Deep into the daily grind of spring drills and coming off a spirited scrimmage on Saturday, Army's second-year field boss ensured his team wouldn't be flat as it hit the field for its ninth practice since spring drills began on Feb. 17.
"Today was a day we were challenged," Ellerson explained. "Traditionally, at a lot of places, they're gonna have a hard time today, they're not gonna have a good practice. Because it's right smack in the middle of spring football. It's coming out of a big scrimmage that we were all excited for and played well in. And now, it's Monday and we have to go back to the grind and all this fundamental and drill work. But we're not every team. We're something else. That was the challenge for the guys today. On a day when it's hard to practice well, practice really well, and we did that.
"Now, we're at the part of spring that we're going to start to explore some things that we want to plus our offense, plus our defense, plus our special teams with. We were also doing a little introduction today which helps at this point in time. It challenges guys mentally as well."
While this spring has brought far fewer positional changes than a year ago, Ellerson and his staff continue to tinker with the alignment of several individuals in an attempt to find the perfect match for each.
"We have three or four guys out there today that moved to another position, some guys moved across the ball. There's still a small handful of guys that we think have a chance to be in the mix next year, that may not be quite at the right position yet. We're still doing a little bit of that, not nearly like we have in the past obviously."
Among those players finding themselves in new surroundings on Monday were sophomore Waverly Washington, who returned to defensive back following a shift to wide receiver at the outset of spring; Malcom Brown, shifted from slotback to wide reciever; and sophomore Nate Combs, who moved from the whip bandit spot to the mike linebacker position.
Ellerson stated that he was pleased with what he witnessed during his club's first intrasquad scrimmage of the spring on Saturday. It was an opportunity for he and his staff to evaluate some of the younger players in the Black Knights' program in a game-like environment for the first time, while also observing how those at new positions reacted to game speed in their changed environments.
"I was very happy with the scrimmage, with the way that we competed and the development of the football team," he offered. "You can't compare it to where we were last year at this point in time because it's so different. An awful lot of guys on offense and defense that are so comfortable in their jobs.
"It was great to have Jared Hassin out there. He made a little bit of a statement. I thought so did Jaco Bohn. Both those fullbacks played well. I saw some encouraging things from Frank Allen at guard. I was impressed with Max Jenkins at quarterback. He did a nice job. I was also impressed with the play of Christopher Swain. Marcus Hilton is doing a really nice job at end. He and Carson Homme are really playng better at that end position. Jarrett Mackey is getting a lot of turns at that rush end position with Josh McNary not being available. Nate Combs and Chad Littlejohn have looked good at bandit whip and it's nice to have Richard King back. He's doing a nice job at cornerback."
With six full padded practices remaining this spring season, in addition to the annual Black/Gold Game, Ellerson said his club will begin to focus on new elements of their offensive and defensive systems, while continuing to stress the fundamentals of both schemes.
"As I said before spring began that the next time we stepped into these shoes it needed to be a lot more natural, intuitive and instinctive and it has been. We've had some productive experiments. We've been able to explore those things personnel-wise that we wanted to; we stayed healthy and we're making progress. The next things to do is we're going to keep hammering away at those fundamentals, those things that are core to our system, but we're also gonna explore a few things we've been drawing in the dirt in the offseason."
Black Knights Blog: Army head coach Rich Ellerson praised the solid play of fullbacks Jared Hassin and Jacob Bohn during Saturday's scrimmage ... he was particularly impressed with Hassin's first work in game conditions ... Ellerson also lauded the spring work sophomore Nate Combs at the bandit whip spot ... "he's been so intuitive, so athletic and so instinctive there we want to take a look at him at the mike linebacker position," Ellerson said ... Army's mentor is also taking an opportunity to look at promising sophomore Malcom Brown at wide receiver ... one of the Black Knights' top young slotbacks, Ellerson feels Brown may provide Army with another weapon on the perimeter ... Ellerson has also been pleased with the development of Brian Cobbs at slotback this spring ... the sophomore speedster was shifted from the defensive secondary to the offensive backfield at the beginning of spring and provides Army with a breakaway threat at slotback ... Army is scheduled to practice on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday this week, and Monday and Wednesday next week before breaking for spring recess ... www.goARMYsports.com will provide multi-media coverage on Wednesday and written coverage on Saturday this week.
Sounds of Spring
Junior whip linebacker Andrew Rodriguez
(ref.: the team's progress this spring)
"It's going pretty well. We're putting in some new things on offense and defense. We definitely have a leg up on where we were last spring in terms of playing with the same guys, knowing where everyone's going to be and knowing your assignments. Right now, we're taking what we have and building on our fundamentals so we can be successful in the fall.
"I like some of the things we're doing. We're getting to do a little more attacking and a little more scheming. As we continue to bring back veterans, it gets a little easy to play with each other. I think it's going to be a real good year."
(ref.: his personal development this spring)
"You're always trying to push yourself out of your comfort zone. That's what our coaches talk about to get to the next level. I had a pretty good year last year but you can always build. It's all about what you do this upcoming season. I'm trying to do everything I can do to prepare myself and the team for the next year."
(ref.: reaching midway point of spring drills)
"It's crazy to think we're halfway through spring, but we're just excited to be back playing football. That's what we love to do. It's been a long winter, but this is what we want when we come to the spring.
"We have a lot of guys injured right now, so that gives the new guys a chance to come in and show the coaches what they can do. Every step we take is just better for the team. The more guys that we get that are competing for spots, the better the team's going to get ultimately. That's been huge for us this spring."
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