My thoughts...
Weber looked to be the same Weber - he'd make a great throw (put it right on the money over one of the dBacks on a sideline pattern to somebody about 20 yards down the field), and then later had all day and threw a pass right in the middle of four defenders (high, and tipped incomplete).
I thought the offense overall did not look good. Dropped balls by the receivers, some they should have caught, but many were not easy catches, as in, it's not like they were being hit on the numbers in stride.
I wasn't impressed with the offensive line either. The first string was all familiar faces - Burris, Wills, Bunders, Alford, and I believe Orton was playing the other guard spot. Wills looked just as was reported - maybe 5-10 pounds lighter.
Weber was mostly radar-locked, and on several occasions when he did actually look a receiver off, he still threw into bad (covered) spots. So, if by now he has not learned to survey the field, it's just not going to happen, so we'll have to get over it.
Gray looked to be a mess as well. I think being under center and having to drop back (vs. shotgun) is going to be a huge adjustment for him that is going to take time. He just doesn't look comfortable doing it; it's somthinng he's going to have to really work at (from where he is now) to succeed at the QB spot in this offense.
On the positive side for the offense, as Kent said in his summary, McKnight is really inconsistent, but he has a lot of potential. I don't see him making the dynamic, one-hand type of catches, but he's just so big and runs well-enough. He's so raw, but if he really, really works (maybe he can hang with L. Fitz this summer to get some tips) he could be really good.
Also, there weren't many penalties - McKnight had a false start, but I don't recall a hold all day (at least none that were called anyway; I did see a couple that went uncalled). The O was very clean, in that regard.
Eskridge is Eskridge - he's not going to dipsy-doodle anyone really, and isn't going to have any 90 yard runs to the house, but he does run hard. Same with Bennett - Bennett's a little quicker, maybe a little stronger, but he isn't going to outrun anybody. They played okay today - again, not many holes.
The 1st team O-Line also seemed to pass-block pretty-well today. Rallis had two sacks, but one of them was on a missed assignment where he came un-blocked (and blitzed on the other one). I thought they pass-blocked relatively well most of last year as well (I believe Carufel was in street clothes), so that's a wash there.
When the offense had two receiver sets (seemed to be most of the time), McKnight and Stoudmire were the two receivers; Green played with the second team often. Other than a touchdown late from Marquise (when covered by some R. Freshman walk on from Wisconsin), Hayo was pretty much invisible again. In this offense, with fewer receivers on the field, I don't know when he will see the field - it seems it will be spotty.
The 1st string defense played pretty well; Maresh did make some plays (in addition to his five tackles, he also dropped at least one interception - maybe two, but was in the right spot). I do like our linebackers again this year. Both Maresh and Rallis are really active. I did see Maresh let Hoese get under his pads a couple of times on runs up the middle (and got blasted once), but I consider Hoese a steady, solid fullback, so that is going to happen.
Rallis did look good, I thought. Campbell and Triplett were solid (not great) Big Ten linebackers, but Rallis and Maresh both SEEM much quicker, which I think speaks well of Tinsley if in fact he is still around come fall and holds on to the starting spot. They were very active today, and around the ball a ton.
Cooper played well also. As good as Lawrence's measurables were (speed, size, etc.), Cooper seems to be more physical, particularly when taking on blockers. Despite being a little undersized, he can really bring it and doesn't shy away from coming O-Linemen as Lawrence sometimes did.
Carter had a couple of nice plays. He got beat on the long pass to Stoudamire at the beginning (one of Weber's two best passes all day), but he had a nice pass-breakup as well. He also looks like he has put about 15 lbs on his legs alone; he's got a chance to be really good.
Christan Lewis is as skinny as Carter was last year, which is borderline ridiculous for a junior. Granted, he is expected to play corner, but he's a junior - what's the deal? He did lay a nice pop on McKnight to cause a drop, and also filled the hole with a really nice hit on Bennet at one point as well, which caught me by surprise. It seemed to me he is definitely a corner, not a safety.
Kenny Watkins looks to be in good shape; I didn't notice him make any plays, but again, he too (like Carter), looks like he's been in the weight room.
Collado is still Collado - just a tough, solid, little son-of-a-gun; I wish he was about four inches taller and twenty pounds heavier, but he plays low and hard.
I was disappointed in the lack of pressure the D-Line put on Weber. Hageman was playing with Kirksey, Edwards and Wilhite. Wilhite seemed to get better pressure as the game went on, but again, I don't believe any of them got a sack the entire game. That being said, they are really stout against the run. I'm not sure if that is because our O-Line still can't run block, or they are just that good - maybe a little of both.
I was surprised to see the 2nd D Line consisted of Garin, KGM, Ferguson, and Austin Hahn - not Jacobs! Jacobs rotated in some, but it appeared he was mostly with the third-team (Jacques is playing guard). This is a good thing - he has had considerable playing time, but the young guys appear to have moved past him; maybe we have more depth than I thought?
Hahn, who I had never heard of before today, actually really impressed me the first part of the scrimmage. He doesn't look as big as he was listed today (6'4, 285), but he played every bit of that - I hate the "motor" word, but he seems to be a tough hombre (was also going against Jacques most of the day however, and I'm not sure how much can be expected of Jacques in the guard spot).
I was actually really impressed with the 2nd team D. Singleton (LB), Garin, KGM, and Ferguson, were all really active. The 2nd team D actually dominated the 2nd team O all day and probably scored at least 2/3 of the D's "points".
On the 2nd team O, Olson and Michel are tall, lean dudes. They were both listed today at 6'7, 300+, but they are really, really lean - they look like Iowa linemen. Based upon how little they 2nd O moved the ball today, I can't say they played really well, but they are going to be some beasts (in two years, put them with Gjere, Tommy Olson, and Jonathan Ragoo, cor instance, and that is a HUGE O-Line(!), which would be awesome!). I don't like seeing linemen out of shape, so I'm excited about the future for these two (Jacques looked like a midget next to Michel).
Ellestad was solid on the Field Goals (they didn't even put a defense on the field against the kick team), but his kickoffs were terrible - not sure if he kicked a single one inside the ten going either direction, which will be an issue. Orseske had a couple of nice punts and looks to be recovered from his injury last fall.
Overall, it seemed we have similar issues as we did last fall - poor quarterback play (remember - both starting safeties weren't even playing today - Theret and Royston), and questionable run-blocking. The defense, despite being really young, seems quicker and more athletic. I didn't get a sense who the leaders on the D are going to be. Honestly, the most vocal seemed to be Maresh, and I just liked his demeanor - he seemed to be really enjoying himself. I know Edwards and Kirksey are being called upon as leaders, but they also were coming out on passing downs (KGM was actually coming in to play DT in a 3 technique, with Wilhite and Sheed on the ends). Maresh and Rallis seem to be palls and play off of each other well (lots of celebratory, leaping butt bumps).
I'm excited about the defense; skeptical of the offense; hopefull they all have productive, healthy summers and improve a ton.
