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2015 Senior Bowl: Thursday Practice Report: South Team
By Charlie Campbell –
@draftcampbell
The South team took the field of Ladd-Peebles Stadium for their third practice of the Senior Bowl. The Jacksonville Jaguars’ coaching staff ran the practice, and had the players practicing in full pads. Jacksonville’s staff ended practice about a half hour early. Between stretching and warmups, there wasn’t a lot of practice time to gather useful information. Here is a run-down of the noteworthy players.
Alabama linebacker Reggie Ragland was heavier than expected at the weigh-in as he was just shy of 260 pounds, but this week, he showed he still moved well at the weight. In the receiving one-on-ones, Ragland allowed a short completion, but he was right there to make a tackle. Many linebackers would have been smoked. Ragland is a versatile defender, but for the NFL, his best bet would be to slim down and play middle linebacker. With his toughness, instincts and tackling ability, Ragland has the skill set to be a first-round pick.
There were some fun battles to watch between Michigan center Graham Glasgow and Alabama defensive tackle Jarran Reed. It was very impressive that Glasgow could go head-to-head and get wins with Reed because many centers would need guard help to block Reed. Glasgow held up Reed on a bull rush on one rep long enough for the quarterback to get a pass out. Reed got the better of Glasgow on a spin move and on a bull rush, but Glasgow came back to earn a few draws after giving up some initial push.
Reed needs to develop more pass rush for the NFL, but this week validated that he’s worthy of a top-25 pick.
Glasgow has had a phenomenal two weeks to really put his draft stock on the map. He looks like a second-day talent in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Eastern Kentucky outside linebacker Noah Spence performed well in the one-on-ones. Spence used his speed to easily blow by Georgia tackle John Theus. Spence exposed how Theus is slow out of his stance. Given that Spence is below 250 pounds, he doesn’t fit a 4-3 defense and will have to be a 3-4 outside linebacker.
Theus did better with wins against BYU tackle Bronson Kaufusi as he stopped a couple of bull rushes. With his lack of quickness, athleticism, and strength, Theus is a late-round pick.
Texas Tech left tackle Le’Raven Clark had an interesting practice. In the one-on-ones, he did well with two wins against Baylor defensive end Shawn Oakman. Virginia Tech’s Dadi Nicolas got the better of Clark on a speed rush. During the team scrimmage, Clark did well as he had two bone-rattling blocks on LSU linebacker Deion Jones. One came on a reverse, and the other on a screen pass to spring Minnesota running back K.J. Maye for a touchdown. In the 2-minute drive, Clark was very good blocking at Nicolas, among others. In an obvious passing situation, Clark used his speed and length to protect the edge and give his quarterback a clean blind side. Overall, Clark has a lot of athletic potential, but he needs to get coached up to be viable NFL starter.
Oakman hasn’t had an impressive week. Not only did he lose those reps to Clark, he looked bad losing his feet with one rep and his lack of lower body development was apparent. Oakman did a get a win over Kansas State guard/tackle Cody Whitehair, but he also lost to Whitehair when a bull rush went nowhere. Whitehair has struggled with power in the past, so Oakman not moving him was disappointing. Overall, Oakman looks like a mid-rounder who has been vastly overhyped by some in the media.
One lineman who had a bit of a rough start on Tuesday but progressed after that was Arkansas guard Sebastian Tretola. He did well with two wins over Clemson nose tackle D.J. Reader.
In the team scrimmage, Kaufusi flew by LSU’s Vadal Alexander. Kaufusi is best in space and can struggle to shed blocks.
In the red-zone scrimmage, LSU safety Jalen Mills dropped an easy interception on a pass that floated right to him in the corner of the end zone from Alabama quarterback Jacob Coker.
Samford corner/safety James Bradberry had a phenomenal hit when he crunched Oklahoma wide receiver Sterling Shepard. It looked like Shepard was injured, but it turned out he was just winded and rattled from the hit. It was a nice play by Bradberry to fly over and punish Shepard in the middle of the field.
N.C. State quarterback Jacoby Brissett had a nice practice. In the red-zone scrimmage session, he ran in three touchdowns after scrambling from the 5- and 10-yard line. He also threaded a needle by defenders to Southeast Missouri wide receiver Paul McRoberts on a slant. In the 2-minute drill, Brissett had a good drive moving the ball downfield. He hit a chunk completion to Baylor wide receiver Jay Lee to move the ball for a short field goal. Brissett hasn’t wowed this week, but Thursday was his best session.
McRoberts had a good practice as well. He showed nice hands on a shoestring catch. In the receiving one-on-ones, McRoberts had a pretty over-the-shoulder catch after getting separation from Middle Tennessee safety Kevin Byard. McRoberts made the most of his Senior Bowl opportunity to open some eyes on Thursday.
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