UCLA had its longest practice of the spring Saturday, running close to three hours. There were full pads, and some hitting, but once again it was mainly a teaching day. The notes:
NOTES FROM CHIP KELLY
-Kelly said Jaelan Phillips hasn't suffered a setback on his injured wrist, given he was expected to miss all of spring practice, and he doesn't know if the big OLB will be available for the season opener.
-Kelly said the addition of Jerry Neuheisel to the staff was facilitated by Kelly having seen him coach on a visit to Texas A&M last year. Kelly said he has a "bright future" in coaching.
-Kelly said he hasn't "asked anything from" Dorian Thompson-Robinson. He said he just wants the young QB to enjoy his senior year at Gorman.
-Kelly was asked essentially why UCLA hasn't offered scholarships to many players this recruiting cycle. Kelly's response: "We offer kids that we can recruit. Other schools offer anybody that plays football. We offer kids that can actually get into this school and play for this school."
-Kelly said he's never cut players the way Herm Edwards spoke about doing so at Arizona State this week.
PERSONNEL NOTES
-Defensive lineman Greg Rogers, tight end Jimmy Jaggers and linebacker Mique Juarez were not in attendance. Neither was Jaelan Phillips, though he's been accounted for after having a second procedure on his injured wrist earlier this week.
-Odua Isibor moved from outside linebacker to defensive line today.
-Will Lockett, despite appearing to be healthy, continued to spend the day in just shorts and a jersey, doing nothing but watching from the sideline.
INJURY UPDATES
-Those in yellow jerseys today: WR Audie Omotosho, WR Kyle Philips, TE Caleb Wilson, LB Josh Woods, DB Keyon Riley, DB Colin Samuel and DE Rick Wade
-Keisean Lucier-South went down toward the end of the practice
-Nate Meadors had to leave practice early with what appeared to be a shoulder injury
-Brandon Burton spent most of practice on a bike, going through warmups gingerly
DEPTH CHART NOTES
-As has been the case throughout this week, nothing too noteworthy with the two-deep. Zach Sweeney continued to rotate in at starting center with Boss Tagaloa, while Michael Alves continued to rotate in at starting right guard with Sweeney.
RECRUITS IN ATTENDANCE
-Like we reported earlier this week, there were dozens. But guys who seemed to get attention from the staff:
OBSERVATIONS
-I counted nine people working at kick returner today, though the starters look like Darnay Holmes and Bolu Olorunfunmi.
-Paul Rhoads coaching snippets from 7-on-7: Holmes made a great play to stick with Theo Howard on a deep ball, cutting off his route. Rhoads yelled: "That a way to become offense!" A few plays later, Octo Spencer was torched on a deep ball to Damian Alloway and seemed to pretend to be a little gimpy. Rhoads yelled: "Don't you come up limping!"
-Demetric Felton was probably the standout of today's practice. He was a nightmare for DBs in the flats, catching a ton of little swing screens and turning them up for big yards. UCLA's offense continues to be exclusively horizontal, so players like Theo Howard and Chase Cota are non-existent, while slot guys like Felton and Christian Pabico have racked up yards and catches.
-Haven't written about the quarterbacks in a while, but.....still bad. It's fascinating how Devon Modster just can't separate from the pack. He had one particular 7-on-7 drive today that was ugly, completing maybe a quarter of his passes, and most were just dump-offs at that.
-UCLA went live for a few drills today, and Adarius Pickett was bringing it. He had the hit of the day, lighting up Olorunfunmi on a screen pass.
-Josh Kelley popped a little bit in the ground game, scoring an impressive TD and showing good vision. Brandon Stephens also seemed to run the read-option well. As a whole, the O-line was solid today, opening up nice lanes throughout the afternoon.
-Je'Vari Anderson, as anticipated, looked better with the pads on, making a huge tackle for loss at the goal line on Stephens late in 11-on-11s.
UCLA practices next on Tuesday at 8 a.m.
NOTES FROM CHIP KELLY
-Kelly said Jaelan Phillips hasn't suffered a setback on his injured wrist, given he was expected to miss all of spring practice, and he doesn't know if the big OLB will be available for the season opener.
-Kelly said the addition of Jerry Neuheisel to the staff was facilitated by Kelly having seen him coach on a visit to Texas A&M last year. Kelly said he has a "bright future" in coaching.
-Kelly said he hasn't "asked anything from" Dorian Thompson-Robinson. He said he just wants the young QB to enjoy his senior year at Gorman.
-Kelly was asked essentially why UCLA hasn't offered scholarships to many players this recruiting cycle. Kelly's response: "We offer kids that we can recruit. Other schools offer anybody that plays football. We offer kids that can actually get into this school and play for this school."
-Kelly said he's never cut players the way Herm Edwards spoke about doing so at Arizona State this week.
PERSONNEL NOTES
-Defensive lineman Greg Rogers, tight end Jimmy Jaggers and linebacker Mique Juarez were not in attendance. Neither was Jaelan Phillips, though he's been accounted for after having a second procedure on his injured wrist earlier this week.
-Odua Isibor moved from outside linebacker to defensive line today.
-Will Lockett, despite appearing to be healthy, continued to spend the day in just shorts and a jersey, doing nothing but watching from the sideline.
INJURY UPDATES
-Those in yellow jerseys today: WR Audie Omotosho, WR Kyle Philips, TE Caleb Wilson, LB Josh Woods, DB Keyon Riley, DB Colin Samuel and DE Rick Wade
-Keisean Lucier-South went down toward the end of the practice
-Nate Meadors had to leave practice early with what appeared to be a shoulder injury
-Brandon Burton spent most of practice on a bike, going through warmups gingerly
DEPTH CHART NOTES
-As has been the case throughout this week, nothing too noteworthy with the two-deep. Zach Sweeney continued to rotate in at starting center with Boss Tagaloa, while Michael Alves continued to rotate in at starting right guard with Sweeney.
RECRUITS IN ATTENDANCE
-Like we reported earlier this week, there were dozens. But guys who seemed to get attention from the staff:
OBSERVATIONS
-I counted nine people working at kick returner today, though the starters look like Darnay Holmes and Bolu Olorunfunmi.
-Paul Rhoads coaching snippets from 7-on-7: Holmes made a great play to stick with Theo Howard on a deep ball, cutting off his route. Rhoads yelled: "That a way to become offense!" A few plays later, Octo Spencer was torched on a deep ball to Damian Alloway and seemed to pretend to be a little gimpy. Rhoads yelled: "Don't you come up limping!"
-Demetric Felton was probably the standout of today's practice. He was a nightmare for DBs in the flats, catching a ton of little swing screens and turning them up for big yards. UCLA's offense continues to be exclusively horizontal, so players like Theo Howard and Chase Cota are non-existent, while slot guys like Felton and Christian Pabico have racked up yards and catches.
-Haven't written about the quarterbacks in a while, but.....still bad. It's fascinating how Devon Modster just can't separate from the pack. He had one particular 7-on-7 drive today that was ugly, completing maybe a quarter of his passes, and most were just dump-offs at that.
-UCLA went live for a few drills today, and Adarius Pickett was bringing it. He had the hit of the day, lighting up Olorunfunmi on a screen pass.
-Josh Kelley popped a little bit in the ground game, scoring an impressive TD and showing good vision. Brandon Stephens also seemed to run the read-option well. As a whole, the O-line was solid today, opening up nice lanes throughout the afternoon.
-Je'Vari Anderson, as anticipated, looked better with the pads on, making a huge tackle for loss at the goal line on Stephens late in 11-on-11s.
UCLA practices next on Tuesday at 8 a.m.
