clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

2012 Mizzou Fall Football Practice: Day 16 Links And Analysis

By Bill Connelly

If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Welcome back, T.J. Moe. (Photo via Bill Carter.)
Welcome back, T.J. Moe. (Photo via Bill Carter.)

Not a loaded set of practice links, but ... who cares? T.J. Moe is back!

Quarterbacks

Yost fully expects that as he sees Franklin reaching what he called "the third stage of a quarterback."

"The first stage is knowing the offense," he said. "The second stage is you start taking what the defense gives you. The third stage is you start attacking the defense."

That will be a balancing act in itself for Franklin, who has taken some mighty hits because of his aggressiveness.

"There's that fine line," Yost said. "You don't want to be reckless, but you also want to be attacking and be aggressive."

-- Post-Dispatch

You spend all offseason worrying about something (Franklin's shoulder), and after two days of camp, your original fears have been alleviated, and you're on to worrying about something else. Funny how that works.

Running Backs

Last fall, some around Lawrence noticed his body language sag at times when adjusting to his post-injury life. Eventually, though, the player parked his problem and committed to the future.

"We're always pushing each other and wanting the best for each other," Lawrence says of Josey. "We always make each other work hard."

For Lawrence, that relationship continued after Josey's injury. During the Texas game, shortly after Josey gripped his knee in sharp pain on a sideline in the third quarter at Memorial Stadium, Lawrence walked over to his "little brother" and said, "We've got this game for you, so just keep your head up."

Lawrence finished the afternoon with a game-high 106 yards with one touchdown on 18 carries. The Tigers beat the Longhorns for the first time since 1997.

-- Fox Sports MW

Kendial Lawrence really was good in November and December, wasn't he? I mean, he missed three games and only started the last four, but he still gained 566 yards for the season. Final four games: 66 carries, 371 yards (5.6 per carry), 3 TD. Over the course of 13 games, that's a 1,200-yard pace.

Receiving Corps

Green-Beckham lined up on the outside throughout his illustrious high school career, but after injuries earlier this week, Yost moved him inside to the Y-position, where tight ends commonly play.

"It’s new, but what he’s done is he’s worked hard to learn it," Yost said. "And that’s a big thing."

Time at the Y-spot would be a learning opportunity for Green-Beckham, Yost said.

"We thought two-fold it was a chance for him to get another spot, so it just helps his education in the offense and understanding of it," Yost said. "But secondly, our Y-position has always been a spot that’s been pretty easy for us to get the ball to."

Yost also referenced Green-Beckham’s versatility as a benefit.

"He’s inside, he’s outside, he’s all over the place," Yost said. "He gives you a lot of variances to be able to throw the ball to him and use him to the best of his abilities."

-- The Maneater

Hello, T.J.!

Offensive Line

With Thursday's final scrimmage, there is only one starting position which seems seriously in doubt. Max Copeland and Evan Boehm split time with the first team offense in practice on Tuesday. Josh Henson said he would call the matchup "even" right now.

"They've both improved tremendously. It's still a heck of a battle," Henson said. "I think right now if we were going into a game tomorrow they would both play and we'll kind of go from there and see how it works out."

No matter who wins the battle, both have established themselves among the top six linemen heading into the season. Copeland had been working at right guard, but with the return of Justin Britt, he slid back over to the left side while Jack Meiners moved from right tackle to guard.

-- PowerMizzou

KOMU ran an excellent piece on Copeland the other day.

Walk-On Brings Long Hair, Heavy Metal to Mizzou O-Line from KOMU News on Vimeo.

I'm pretty sure my wife even loves the guy now (though she did note that Locks Of Love probably isn't going to have a lot of interest in his hair). Straight outta 1987. LET'S GET WEIRD, BROTHER.

Defensive Line

Two more starters said they were close to returning to full-speed drills: receiver L’Damian Washington, out the last week with a bruised shoulder, and nose guard Matt Hoch, who’s also nursing a sore hamstring. Hoch was confident he’ll be cleared to return before the Sept. 1 opener, and Washington expected the same.

-- The Trib

So Sheldon Richardson is awesome, and neither Matt Hoch nor Lucas Vincent have seen much of the field recently due to injury. So conflicted about the tackle position right now.

Linebacking Corps

During seven-on-seven drills, Bonner worked in at both outside linebacker positions. The left outside linebacker is called the "Sam," or strong-side linebacker, and the right outside linebacker is called the "Will," or weak-side linebacker.

"I've played all three positions since I've been here," Bonner said. "I started off as Will, played Sam my sophomore year, now I'm playing Mike."

Bonner said his experience allows him to fill in wherever he is needed. With Ebner, weak-side linebacker Zaviar Gooden and strong-side linebacker Andrew Wilson, the Tigers have established starters at each of the three positions, but because of injuries, Bonner has worked with the first-team defense multiple times during training camp.

-- The Missourian

PowerMizzou.com: Do you feel any more pressure during these scrimmages, because they could determine whether you redshirt this year?

Donavin Newsom: I don't feel any more pressure. I just gotta keep doing what I'm doing and all that, and I'll probably put my name out there.

-- PowerMizzou

So Donovan Bonner is the backup SLB, MLB and WLB. He is the second-string. Got it.

Secondary

Kip Edwards and Braylon Webb are still gimpy, but Webb still has a strong grasp of the starting free safety spot. I'm not letting this unit worry me yet, but ... really, really wanting to see both guys healthy for SE Louisiana.

Next Up In Links