FORT COLLINS — At CSU last April, you either sank or swam with Jay Norvell.
This April, you belly flop.
Officials worked the 11-on-11 portions late in Saturday morning's practice outside Canvas Stadium. During one red-zone trip, somebody along the Rams offense jumped. A yellow flag shot to the sky like a bottle rocket.
PHWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!
The scrimmaging … stopped. The talking … stopped. The milling … stopped.
A millisecond of uncomfortable, awkward silence hung in the chilly brunch air. Then every CSU player — offense, defense, on the field or on the sidelines — immediately plopped onto their bellies and started doing a quick set of up-downs.
"Yeah, we incorporated that, (that if) we have a false start on offense, we started doing up-downs for penalties," Norvell, the Rams' second-year coach, explained later. "Just a reminder to concentrate and focus."
If spring 2022 was about the install in FoCo, kids, spring 2023 is about the details. 3-9 teams jump. 3-9 teams drop. 3-9 teams belly flop.
A year ago, the Rams ran long, split-squad practices — first team vs. third-team, 2s vs. 4s, et cetera. Saturday, it was 1s vs 1s. Best on best.
"You know, we have a saying: 'Iron, sharpens iron,'" Norvell said. "When I was in school (at Iowa in the '80s), coach (Hayden) Fry didn't like to go 1s on 1s. He liked the lead dogs to feel like the lead dogs and always win … but since then, we always go 1s on 1s, because it just makes us better."
Last spring, rough edges. This spring, sanding. The Rams started early Saturday. CSU's defensive linemen stayed late. And, notably, they stayed all by themselves, as a group, sans coaches, to go over assignments and techniques.
"We all have something to improve upon," senior defensive lineman Mo Kamara said. "And it's important that we all have the same mindset."
Norvell sings loudly from hymnal of one-mind, one-heartbeat, one-family. Which made CSU's stuttering start to the spring all the more puzzling from a distance.
The Rams' second-best offensive player of 2022, tailback Avery Morrow, remains in limbo, serving a suspension away from the program after being charged with second-degree assault. Spring practices that were slated to get underway March 21 didn't start until March 28, with Day 1 having been pushed back once because of team health concerns — more on that in a second — and subsequently moved two more times because of snows last Saturday and Monday.
For those last two delays, give a hockey assist to Mother Nature. For the first one, a nod to offensive line coach Bill Best, who recently underwent back surgery, a surprise injury that left CSU temporarily without a full-time voice to lead the position group.
"I had a little back trouble going into spring break and then we did a road trip to Louisiana to see my mom," Best said after Saturday's practice, leaning on a support cane. "And (it) kind of locked up on me on the way back. I got back (to campus) and couldn't really move, so I had to have surgery last Tuesday. All better now, though."
Well, except for the cane.
"I only got this thing because my wife is out here today," Best groused. "And I'm supposed to be using this thing.
"But the thing about it is, we preach to these guys that the best ability is availability. So if I'm preaching that every day and I don't show up, that's not a good message.
"I would've been out here in a wheelchair coaching if I had to. Because we've got to get that message through."
Yeah, but would your wife have been cool with that?
"She wouldn't have a choice," Best laughed. "She gets it. There are two types of coach's wives — great ones and ex-ones. She's a great one."
Because he didn't know when — or if — Best would be able to go to start spring ball, Norvell got the green light early last week to bring one of Best's pals and protégés, Rice assistant coach Chris Monfiletto, north as an emergency analyst.
"It was like my college playing career," Monfiletto cracked. "Somebody got hurt, and that's the only way that I played."
The more the merrier, coach. CSU allowed 59 sacks in 2022, dead last among FBS programs. Since 2009, only three major-college teams gave up more over a season than the Rams did — Rutgers in 2010 (61), Pittsburgh in '11 (63) and Akron in '21 (63).
CSU ran at least 60 offensive plays from third-and-10-or-longer last fall, up from 51 during the final year of The Addazio Era. It also happened to be the third-most third-and-forevers in the MW in 2022 behind Hawaii (65) and San Diego State (70).
"I think, personally, that there is a lot of pressure on them," Kamara said of the new-look Rams line. "And they're doing a great job of coming forward to (answer) the call. They're working hard, doing a lot of stuff after practice. And that's what's important."
The juice is in the details. The devil, too, if you're not careful.
Want more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver's teams.
Want more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver's teams.
No comments:
Post a Comment