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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Head Coach Ed Orgeron's Weekly Press Conference
8/7/2006 | Football
OPENING COMMENTS
It's good to see everybody again. We are starting our third day of practice. Things are going well out there. I'm excited to see the new guys coming in. We have 44 new guys on our team. The lines are long, so I know the older guys are enjoying that. You can see the obvious change in just the organization of practice. Things are going along rather smoothly. This is our second year, so the guys know what to expect. They have an excellent attitude when they are out there running around in transition from drill to drill.
On defense, you can see an improvement in the little things.
On the offensive side, I'm really pleased in the direction with Dan (Werner) and the offensive staff. With the way they work and the way their attention to detail, there are less mistakes on the field on offense. You can see more confidence in the offensive system. You can see it in the players. We have some older players that are excellent football players, and they are starting to enjoy competing and practice. That is definitley a step up for our football team.
We know we have a lot of work to do on the offensive line. Thomas Eckers had a real good day yesterday at center. Corey Actis got bigger and stronger in the weight room over the summer, so I feel he should be able to perform at center. How he develops and comes along we will see. Today is our first day in shells, so we don't know anything yet. At left guard we have (Andrew) Wicker and Reid Neely. At left tackle, Michael Oher is in fantastic shape. He dropped some body fat and got stronger. He is really starting to shine at left tackle. Backing him up will be Marcus Cohen and Don Mosley. At the right guard position we have (Maurice) Miller and (James) McCoy. We could also put John Jerry there, but right know we have him backing up Darryl Harris at right tackle. John looks like he will be a tremendous football player once he learns the system. We are really pleased with him. We have some gelling to do with the offensive line, but I think we are going to be fine. David Traxler is also a guy we have there. He received a minor injury and will be out for a couple of days, but he should be fine.
At the tight end position, we are excited about Robert Lane. You all know how we feel about Robert on this team. About his competitive nature, about the type of person that he is and the commitment that he made to Ole Miss. I'm really pleased with the attitude of Lawrence Lilly. His athletic ability and willingness to do the work we want him to do, along with Robert Hough.
The tailback position is starting to turn out just like we expected it to with BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Mico McSwain, who has only played tailback these last couple of days, and Cordera Eason. We are really excited about those three guys. Those three guys are really good football players. At fullback, Jason Cook is back, and I'm really pleased with Reggie Hicks. Those two guys are solid.
I like our wide receiving corps with (Burnell) Wallace, Kendrick Lewis, Shay Hodge, Marcus Summers at X, and Marshay Green at Z. Hicks had a couple of big plays yesterday. We had a touchdown and a big play up the middle. A guy we are really excited about, who is electric, and catches the ball real well, is Dexter McCluster. If we use a three-wide receiver set, he would probably be in the starting rotation right now. So he is really moving up the charts as a freshman.
The quarterback position, I'm really pleased with Brent (Schaeffer) and the way he came in, the way he has handled the offense. He throws the ball and scrambles well. Dan is pleased with his progress. We have a plan which we are going to install. We have not had to slow anything down. He is picking it up at a good pace.
Overall, I think the new attitude and the new dimension on offense is really exciting. We have some players that can make big plays.
On defense, Patrick Willis is fine. He appears to be almost completely healed from his injury. I don't see anything that is holding him back right now, although I may hold him back. I will probably be the only one. We moved Garry Pack over to "Will" linebacker. It is an experiment for us. He seems like he is doing really well with that. We moved Robert Russell over to "Will" linebacker. Those two guys are doing really well. Quentin Taylor, we moved to "Sam" linebacker. "Sam" linebacker is mostly at the line of scrimmage. We are really seeing some progress there. A young linebacker I'm excited about is Jonathan Cornell. He is really fast. He needs to learn the defense, but he is in good shape, and he will be an excellent player for us. Rory Johnson (linebacker) has not finished his course work yet. We don't know when he will be finished, but we are waiting on him to do that. We expect him to finish it. When he comes in we should have a solid linebacker corp.
At safety, Nate Banks and Trumaine McBride came back with a lot of confidence and experience to make the right calls along with Dustin Mouzon and Terrell Jackson. At strong safety, Jamarca (Sanford) looks fine. It is good to have him out there. He is like a firecracker out there with a lot of spirit. Charles Clark is solid. We are fired up about Jamal Harvey and Allen Walker. Those guys continue to do a great job.
In the kicking game, Joshua Shene had a good day yesterday along with (Justin) Sparks. Those guys are doing our placekicking along with (Will) Moseley. Rob Park and a young man who is a walk-on to the team, Michael Swanson, are handling our punting duties. Kickoffs will be handled by Moseley right now. I'm excited about our return game with Mico McSwain, Marshay Green, and Dexter McCluster. We have some playmakers there.
Other than that, practice is going well. We are in shells and shorts. We are just installing things, getting after it and getting used to each other out there. It is real enjoyable to be out at practice, and I think our guys are catching on really well.
Q& A
Q: Does Cordera Eason's development have anything to do in determining if Mico McSwain will play any at receiver?
A: Yes, it will have some. I think it also has something to do with how well our receivers play in a gametime atmosphere, and if we feel Mico can adjust to playing wide receiver or if we need him at tailback. Right now, we are going to keep him at tailback.
Q: Have you determined which safety spots the new guys are going to play?
A: We are mixing and matching them. Right now, Allen (Walker) is playing strong and Jamal (Harvey) is playing free. Jamal is such a good athlete he can play anywhere on the team.
Q: Talk about Bruce Hall. What are your plans for him?
A: He is playing running back; getting a lot of reps. He had a good day yesterday. He is a player that we need on the field somewhere on the field, special teams, tailback, somewhere. Obviously, I don't think he is a starter at tailback, but as the season goes on we are going to need him. He is a great young man, and we are happy to have him.
Q: Is there one player this year that has stood out so far in practice?
A:There is a change in our quarterback position. I said when I first got here that I wanted an outstanding quarterback on our football team. We don't know yet what it is going to lead to, but we feel that Brent (Schaeffer) has all the tools necessary to be a great quarterback. We have a really good tailback in BenJarvus Green-Ellis. We have depth there. Having Patrick (Willis) back means an awful lot. To see a big offensive lineman like Michael Oher progressing and to see somebody like John Jerry, who is 6-5, 350, gives you confidence that you can be strong where it all starts. I think Robert Lane will have an excellent season. We've also enjoyed seeing Dexter McCluster touch the ball and be electric. Those guys really stand out.
Q: What differences do you see in the offense so far?
A: Organization. Having Dan (Werner) and Art (Kehoe) on the same page helps. They have been coaching for a long time. I know them. Dan has a good system, and we are suited for that system.
Q: Do you know how many and which freshmen will play this season?
A: Not yet, because we haven't yet put on the pads. We are getting ready to find out once they put on the pads. I believe that the majority of our recruiting class is going to play. Some may start. We are very thin in some areas. I like to play freshmen. I like the competition.
Q: Talk about Robert Lane's position change.
A: He loves Ole Miss and he loves playing football here. The guy is a competitor. Knowing the type of offense Dan runs with the tight end being a major role in that offense, I think he will do well.
Q: Is there anything you have to do to help Brent Schaeffer's transition to Ole Miss?
A: Not really. The team has welcomed him with open arms. It has been an easy transition, a lot easier than expected. He fits in nicely. He has a great personality.
Q: What are your team's goals?
A: Our team goals will always be to go to the Sugar Bowl and win it. Whether or not we are there, I don't know. We need to get better each week. We need to have fun, be physical, go out and compete to win.
