Post by highjumper on Aug 29, 2005 8:30:47 GMT -5
INSIDE DISH: Longshore wins California QB job
By Matt Hayes - SportingNews
Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce the surprise of fall camp: California QB Nate Longshore.
After hearing all summer about JC transfer Joe Ayoob — coach Jeff Tedford's latest "project" — Longshore promptly waltzed into fall camp and won the starting job. Tedford had been praising Ayoob since spring practice, but he has been enamored all along of Longshore's physical ability.
The issue was Longshore's limited "escapability" — in other words, he's a statue in the pocket. He's not Ayoob — once called "the white Michael Vick" in junior college — but Longshore has learned to move his feet and shift in the pocket to buy more time for his strong, accurate arm.
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Longshore's emergence will allow the Bears to redshirt freshman Kyle Reed, an Elite 11 quarterback. ...
It appears as though ESPN has some pull with its employees. That's the only way anyone was going to get former South Carolina coach Lou Holtz — now an analyst for ESPN — to talk about NCAA violations while he was in Columbia.
Unfortunately, instead of owning up to the violations, Holtz released a rambling statement that blamed everyone else. At the top of the list: Four major violations concerning the academic office were not his fault because he didn't have "control over the academic office."
How embarrassing for South Carolina. No wonder close to a dozen players have been suspended or dismissed since Holtz left. ...
Jim Harper turns 48 in September and will be on the sideline this weekend for Division III Millsaps College in Mississippi. Why is this significant? Oh, let's see — he plays tight end for the Majors.
Though it's not big-time Division I football, the guy is 48, you know. ...
Another reason to believe Missouri QB Brad Smith will bounce back in a big way from a disappointing junior season: Underrated WR Sean Coffey is primed for a breakout year.
Coffey had the best spring of any player on the team, and his play in fall camp inspired the offense — and, to a larger extent, Smith. Coffey's talent never has been questioned; his commitment and ability to lead the team have. Until this fall, that is.
Says one Mizzou staffer: "He gets it now." Translation: He's no longer a selfish player. ...
New UNLV coach Mike Sanford hinted this spring that the Rebels might need freshmen to contribute significantly to make his spread option offense work. After fall camp, it appears as though freshmen WRs Corey Anderson and Renan Saint Preux are in the rotation and could move into starting spots.
A major recruit last winter, Anderson chose UNLV over UCLA because Sanford told him every spot on the team was open. ...
Look for Ole Miss to use two running backs, Jamal Pittman and Brandon Jacobs, to replace Vashon Pearson, who was ruled academically ineligible.
New coach Ed Orgeron toyed with the idea of using WR Larry Kendrick — the team's fastest player — in a role similar to Reggie Bush's at Southern California. Now it appears Kendrick will play more of a slot position and the staff will try to get him matched up against slower linebackers or safeties in space — which is what USC does with Bush in certain sets.
Orgeron is using some of the same principles former USC offensive coordinator and friend Norm Chow used with the Trojans. ...
Though Boston College's Will Blackmon (6-0, 202) has made the switch from cornerback to wide receiver, he'll still play cornerback in certain situations. One of those situations could be the season opener at BYU because Cougars star WR Todd Watkins (6-3) could give BC's undersized cornerbacks, DeJuan Tribble (5-9) and Jazzmen Williams (5-8), fits.
