Blacknall
- Thread starter Bobpsu
- Start date
Doubtful he's in the doghouse. I think much of the reporting on the WR position has been centered on two storylines - Hamilton "bouncing back" this year and Juwan Johnson emerging as a top target. Seems like Blacknall and Tompkins have both been a little bit lost in those talking points but don't really think it's a reflection on them.
Blacknall served his punishment 9 months ago and looks to be getting enough reps in practice to say he's in the hunt to be a starter.
His punishment was for a pretty minor transgression mainly getting lost and reporting late to a mandatory practice during the Rose Bowl.
This is from a friend of a friend of Saeed's girlfriend (seriously), so take it with whatever size grain of salt you want, but word is it had to do with cheating on a final exam. Don't beat me up ... just passing on what I heard so TIFWIW.
Probably the bigger factor is that he missed a lot of spring practice for whatever reason (injury, academics?) and Johnson had a great spring and beat him out. It says something really good about PSU football that there is so much talent that Blacknall doesn't start.
I think Blacknall's going to play and assuming he can keep academics/personal life in order, he'll play a lot. I hope he does. 6-3 receivers who can run like that are really a problem as Wisconsin found out.
Blacknall was super effective as the 2nd X receiver last year. Could be this year too. Imagine what it's like for a corner chasing Johnson and Thompkins and Hamilton and then suddenly in the 3rd quarter, just when your legs are getting a little rubbery, in comes a 6-3 guy who runs like a 5-10 guy.
I think Blacknall's going to play and assuming he can keep academics/personal life in order, he'll play a lot. I hope he does. 6-3 receivers who can run like that are really a problem as Wisconsin found out.
Blacknall was super effective as the 2nd X receiver last year. Could be this year too. Imagine what it's like for a corner chasing Johnson and Thompkins and Hamilton and then suddenly in the 3rd quarter, just when your legs are getting a little rubbery, in comes a 6-3 guy who runs like a 5-10 guy.
That's what I've seen, too. Johnson will replace Godwin at the X, Hamilton is at the H, and Blacknall and Thompkins are fighting it out at the Z.
Edit: FWIW, that's pretty much how the Rose Bowl depth chart has them listed, too, positionally.
I am interested to see how JoMo incorporates Polk into the offense. Prior to JoMo, he was the jet screen motion WR. The guy has speed to burn, hopefully they can figure out how to best use him and he doesn't turn into another MooMoo Smith.
Ah, so maybe Thompkins beat him out?
Speaking of Thompkins, I was watching highlights for Rashard Fant the other day -- Indiana corner, might be the best corner in the B1G. Anyway his top highlight of the year was an interception he took right out of Thompkins' hands. It was only an INT because Thompkins couldn't quite reach the ball -- he could only get fingertips to it. If it had been Godwin, Blacknall, any of the tall receivers, it would have been a catch.
It got me thinking -- so much of PSU's passing game really depended on tall receivers being able to outreach corners. It was true in virtually every game. Ohio State, nobody was really open, every big catch was heavily contested, but Gesicki and Godwin won the battles.
On the other hand, if the corners can outreach your receivers, it becomes to risky to cover to a receiver who has a corner on him. To make a catch, Thompkins has to have clear separation and the ball has to be out of the reach of the corner -- otherwise it's not safe to throw. An extra 6 inches of height and maybe 8 inches of reach -- that adds a helpful margin of error.
This is, by the way, why Chip Kelly thought he didn't need DeSean Jackson. In college football, at least in Kelly's system at Oregon, tall receivers win. In the NFL other factors come into play so maybe the raw speed is still important.
Yeah, Andrew Callahan was talking about that on podcast on one of the other sites. Thinks Polk can be a lot more than the gimmick player he was 2 years ago -- the guy who carries the ball on jet sweeps.
Polk's now working slot receiver behind Hamilton and they think he might be a really good one. For a slot receiver, quick changes of direction are a big part of the position. Polk probably isn't the fastest 40 on the team but he's got to be the quickest. For the quick slants and middle screens he might be perfect as long as he can get off the LOS.
A lot can be said for spending the winter, spring, summer, and early preseason practices as the #2, being forced to work your butt off for the #1 spot. It's very likely a make/break ordeal. Blacknall returns with a vengeance or he flounders away like he did most of last year. He could be the guy who burnt Wisconsin every game, if he has the focus and motivation.
Yeah if you read between the lines it sounds like this is the issue. Super super talented but maybe some growing up to do yet.
I kind of like that Franklin doesn't criticize players publicly -- or only very faintly in the vein of -- he's working on improving blah blah.. That seems like good practice. Praise publicly, criticize in private.
"50/50 balls" is a stupid, ridiculous, asinine ESPN term invented by morons. I object to its usage.
I agree. You saw it especially in that game but really all year. Nobody can cover him. If he ever puts it together he will just tear up Big Ten secondaries. Same with Irv Charles. Not a corner in the B1G who will be able to cover that guy. But they have to learn how to run precise routes and play the ball correctly or they're a turnover liability. They don't call it a skill position for nothing.
I'm not quite so offended. It just means throwing to a covered receiver. The only problem is they're not really 50-50 balls in the sense that a defender has equal chance of making the catch.
The receiver is in better position, knows where the ball is coming from, and - at least in PSU's case -- the receiver has from 5 to 10 inches of reach advantage. Gesicki had some catches last year where the defender made full leap and Mike was just able to stand on his toes and control the catch. That much of a height disadvantage.
What teed off Moorhead was the notion that there was no system, that Trace was just playing playground ball and the big receivers were making all those catches.
And Moorhead's 100% right -- it's the design of the offense to take what defense give you -- so they threw deep because secondaries (and Wisconsin was best example) kept playing their safeties down and then chasing the receivers. When you get lit up the way the Wisky secondary did, it's not the personnel, it's that the defense wasn't making adjustments it should have been making.
USC did make some adjustments, had safety playing center field, and it won the game for them. I suspect we'll see a lot more teams with at least one safety back this year. Which of course is good news for Barkley.
Since spring ball, Johnson is your starting X. Blacknall, Thompkins, and Charles are battling it out to be the Y. Hamilton is your Z (with a smattering of Polk).
I accidentally hit the like button. I don't even know where to begin educating you. You should just stop. Sorry to be so forward, but I'm serious. Please stop. You're doing the readership here a disservice.
I almost have to ask.. would you prefer 65-35 balls? Pretty much what it was... not a jump ball 'is our guy better' (although that is what happened at the end of usc).. but a calculated odds/skillsets are in our favor kind of thing? Like playing with way more than just house money.
75-25? I'm okay with that. But face it, there was some mystery in a lot of those throws. 50-50 isn't fair because there was smartness in play and TM wasn't just hurling the puck and praying for miracles. But those were not guaranteed catches more often than not.
I know there are people here who think it was more like 95-5.. I'm not one of them. Although I hope they are smarter than me and we continue to win the vast majority of jumps. If we do, we can run the table. If we don't, we can drop 4. Even money says somewhere in between. Still thinking 10-2 with a big bowl win and top 5 finish.
And yes, I would love to be wrong. I'd love to run the table, be in the playoffs, and win the MNC. But as a betting dude.. I'm holding on with 11-2, top 5.
I don't think McSorley was looking for miracles but it's not like he was always hitting receivers in stride. He relied on receivers winning their match ups based on superior athleticism. Godwin was good at getting those balls, many of which were under thrown.
Remember the TD catch by Blacknall vs. Wisconsin while cutting across the middle of the field? Defenders were totally out of position largely due to McSorely's scrambling and Blacknall was big and able to find space. I think he's the obvious replacement for Godwin.
Geez 405 posts and you get to put down anyone who disagrees with you even slightly? Learn the system Sparky. You can unlike a like.
Another feature I encourage you to learn about is IGNORE. Add me to your ignore list and you won't have to read my drivel -- my posts become invisible to you. And I'll do the same for you. In fact I already have.
Been following and agreeing/disagreeing with you for -- literally -- decades.
Don't ever stop, Tom.
Still one of the best minds on this board,
I hope for the best with Johnson but Blacknall is proven senior and Johnson has 2 career catches.
One thing I'd like to see is Charles Johnson, & Gesicki in the red zone. That's too much height for shorter DBs to cover.
Thanks N&B, back at ya man. It's been a long time for those of us from the Plotit board. I don't even want to know how long.
I don't mind being wrong -- I'm wrong all the time. But rude people -- I'm old enough, I just don't have time for it.
