By ROBERT CESSNAThe skinny: Practice 8, Tuesday -- In the morning, A&M worked out inside for 70 minutes in helmets and shorts, and in the afternoon the Aggies worked outside for 90 minutes in pads.
"I thought we had a great morning, and executed extremely well," A&M head coach Mike Sherman said.
The afternoon was split with the offense efficient during the running scrimmage, but the defense dominated the passing.
*
Several position changes: Sophomore Danny Baker (6-5, 296), who was working at center, moved to tackle on the first unit.
Baker played in nine games last year. He often was used as a blocking tight end, where he started against Miami. His other start was at tackle in the regular-season finale against Texas.
Sherman said Baker did just about as good as anyone in containing junior linebacker Von Miller, who has been one of the spring's most consistent players with his pass-rushing ability from A&M's "jack" position, which is a hybrid of linebacker and end.
Miller had one sack Tuesday and had other pressures as the defensive line and linebackers had a good day.
"I think athletically, Baker is one of the better tackles we have," Sherman said.
A&M swapped Baker with redshirt freshman Brian Thomas (6-3, 270).
Sherman said the plan all along had been to see each player for two weeks, then switch.
"I don't like moving guys around inside like that, but we really don't have a choice," Sherman said. "I think we have only six scholarship players out here who are healthy."
Sophomore defensive back Lionel Smith (6-0, 174) moved to wide receiver, redshirt freshman defensive Keon Furtch (6-2, 190) moved to tight end and junior linebacker Cole Graybill (6-3, 236) moved to fullback.
Smith played wide receiver in high school at Houston Bellaire after moving to Texas from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
"We have a fair amount of guys coming in at that position," Sherman said. "He was a heck of a receiver in high school. So we wanted to give him an opportunity to show what he could do.
*
Next up: A&M will practice at 6:10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Thursday before breaking for Easter. Practice is open to current A&M students, former students (wearing an Aggie ring) and A&M faculty or staff with a current ID.
The Maroon & White Game will be April 18 at 2 p.m.
*
It wasn't a snap: A&M's first-team defense had three straight sacks and a tackle for a loss in the afternoon. Then a series later, junior quarterback Jerrod Johnson was intercepted by sophomore Justin McQueen, who was covering sophomore wide receiver Jeff Fuller. The play started with Johnson having trouble taking the snap.
"He made a bad decision, he was scrambling and he threw a ball downfield he shouldn't have thrown downfield," Sherman said. "He was trying to take a shot and it was too high a risk. That wasn't good, but overall, he's been doing a good job, and he did a very good job today."
Johnson and redshirt freshman Tommy Dorman were at times handicapped before the play every got under way.
"We're struggling with our snaps," Sherman said. "When we're in the shotgun [formation], it's inconsistent. They're having to pick the football up off the ground and the defense is on them, so they're running around and it kinda takes them off their rhythm. So we gotta get our snaps fixed before we do anything."
*
Brown returns: Junior wide receiver Kenny Brown returned after slightly separating his left shoulder making a catch March 31.
"He's gonna take a little while to get going," Sherman said. "He's a rep guy, once he gets his reps, he's pretty good. But it's going to take him a couple days to get in sync."
*
Et cetera: The defense claimed a 81-62 intrasquad victory. ... The morning's best catch was Fuller grabbing a long pass from Johnson with tight coverage from sophomore safety Trent Hunter. Fuller managed to harmlessly flip Hunter as he bounced up from the turf. ... The afternoon session had the largest media turnout of the spring, with several television crews and ESPN.com's Tim Griffin along with the usual locals. ... Waco High senior defensive end Andrew Weaver, who has signed with A&M, watched practice. Navasota head football coach Lee Fedora watched practice before heading to Olsen Field to throw out the first pitch at the A&M baseball game.
Notice about comments:
TheEagle.com is pleased to offer readers the ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. TheEagle.com does not edit user submitted statements and we cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not theeagle.com. If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "report abuse" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our website.
Full terms and conditions can be read here.
(Requires free registration.)
Posted by: Miller's Neighbor On: 4/13/2009
Comment Title: Miller Can't Play Golf
Miller, don't act like you have some sort of life. There is no way your lame self will be playing golf on Saturdays. You'll be following the games just like everyone else. How do I know this? 1. You're insane and compulsive. 2. You can't claim to be an authority on Aggie football if your only source is KBTX highlights 3. You can't afford to play golf. My Personal Opinion___ You've got no job, you have no social life, and girls don't flock to guys who are built like Ken dolls; so I'm certain that every game day this Fall, you'll be sitting on your old sofa listening to the games on the radio wishing your Mama hadn't forgotten to take the Flowbee attachment of your vaccuum cleaner after giving you your chili bowl haircut.
Posted by: Pablo On: 4/11/2009
Comment Title: What did I post?
Yo... nameless mofo.. what 'cha yakkin about?
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/9/2009
Comment Title: TO LIGHTEN THINGS UP, LET'S PLAY TRIVIA THE NEXT FEW DAYS?
My personal opinions:_____(1) Can you name the A&M football coach who has the record for the most loses ever to a tech team?_____(2) Can you name the A&M football coach who has the record for the most loses to ranked teams?_____(3) Can you name the A&M coach who has the most bowl game loses to ranked teams?_____(4) Can you name the only A&M football coach who won as many as 9 regular season football games this decade of the 90's?_____Can you name the A&M football coach who holds the record for allowing tu to score the most points in Kyle Field against an A&M football team?_____(hint-not all the same coach)_____For you football fans, if this is fun, Let's do it again?_____miller58
Posted by: On: 4/9/2009
Comment Title:
Think before you post Pablo or it will happen again.
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/9/2009
Comment Title: HAS THE AGGIE SPIN MACHINE BEEN SENT OUT TO TRY TO DO A JOB ON ME?
My personal opinions;_____A sudden rash of new posters, all on the same subject, in the pastmight have meant the Aggie Spin Machine had been sent out?_____miller58
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/9/2009
Comment Title: A&M UP TO 14 COMMITS: NO FIVE STARS, ONLY 1 FOUR STAR, 13 OTHERS?
My personal opinions:_____Updating, A&M added a 6-4 252 OG/DT with offers from La tech and arkansas, not ranked as a 4*/5*._____Expect the large number of non 4*/5*commits, this early, to falsely inflate A&M's recruiting ranking next momth!_____However, expect A&M's difference maker recruiting to end up ranked around #40 again by years end._____With 1 difference maker out of 14 now,_____ that's only "7%"_____By comparison, tu has 17 4*/5* difference makers out of 21,_____ or "81%"._____by comparison, ou has 4 of 6,_____ or "67%"._____The current class will be red shirt seniors in 2014, and with all my fall Saturday afternoon tee times, my game will improve?_____miller58
Posted by: On: 4/9/2009
Comment Title:
Winning in the swc and winning big12 are 2 different issues. that is what cost him his job. as far as class, there are some who would differ starting with his ex wife. can any of you look forward instead of backward. don't embarrass yourself in front of the rest of the nation. grow up.
Posted by: anti-miller On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: RE: RC
Wow. R.A.B. Really laying it on miller58. I have an axe handle, if you need it. Whoop!!
Posted by: VMFA-314 Aggie On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Re: RC
Looks like Crocker R.A.B. found some fresh meat to tear into.
Posted by: Crocker Cock R.A.B. On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Re: RC
How many championships did RC win? Six, seven, eight. I can't remember there were so many of them And did he win with class? You bet he did. That man was nothing if not class. He won an average of, what was it, around 9.5 games a year. How many of his assistants became head coaches? Too many to count. Gary Kubiak (Houston Texans), Bob Davie (Notre Dame), Bob Toledo (UCLA), Mike Sherman (Green Bay), etc., etc., etc. Leave RC alone, miller58, you sorry sop. He's earned so much better than your belittling comments. He was 100% Aggie, and still is, despite how people like you treated him his last two or three years as head coach. He had a chance to leave to coach the Arizone Cardinals but chose to stay. He spent all but one year of his entire coaching career at Texas A&M. How many other coaches out there can say that? Joe Paterno. Tom Osborne. Bobby Bowden Those are the only three that pop into my mind. And so what if RC never won a national championship. A&M tried to "buy" a national title when it hired Sherrill. I loved Sherrill. He was probably a better Head Coach than RC, but man, he wanted to win so bad he'd bend the rules a little too much. Almost cost A&M it's football program, a la SMU. RC was great! Period. But why do I need to go on, his record and all those champtionship speak for themselves. Hit the road miller58. You're probably the most offensive person I've ever run across in my 42 years of life. You are a grotesque and piteful soul.
Posted by: Sister On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title:
You just don't know how ridiculous you sound comparing sherman to franchione. try comparing him to mack, stoops, leach, or do things get a little too uncomfortable. spin doctor, give the readers all the numbers 2002=7, 2003=6, 2004=8, 2005=9, 2006=4, 2007=4, 2008=7. ooops, 2008 is, is not, is, is not, is, is not shermans responsibility. fran did not have what it takes but sherman has a long way to go to reach even his meager accomplishments.
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: RC IS THAT YOU?
My personal opinions:_____RC?_____miller58
Posted by: Crocker Cock R.A.B. On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Re: Not the aggie spin doc
All good points. Fran was a total disaster. Right from the beginning. I hope miller58 reads your post and it sinks deep into that useless grey matter called his brain. It's useless because he obviously isn't using it.
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Re:CinterL
My personal opinions;_____CinterL, it should be a great time for both of us his fall._____My Saturday afternoon tee times are already set._____The crowds should be small around kyle this fall to watch a team ranked #99 by Sagarin after the last game!_____There should be very little noise from Kyle to bother my putting._____I just hope that the golf course won't get too crowded with people that used to go to kyle on Saturdays._____Enjoy the beautiful fall days, CinterL!_____miller58
Posted by: Not the aggie spin doctor. On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Don't let his numbers fool you.
Miller is a supporter of Fran. He skews his numbers to fit the conversation. Here are the real numbers...From recruiting classes'03 to '07, there were 31 four and five star players recruited. Out of 119. Where the 32 "playmakers" comes into play, I have no clue. Just based on Miller's numbers, Fran didn't even recruit that many. As well, the last two recruiting classes from Fran consisted of 8 four or five star players. Four in 2006 and four in 2007. Where is this so called "Sherman inherited 32 signed difference makers in November'07"? It doesn't add up. What about these facts??? During his five-season tenure at A&M, Franchione did not produce a team that finished higher than third in the Big 12 South. None of his teams ranked in the postseason AP or Coaches national polls. He also compiled a 4–16 record against ranked teams, and a 4–14 record against Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Texas Tech. Additionally, he compiled a 19–21 Big 12 record. The Aggies finished the 2003 season with a 4–8 record, including a nationally televised 77–0 loss to Oklahoma, the worst loss in A&M's history. The season also marked the first losing season for the Aggies after 21 years. Fran had a lot of first with Texas A&M. Unfortunately, they weren't good. Sherman received a team that wasn't motivated, disciplined, or respected. How about we stand with the coach instead of cutting him down.
Posted by: CinterL On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: oh,I am tired
Ok so is there anything new we have to talk about? I think the aggies will be much better this season, and can't wait to loose my voice yelling at the top of my lungs at the games. Also I like that the defense is winning more than offense. Can't wait for the new recruits to get here, I predict there are at least 4 players that will have a chance to start. Of course Christine Michael-RB, but also Uzoma NWachukwe-WR, Coryell Judie-CB, and Hutson Prioleau-TE.
Posted by: On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Miller58
It's brutally obvious that miller is just a pathetic sip that is trying to piss off Aggies. I can't help but laugh at and feel sorry for him/her/it.
Posted by: Flowbee58 On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: A rough morning
Obviously it was a bad flowbee day, as most seem to be.
Posted by: Sean On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: Shut up.
That is all.
Posted by: miller58 On: 4/8/2009
Comment Title: A&M"S TERRIBLE RECRUITING HAS 13 COMMITS: NO 5 STARS, ONLY 1 FOUR STAR, AND 12 OTHERS!
My personal opinions:_____ A&M committed a 6-3 235# Defensive end bring their total for the year to 13 commits._____This commit was not ranked as a four or five star player._____A&M now has no five stars and only one four star out of 13 commits or 8%._____By comparison our division rivals are killing us for the next five years, tu has 17 out of 21, or 81%._____AND rival ou has 4 out of 6, or 67%._____Remember this terrible recruiting when the Aggie Spin Machine makes the excuse of a bare cupboard._____Sherman inherited 32 signed difference makers in November'07, evaluated and pulled scholarships from Janisch and Brown, signed 28 players in Feb'08, signed 3 transfers, signed 28 more hand picked players in Feb'09 and all 91 will be on the field this fall!_____Another 28 hand picked players evaluated by Sherman are being committed in the current class?_____A&M still has left more difference maker talent than 10 of the teams we play, so 10 wins should be real easy this fall; and tu and ou will be tough wins?_____ mller58
CU fans not excited about A&M; Remember that bad CU team in 2000? McFerrin thoughts
