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The Bank is open on Sundays. Below is a position-by-position deep dive on yesterday's scrimmage based on numerous conversations with sources.
QB
Tyler Van Dyke has complete mental command of the offense. He knows where he is going with the ball on every play, which makes him difficult to blitz (he hit a short TD pass to Keyshawn Smith on the first drive facing heavy pressure). He also made a spectacular throw rolling right driving the ball to Xavier Restrepo on third down. I have no doubt he will be very efficient this year. The next step is unlocking the explosive passing game he excelled in last year. That will be a focus the remainder of camp. Jake Garcia had moments with the second team, including a read-option TD and a nice read on a TD pass to Don Chaney in the flats. He is the clear #2. Jacurri Brown showed off his legs on a long TD run that would have been a score in full-contact. He also floated a pretty pass under pressure up the seam to Isaiah Horton, who made a nice adjustment to the ball. He also hit Colbie Young deep between two defenders. Jacurri's consistency is still a serious issue (along with the relative talent on the third-team offense), but you see flashes.
RB
At this point in camp, the clear top two tailbacks are Jaylan Knighton and Henry Parrish. They receive the majority of the first team carries and have the most proven production on tape. The battle for the big back spot remains open. As has been widely reported, TreVonte' Citizen got nicked up early. This gave plenty of opportunities for Don Chaney and Thad Franklin. Both showed flashes, with Chaney catching a TD and Franklin making a couple nice chunk runs (including one where he reversed field and made the backside DE miss). That will be a battle to watch as camp continues- there was no definitive statement yesterday. Injuries are always dicey to report on, but at least one source was optimistic Citizen only suffered a hyperextended knee.
TE
This position was relatively quiet by their standards. Jaleel Skinner routed up Keyshawn Washington for a TD from Brown in 7on7. Dominic Mamarrelli had the lead block to spring Brown on his TD run. Kahlil Brantley has some uncharacteristic drops but got snaps with the 1s.
WR
This battle continues. Restrepo and TVD are good friends and he is clearly the go-to guy on third down. He made various conversions, and his 200+ RB build gives him an after-the-catch dimension that is different than Mike Harley and Braxton Berrios as a slot receiver. Keyshawn Smith has had some strong practices lately (including a long TD in Thursday's padded practice) but was relatively quiet. Mike Redding continues to get some first-team burn. The twitchiest WR is still Romello Brinson. His ability to separate stands out, and he drew a PI in the end zone against Tyrique Stevenson.
OL
Something to keep in mind when reading reports about the OL: the second and third team DL are far ahead of the second and third team OL. Injuries have something to do with that. So while the DL's dominance can blow up the offense at times, it's not always against the 6-8 OL who are actually going to play. It could be a walk-on going against a blue-chipper. The DL will play a lot more players, so it's a good thing they have that depth.
With that said, the DL won the day and made it particularly tough on the second and third team offense. Left tackle continues to be a battle between John Campbell and Jalen Rivers. Both show talent and Rivers in particular flashes tremendous progress. The LG is Justice Oluwasean, the C is Jakai Clark, the RG is Logan Sagapolu and the RT is DJ Scaife. Injuries to Zion Nelson and Michael McClaughlin have opened up second-team opportunities at RT for Anez Cooper and Matthew McCoy. Both show flashes but Cooper has particularly interesting upside. He has a long way to go with pad level and technique, but he is absolutely massive and has surprisingly good feet to reach wide rushers and recover when he is out of position. He ragdolled Jabari Ishmael several yards on one dropback.
DL
As mentioned on the CanesInSight Podcast, this group is three units deep. It would take too long to name all of the players standing out here, so I will focus on a few who created a lot of buzz on Saturday. Akheem Mesidor was all over the field at DE and made multiple plays in the backfield. He brings a unique combination of slipperiness, instincts (high school LB) and overall motor. Jared Harrison-Hunte might be the top interior DL right now. He looks to have gained 15-20 pounds and is still an athletic terror on passing downs. He blew up multiple drives by himself. Darrell Jackson is a load on running plays and generates consistent knockback with long arms to extend.
A lot of guys made plays against the second and third team OL. Elijah Roberts in particular lived in the backfield as a DE. He's making a case for more playing time. Jake Lichtenstein had a few pressures. Allan Haye, Ahmad Moten and Jabari Ishmael all had moments. Moten looks the part physically of an SEC-type DT and had an explosive TFL.
LB
Good overall day behind a destructive DL. Waynmon Steed and Corey Flagg started and showed strong instincts. Caleb Johnson had a series where he made multiple tackles sideline to sideline and has the look of a starter by camp's end. Wesley Bissainthe and Chase Smith both flew off the edge for short-yardage tackles, with Bissainthe making consecutive goalline tackles on Chaney. Thomas Davis did most of his damage as a third-down edge rusher and is tough to deal with in that role.
DB
This group was strong as usual. Kam Kinchens had an INT on TVD under heavy pressure. Two upperclassmen defensive backs have separately praised Markeith Williams. He almost jumped a Jacurri pass. The corners were strong in coverage all night and usually won their battles. Isaiah Dunson made a beautiful open-field tackle on Knighton. Chris Graves also made a couple strong tackles.
Overall, every source commented on the physicality and improved tackling. This appears to be a stronger, tougher team than last year. The key will be tightening up the execution and identifying our playmakers. Someone like Charleston Rambo didn't really emerge until the third game. That will be the story the rest of camp.
QB
Tyler Van Dyke has complete mental command of the offense. He knows where he is going with the ball on every play, which makes him difficult to blitz (he hit a short TD pass to Keyshawn Smith on the first drive facing heavy pressure). He also made a spectacular throw rolling right driving the ball to Xavier Restrepo on third down. I have no doubt he will be very efficient this year. The next step is unlocking the explosive passing game he excelled in last year. That will be a focus the remainder of camp. Jake Garcia had moments with the second team, including a read-option TD and a nice read on a TD pass to Don Chaney in the flats. He is the clear #2. Jacurri Brown showed off his legs on a long TD run that would have been a score in full-contact. He also floated a pretty pass under pressure up the seam to Isaiah Horton, who made a nice adjustment to the ball. He also hit Colbie Young deep between two defenders. Jacurri's consistency is still a serious issue (along with the relative talent on the third-team offense), but you see flashes.
RB
At this point in camp, the clear top two tailbacks are Jaylan Knighton and Henry Parrish. They receive the majority of the first team carries and have the most proven production on tape. The battle for the big back spot remains open. As has been widely reported, TreVonte' Citizen got nicked up early. This gave plenty of opportunities for Don Chaney and Thad Franklin. Both showed flashes, with Chaney catching a TD and Franklin making a couple nice chunk runs (including one where he reversed field and made the backside DE miss). That will be a battle to watch as camp continues- there was no definitive statement yesterday. Injuries are always dicey to report on, but at least one source was optimistic Citizen only suffered a hyperextended knee.
TE
This position was relatively quiet by their standards. Jaleel Skinner routed up Keyshawn Washington for a TD from Brown in 7on7. Dominic Mamarrelli had the lead block to spring Brown on his TD run. Kahlil Brantley has some uncharacteristic drops but got snaps with the 1s.
WR
This battle continues. Restrepo and TVD are good friends and he is clearly the go-to guy on third down. He made various conversions, and his 200+ RB build gives him an after-the-catch dimension that is different than Mike Harley and Braxton Berrios as a slot receiver. Keyshawn Smith has had some strong practices lately (including a long TD in Thursday's padded practice) but was relatively quiet. Mike Redding continues to get some first-team burn. The twitchiest WR is still Romello Brinson. His ability to separate stands out, and he drew a PI in the end zone against Tyrique Stevenson.
OL
Something to keep in mind when reading reports about the OL: the second and third team DL are far ahead of the second and third team OL. Injuries have something to do with that. So while the DL's dominance can blow up the offense at times, it's not always against the 6-8 OL who are actually going to play. It could be a walk-on going against a blue-chipper. The DL will play a lot more players, so it's a good thing they have that depth.
With that said, the DL won the day and made it particularly tough on the second and third team offense. Left tackle continues to be a battle between John Campbell and Jalen Rivers. Both show talent and Rivers in particular flashes tremendous progress. The LG is Justice Oluwasean, the C is Jakai Clark, the RG is Logan Sagapolu and the RT is DJ Scaife. Injuries to Zion Nelson and Michael McClaughlin have opened up second-team opportunities at RT for Anez Cooper and Matthew McCoy. Both show flashes but Cooper has particularly interesting upside. He has a long way to go with pad level and technique, but he is absolutely massive and has surprisingly good feet to reach wide rushers and recover when he is out of position. He ragdolled Jabari Ishmael several yards on one dropback.
DL
As mentioned on the CanesInSight Podcast, this group is three units deep. It would take too long to name all of the players standing out here, so I will focus on a few who created a lot of buzz on Saturday. Akheem Mesidor was all over the field at DE and made multiple plays in the backfield. He brings a unique combination of slipperiness, instincts (high school LB) and overall motor. Jared Harrison-Hunte might be the top interior DL right now. He looks to have gained 15-20 pounds and is still an athletic terror on passing downs. He blew up multiple drives by himself. Darrell Jackson is a load on running plays and generates consistent knockback with long arms to extend.
A lot of guys made plays against the second and third team OL. Elijah Roberts in particular lived in the backfield as a DE. He's making a case for more playing time. Jake Lichtenstein had a few pressures. Allan Haye, Ahmad Moten and Jabari Ishmael all had moments. Moten looks the part physically of an SEC-type DT and had an explosive TFL.
LB
Good overall day behind a destructive DL. Waynmon Steed and Corey Flagg started and showed strong instincts. Caleb Johnson had a series where he made multiple tackles sideline to sideline and has the look of a starter by camp's end. Wesley Bissainthe and Chase Smith both flew off the edge for short-yardage tackles, with Bissainthe making consecutive goalline tackles on Chaney. Thomas Davis did most of his damage as a third-down edge rusher and is tough to deal with in that role.
DB
This group was strong as usual. Kam Kinchens had an INT on TVD under heavy pressure. Two upperclassmen defensive backs have separately praised Markeith Williams. He almost jumped a Jacurri pass. The corners were strong in coverage all night and usually won their battles. Isaiah Dunson made a beautiful open-field tackle on Knighton. Chris Graves also made a couple strong tackles.
Overall, every source commented on the physicality and improved tackling. This appears to be a stronger, tougher team than last year. The key will be tightening up the execution and identifying our playmakers. Someone like Charleston Rambo didn't really emerge until the third game. That will be the story the rest of camp.
