seen in practice, but the test will come once the season starts.
* Linebacker signee Josh Brown tweeted today that he has lost 25 pounds and that is certainly a big plus for him as the last time I saw him he fit into the mold of players Rodriguez has mentioned have been "out of shape" a la Jamardre Cobb. Obviously this is a tough time for those signees because a lot of the preparation this time of year is up to them to put the work in on their own. Rodriguez said his staff does keep in touch with those players to make sure they are progressing, but he added that now that he's allowed to have more time with players in the summer it helps in that regard.
* So I asked the players I spoke to today who they thought were standing out so far and here is a list of who they said have been impressive this spring: Tony Fields II, Jake Colacion, Gavin Robertson, Vaughn Carrington, Albert Green, Antonio Parks, Lorenzo Burns
* There was only a couple media members at practice today (myself and the Star's Michael Lev) so it presented a chance to talk more at length with Rodriguez and the staff and players a bit more than usual. That meant digging more into some stuff that doesn't get talked about as much. One topic I wanted to hit on with Rodriguez was recruiting and how much Arizona has changed its approach after what it had to go through last season loading up in the spring but then losing a lot late. Rodriguez had an interesting answer I thought.
* The linebackers were brought up quite a bit Wednesday and Rodriguez said the room is completely different now and there is a lot about the group that is different. One name that came up and has come up consistently has been that of freshman Tony Fields II. Brandon Rutt mentioned that the Las Vegas-based standout has been impressive this spring and Dane Cruikshank made sure to single out Fields as well from his perspective about who has done well.
As you guys know I have been a big fan of Fields since I first saw him and so far he is doing a good job of proving me right from the sounds of it. It will be really surprising if he doesn't play and he has a chance to start as well this season if he keeps it up.
* Marcel Yates said today that Arizona was probably in man defense 70 percent of the time last season and he would much rather have that split down the middle with 50 percent man and 50 percent zone. The issue was that he needed to use extra players to blitz and it meant sticking with man to make up for that. The hope this season is that more experience on the defense with an improved pass rush will help let the team play more zone and allow for more plays on the back end. Cornerback Dane Cruikshank said having an improved pass rush would allow the team to play more zone and it will help the players on the back end.
* Keeping with that theme Luca Bruno said having an extra set of hands with Brian Knorr now helping out with the defensive line some when it comes to pass rush is helping the interior defensive linemen because Vince Amey is able to work with them more. The end goal of course being the group is better this season. So far the work sounds like it is being seen in practice, but the test will come once the season starts.
* Linebacker signee Josh Brown tweeted today that he has lost 25 pounds and that is certainly a big plus for him as the last time I saw him he fit into the mold of players Rodriguez has mentioned have been "out of shape" a la Jamardre Cobb. Obviously this is a tough time for those signees because a lot of the preparation this time of year is up to them to put the work in on their own. Rodriguez said his staff does keep in touch with those players to make sure they are progressing, but he added that now that he's allowed to have more time with players in the summer it helps in that regard.
* So I asked the players I spoke to today who they thought were standing out so far and here is a list of who they said have been impressive this spring: Tony Fields II, Jake Colacion, Gavin Robertson, Vaughn Carrington, Albert Green, Antonio Parks, Lorenzo Burns
