2014 East-West Shrine Game: Wednesday’s East Team Practice Report
By Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell
The third practice for the East team in the East-West Shrine was under partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the 60s in St. Petersburg, Fla. The East team was in full pads for the second practice this week.
As is typically the case, Jerry Glanville ran a spirited practice that featured a lot of hitting situations. After warmups, the teams broke into a nine-on-nine run scrimmage and a two-vs-one passing scrimmage with safeties and cornerbacks taking on a wide receiver.
One receiver who has impressed scouts and enjoyed a good week is Coastal Carolina’s Matt Hazel. The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder showed nice quickness and route-running for a receiver with size. Hazel did well in the scrimmage including one play where he beat Lindenwood cornerback Pierre Desir (6-2, 206) out of the slot for a long completion. During the seven-on-seven portion, Hazel was streaking open down the field, and Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo laid out a pass too far in front. Hazel went full extension as he laid out to make a diving catch for a big gain.
Garoppolo, however, needed to throw that ball sooner to hit Hazel in stride so he could keep running for a touchdown. Garoppolo then fired a bullet in the red zone to Miami wideout Allen Hurns in a tight window for a score. During the team 11-on-11 scrimmage, Garoppolo laid out a deep ball for Hurns who was covered along the sideline but the pass sailed out of bounds. Garoppolo needed to give Hurns a chance to make a play for him. Garoppolo did have a good completion on a pass to Michigan’s Jeremy Gallon in the flat. Garoppolo had a quality practice, but he wasn’t dominating.
Hazel outfought Utah State Nevin Lawson for a touchdown reception in the goal-to-go seven-on-seven. Hazel got ripped hard to the ground, but held onto the pass from Garoppolo. Scouts compared Hazel to Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Cecil Shorts in his ability to make plays. Hazel definitely helped himself this week.
A few players stood out in the run scrimmage. Penn State linebacker Glenn Carson thrived. As a Big Ten linebacker, he’s certainly used to downhill rushing attacks, and Carson had a good session stuffing a number of runs.
Along the defensive line, Delaware’s Zachariah Kerr showed well. The 6-foot-2, 310-pounder did a nice job of filling his gap and swallowing up runs that came his direction. Kerr had one nice pass rush with a spin move to get a win. In the pass rushing two-on-twos (a defensive end and defensive tackle versus a guard and offensive tackle, or two defensive tackles against a guard and center) Kerr didn’t show as well. Bloomsburg offensive tackle Matt Feiler had some success blocking Kerr, though Feiler had an ugly snap against Ethan Westbrooks of West Texas A&M on a fast spin move.
Belhaven offensive tackle Matt Hall (6-10, 320) showed some improvement this week as he had more success against West Virginia’s Will Clarke than he did earlier.
One offensive lineman who hasn’t been impressive is Tennessee’s James Stone. He’s been beaten by some power and speed rushes. Stone hasn’t played as well as he did on typical Saturdays in SEC action. Stone looks more like a late-rounder rather than a mid-round pick.
Purdue defensive tackle Bruce Gaston has played well and had some nice run fills. He also got down the line to stuff a run in the team scrimmage. East Carolina outside linebacker Derrell Johnson (6-2, 264) also has had a good week. Scouts have been impressed by Johnson’s pass rush off the edge and he looks like a good fit for a 3-4 defense.
Oklahoma State tight end Blake Jackson (6-3, 235) has a nice skill set, but drops to many passes. He’s quick and athletic to get open, but his hands fail him far too often. He’s going to need some development with a lot of time being spent working with a juggs machine.
The running back who really showed well this week was Tennessee’s Rajion Neal. Neal had strong performances on Monday and Wednesday. He made some nice cuts in the hole to break off chunk runs in the nine-on-nine and 11-on-11 scrimmage. Scouts said they liked Neal’s feet and quickness. They felt he could be a third-day sleeper who would prove to be a nice value.
Lastly, Cornell quarterback Jeff Mathews had his best practice of the week. Mathews worked well with Michigan wide receiver Jeremy Gallon as he hit Gallon the run for a number of good completions. Mathews showed some accuracy potential with throws to the diminutive Gallon in smaller spaces. Mathews had another nice completion with a bullet to Hurns. His one mistake was a ball forced to a covered receiver that was deflected and intercepted by Penn State’s Glenn Carson. Mathews will need to do well in the lead-up to the draft to ensure that he gets selected on the third day.
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