The Bobcat Nation

I want to talk about a different group everyday until we have covered them all, I thought I'd start out with WRs why not. Everyone feel free to add your insight into the mix.

Strengths: Fast. They have the ability to spread the defense on every play because of sheer speed. Hot route for a deep bomb should be a common scene this year. Agile. These guys make quick cuts and from what I've seen (and my limited knowledge on the matter), they run good routes. Murray can stop on a dime. They are also smart players, they can find holes in the defense and you bet Lulay will find them if they do. Experience is a big plus for these guys as well, with 2 starters returning from last years squad and some transfers with plenty of gameday experience under their belts

Weaknesses: Height. They are not a tall group. The good news for us is that the DBs in IAA tend to be even smaller than the IA ones. 6'1 DB is tall in this league. But we have no clear advantage and thusly I have labeled it a weakness. Also I feel we need someone to make the plays like Sullivan did last year. We don't have a great possession receiver, nor do we have someone who is going to be able to run through the middle and make the hard catches.

I feel our receivers are some of the best we have ever had, and the strenths far outweigh the weakness, though there are a few weakness, a couple of which I hope are addressed or even better, me just worrying about nothing.

I agree with you regarding Eddie! Eddie! He made some very very CLUTCH catches last year. We defiantely need someone to step up and fill that role for sure this year. Roosevelt doesn't seem scared to go over the middle though (although he needs to hang onto the ball better) He will lay out for a catch though over the middle. Guinn might end up being a good possesion receiver this year as well. They threw a lot of nice short fade routes to sideline to him last year. This year though I dont think you can key on any one receiver so we may be less dependant on a POSSESSION type receiver as some receiver I would think should get open (especially with our OL and maybe some 1 or 2 TE sets etc).

I like how our running back additions and possibly tight end play may allow us to have multiple plays out of a single look. I was wondering last night if we will see two back sets that are actually a pass first play.

Could be a fun year for different and surprising formations.

Tramaine Murray is going to be a great player. He is better that Eddie, Guinn, and is possiby better than Gatewood was at this time last year. I think that Gatewood will be a star this year, but you will see some special plays from Murray this year. Also, Mike Brown and Ty Lulay look very good. I haven't seen much of Javon Walker, but before he got hurt (still not sure what's wrong with him) he seemed to be playing with the 1's more often than Guinn.

Our backs are going to be very good this year. Evin Groves and Mike Bass are pure excitement and look like they could be special players this year, and Dominick is consistantly solid. Look for a lot of great plays out of the running game this year.

The thing that scares me the most is TE. How many times did we see Blake come up with a big catch for a first down, and then drag defenders another 10 yards after the catch? I don't see anyone filling those shoes. I think that the Billings West kid (Schrebis?) will be very good, but I would like to see him redshirt this year.

I was at practice today, and the spirit and tempo were incredible. Lots of great plays by everyone, but a lot of people were sitting out. Some of the notables were Gatewood, Walker, Hunter, Siataga, Daryl Rogers, Beniger, Coppack...maybe more. Eddie Smith did play and looked pretty good as did Epi King (he's been out for a while), and Andre Fuller continues to impress. I really liked what I saw from the DL today. Papich looked incredible, Kolone and Big Lou had some great moments. The past few days Clive Lowe has been playing DE in the 3-4 with Bobby Daly playing the other LB and doing well. Lulay and Carpenter also continue to do well.

There were a few skirmishes in practice today, it looks like these guys are ready for some full contact.

It's difficult to tell whether or not we will have a great team by watching them play against each other. I do know that the offense looks SCARY GOOD, and the defense is FAST! I expect to see a lot of big plays by our offense as well as the opponents. We will be doing a lot of blitzing from everywhere (LBs, Safeties, CBs).

ONLY 2 MORE WEEKS!!!!!!

I also agree that we have really good receivers. I have not seen Murray, but I remember many times Gatewood coming across the middle. I liked Eddie, but we won't miss him because of the new receivers and how Gatewood emerged as Lulay's go to guy. Gatewood is as tough as they come. Kramer mentioned how he played hurt all season. And remember the game aganist the grit with the sprained ankle?

I remember Eddie as kick starting the offense into a powerhouse in the middle of the season last year. After that, Gatewood really started to show how good he can be.

What is so nice, is that Lulay has game-experience receivers to throw to. Wolf got the touches early last year because the ball wasn't being caught by anybody else. I think Kramer would rather see the tight end say home and block. We have enough skill on the outside and in the backfield to keep the TE home.

Hey everyone... this has been great info and analysis and we from out of town really appreciate the in depth reporting. To get the different views and reports and the insight is really super. Can't wait until GAME TIME! Keep up the great reporting!