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New Mexico closed its third practice of fall camp Friday, capping the Lobos’ first week out under second-year head coach Jason Eck.
Here are two things I liked and one thing I didn’t from the Lobos’ first three days of practice:
Things to like
A promising youth movement at receiver
As the well-worn cliche goes, spring showers bring May flowers.
In UNM’s case — don’t wince! — they might be blooming in August instead.
Through three days of practice, there’s been plenty to like from Massiah Mingo and DJ Darling, a pair of freshman receivers that enrolled over the winter. That’s not to say they had bad springs – if anything, Mingo was a real bright spot. But there were some practices towards the end where it looked like they’d lost a little steam, two young players adjusting to the rigors of college football on the fly.
I don’t know if that’s going to be the case over the next few weeks. For starters, they look like they’re physically up to the task: Darling said he gained 10 pounds in the offseason while Mingo says he’s up six.
A summer to get better conditioned didn’t hurt, either.
“I’d never seen nothing like that,” Mingo said of the desert hills UNM has made a staple of its conditioning program. “I promise you, I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Both have consistently made plays, too. Where they might have been relying on raw ability during the spring, it appears that some real comfort with the playbook is starting to translate onto the field.
“(Spring practice), it just gave me a head start on everything,” Darling said.
Around this time last year, I thought Zhaiel Smith (eight catches for 112 yards after enrolling in the summer) was going to have a bigger season than he did, especially given how banged up UNM’s receiver room was. It turns out that predicting the productivity of most true freshman receivers isn’t an exact science.
I’ll venture to say that those spring reps have already paid dividends for Mingo and Darling, though. Nothing’s set in stone, but at this point I’d be terribly surprised if at least one of them isn’t a productive member of the rotation this season.
(And while UNM’s young receivers are the focus here, another early enrollee pass catcher deserves some recognition: tight end Max Leeper. The 6-foot-7, 228-pound Claremont, Calif. native had a good Friday, catching a team period touchdown pass from quarterback James Laubstein to help earn the hammer, awarded to whoever Eck deems the player of the practice.)
The pass rush might not be that big of a concern after all
Stating the obvious: UNM’s efforts to harass opposing quarterbacks this season instantly became a brighter endeavor with the return of Brett Karhu.
After making 7.5 sacks last season, the All-Mountain West honorable mention defensive end is currently eligible for a fifth year following a class-wide preliminary injunction — one that doesn’t seem like it’s fully sunk in for Karhu yet.
“There’s no place I’d rather be — no place,” he said. “I mean, I low-key get emotional just talking about it.”
Whether he makes it to the season remains to be seen. If the NCAA’s appeal is successful, that injunction could be reversed. In that case, UNM stands to lose a true plug-and-play edge rusher.
To be clear, it certainly wouldn’t help the Lobos contend for a conference title.
But it might not be the end of the world.
Through three practices, I’ve liked what I’ve seen from this pass rush. Beyond Karhu, defensive ends Albert Tuakalau and Darren Agu — the frontrunner to start at the Jack, UNM’s boundary end position — have had good moments. Linebackers Jaxton Eck and Clay Martineau have also been plenty active, with the latter starting to really shine as a rusher on late downs.
Those were all expected, though. What wasn’t entirely sure was if transfers like Trenton Rocker and Jalen Charles would be playing at full speed and bringing real pressure. Or if Elijah Brody would look like he did at the start of last season.
That all appears to be happening. It needs to be said that this isn’t an uncommon occurrence – after all, the defense is almost always ahead of the offense at the start of camp.
But at least we’re seeing real pressure, and not just from a few guys. That should go a long way towards answering some of the questions surrounding UNM’s pass rush this offseason.
Something to not like
Jack Layne’s absence from the quarterback competition
Don’t interpret that as an outright absence from practice, though. Layne, UNM’s fifth-year quarterback, is still out on the field, wearing a helmet and gray jersey. He’s going through drills. He’s locked in on plays. He’s even throwing short passes with his left arm.
He’s just not throwing with his right arm – a sordid, but familiar note from an otherwise terrific year-and-a-half stretch for UNM.
Wednesday, Eck dropped far and away the biggest news in UNM’s first week back: Layne will be out for the “near future” as he recovers from a nagging elbow injury. Even before practice started, the original frontrunner to start for UNM saw another specialist and received a second opinion, Eck added, for an ailment that’s hounded him for large sections of his Lobo tenure.
But as of now, “near future” is the only timeline that’s been provided for Layne’s return. And while he’s the best player I’ve ever seen in terms of staying engaged while recovering from an injury, he’s not going to do much of anything in this quarterback competition until he’s healthy.
The good news? The Lobos have options – good ones, too – beyond Layne.
UNM was wise to bring in Oregon transfer Luke Moga, an impressive insurance policy and a player of truly tantalizing ability all in one. It was lucky to return sixth-year senior James Laubstein, Layne’s run-first backup last season, via an NCAA waiver. And it deserves credit for developing Toa Fa’avae to the point where he’s competing to start as a true sophomore.
Three practices in, I’d say Laubstein and Moga are on somewhat level ground in this competition. Perhaps Moga is still trying to do a little too much with his legs, something Eck has wanted to see less of. But this secondary and the defense at large hasn’t made it easy on anybody – sometimes all you can do is run.
By my count, Fa’avae is lingering a little behind Laubstein and Moga in the pecking order. Occasionally, it looks as if he’s holding the ball a second too long. A few interceptions here and there haven’t helped his case either.
(Then again, it’s practice. Where else are players supposed to make mistakes?)
Through the first week of camp, I’ll suggest that the only definitive statement to be made about this competition is that it should be a good one. There’s enough talent and experience on hand to suggest as much. This staff gets the benefit of the doubt for its previous success with second- and third-string quarterbacks, too.
I’ll also contend that Layne – when healthy – is more of a sure thing than anybody else in this quarterback room. And this competition would benefit significantly from a healthy Layne giving everybody else something to measure themselves against.
Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at [email protected] or via X at @lenaweereider.
Continue reading...
Here are two things I liked and one thing I didn’t from the Lobos’ first three days of practice:
Things to like
A promising youth movement at receiver
As the well-worn cliche goes, spring showers bring May flowers.
In UNM’s case — don’t wince! — they might be blooming in August instead.
Through three days of practice, there’s been plenty to like from Massiah Mingo and DJ Darling, a pair of freshman receivers that enrolled over the winter. That’s not to say they had bad springs – if anything, Mingo was a real bright spot. But there were some practices towards the end where it looked like they’d lost a little steam, two young players adjusting to the rigors of college football on the fly.
I don’t know if that’s going to be the case over the next few weeks. For starters, they look like they’re physically up to the task: Darling said he gained 10 pounds in the offseason while Mingo says he’s up six.
A summer to get better conditioned didn’t hurt, either.
“I’d never seen nothing like that,” Mingo said of the desert hills UNM has made a staple of its conditioning program. “I promise you, I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Both have consistently made plays, too. Where they might have been relying on raw ability during the spring, it appears that some real comfort with the playbook is starting to translate onto the field.
“(Spring practice), it just gave me a head start on everything,” Darling said.
Around this time last year, I thought Zhaiel Smith (eight catches for 112 yards after enrolling in the summer) was going to have a bigger season than he did, especially given how banged up UNM’s receiver room was. It turns out that predicting the productivity of most true freshman receivers isn’t an exact science.
I’ll venture to say that those spring reps have already paid dividends for Mingo and Darling, though. Nothing’s set in stone, but at this point I’d be terribly surprised if at least one of them isn’t a productive member of the rotation this season.
(And while UNM’s young receivers are the focus here, another early enrollee pass catcher deserves some recognition: tight end Max Leeper. The 6-foot-7, 228-pound Claremont, Calif. native had a good Friday, catching a team period touchdown pass from quarterback James Laubstein to help earn the hammer, awarded to whoever Eck deems the player of the practice.)
The pass rush might not be that big of a concern after all
Stating the obvious: UNM’s efforts to harass opposing quarterbacks this season instantly became a brighter endeavor with the return of Brett Karhu.
After making 7.5 sacks last season, the All-Mountain West honorable mention defensive end is currently eligible for a fifth year following a class-wide preliminary injunction — one that doesn’t seem like it’s fully sunk in for Karhu yet.
“There’s no place I’d rather be — no place,” he said. “I mean, I low-key get emotional just talking about it.”
Whether he makes it to the season remains to be seen. If the NCAA’s appeal is successful, that injunction could be reversed. In that case, UNM stands to lose a true plug-and-play edge rusher.
To be clear, it certainly wouldn’t help the Lobos contend for a conference title.
But it might not be the end of the world.
Through three practices, I’ve liked what I’ve seen from this pass rush. Beyond Karhu, defensive ends Albert Tuakalau and Darren Agu — the frontrunner to start at the Jack, UNM’s boundary end position — have had good moments. Linebackers Jaxton Eck and Clay Martineau have also been plenty active, with the latter starting to really shine as a rusher on late downs.
Those were all expected, though. What wasn’t entirely sure was if transfers like Trenton Rocker and Jalen Charles would be playing at full speed and bringing real pressure. Or if Elijah Brody would look like he did at the start of last season.
That all appears to be happening. It needs to be said that this isn’t an uncommon occurrence – after all, the defense is almost always ahead of the offense at the start of camp.
But at least we’re seeing real pressure, and not just from a few guys. That should go a long way towards answering some of the questions surrounding UNM’s pass rush this offseason.
Something to not like
Jack Layne’s absence from the quarterback competition
Don’t interpret that as an outright absence from practice, though. Layne, UNM’s fifth-year quarterback, is still out on the field, wearing a helmet and gray jersey. He’s going through drills. He’s locked in on plays. He’s even throwing short passes with his left arm.
He’s just not throwing with his right arm – a sordid, but familiar note from an otherwise terrific year-and-a-half stretch for UNM.
Wednesday, Eck dropped far and away the biggest news in UNM’s first week back: Layne will be out for the “near future” as he recovers from a nagging elbow injury. Even before practice started, the original frontrunner to start for UNM saw another specialist and received a second opinion, Eck added, for an ailment that’s hounded him for large sections of his Lobo tenure.
But as of now, “near future” is the only timeline that’s been provided for Layne’s return. And while he’s the best player I’ve ever seen in terms of staying engaged while recovering from an injury, he’s not going to do much of anything in this quarterback competition until he’s healthy.
The good news? The Lobos have options – good ones, too – beyond Layne.
UNM was wise to bring in Oregon transfer Luke Moga, an impressive insurance policy and a player of truly tantalizing ability all in one. It was lucky to return sixth-year senior James Laubstein, Layne’s run-first backup last season, via an NCAA waiver. And it deserves credit for developing Toa Fa’avae to the point where he’s competing to start as a true sophomore.
Three practices in, I’d say Laubstein and Moga are on somewhat level ground in this competition. Perhaps Moga is still trying to do a little too much with his legs, something Eck has wanted to see less of. But this secondary and the defense at large hasn’t made it easy on anybody – sometimes all you can do is run.
By my count, Fa’avae is lingering a little behind Laubstein and Moga in the pecking order. Occasionally, it looks as if he’s holding the ball a second too long. A few interceptions here and there haven’t helped his case either.
(Then again, it’s practice. Where else are players supposed to make mistakes?)
Through the first week of camp, I’ll suggest that the only definitive statement to be made about this competition is that it should be a good one. There’s enough talent and experience on hand to suggest as much. This staff gets the benefit of the doubt for its previous success with second- and third-string quarterbacks, too.
I’ll also contend that Layne – when healthy – is more of a sure thing than anybody else in this quarterback room. And this competition would benefit significantly from a healthy Layne giving everybody else something to measure themselves against.
Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at [email protected] or via X at @lenaweereider.
Continue reading...
