Sam Webb - Rome Update
Sam Webb gave a summary of his opinions on the Rome practices today on the Michigan Insider podcasts.
- Mason Cole looks great at LT - like he hasn't missed a step
- Patrick Kugler has stepped up at Center and is currently leading over Caesar (too bad this didn't happen last year Kugler at C, Cole at LT may have been good enough to get us to the playoffs)
- Peters and O'Korn looked great at practice and Wilton was inconsistent (sprinkled some great plays with some not-so-good types). He still expects Speight to start the season at #1 but the gap is shrinking by the week.
I don't bring up #3 to stir up a Peters vs. Speight debate (the coaches will pick the guy who gives the team the best chance to win - full stop). However, these notes directly contridict the post from Maizenbrew yesterday.
How can two observers watch the same practice sessions and come out with completely opposite view points? Between the two, Sam has the track record and, to my knowledge, doesn't have any biases in this conversation - so I will go with his viewpoint.
was good, decent or terrible. We are not talking about advanced technique evaluation here.
The Maizenbrew writer said Peters barely got any snaps and was terrible. Sam said that Peters was dropping dimes and looked great.
I doubt the difference in opinion was due to their experience in player evaluation.
Or maybe both are drawing false conclusions on very limited data because they have readers eager for any kind of "inside" info?
Or, confirmation bias.
This isn't the Pysch 101 mid-term, Sam is simply reporting what he saw in conjunction with conversations he had with the coaches. Confirmation bias is sort of the whole point, not a flaw in his methodology.
I like your class analogy. I assume Speight was with the 1s and Peters/Okorn the backups. This might seem better for Peters, but was Speight going against the starting DLine and Peters the 2nd string? We're they 7 on 7 drills? All these things make a huge difference and can result in different opinions. I thought I read that Peters was awesome in 7 on 7, but not so good with pressure.
Heck even Michael Spath was raving about how Harbaugh was saying Ruiz was going to be "the best center ever". Now Sam Webb, who also works for WTKA, says it's clearly Kugler.
It's hard to not get sucked into Spring Ball because there's nothing else, but the reports don't mean anything.
and the other guy talking about the Rome trim in general?
That's some very detailed reporting right there...like "following players back to their hotel rooms" level.
the Maizenbrew story I had a hard time believing it. Peters and Speight played opposite each other in the Spring game for a reason. Coaches will seperate their top 2 QB's and pit them agaiinst each other to see how they look in a pressure situation. Peters was the better QB that day, so I have a hard time believing 3 practices later he's the scout team QB and a walk on is now getting more snaps them him.
I think the gap is closing and these two will work hard all summer and fall and the best one will start in September.
Sam isn't a football coach but he has been in the business of player evaluation for a long time. His credibility is unmatched.
Does he evaluate players for Scout? I thought he was just a reporter.
He's a reporter in the player evaluation industry that has been around the game for a very long time, talks to our coaches almost every day, talks to football coaches all over the country and has watched a ton of football. Few people know better what to look for in a player than Sam.
Seems to me that he mostly knows how to report what other people say about what they are looking for in a player. His experience gives him access to very good insight, but that in no way makes him an expert on the topic.
Speaking to experts on a topic every day for ~15 years(?) generally makes someone an expert. It'd be like if Sam earned a 15-year degree in football. No, he isn't teaching the classes, but he's been listening to the professors for decades. I'm not saying he could be a coach or even an NFL scout, but in the world of people who have not played football, Sam's credibility is in the 99th percentile.
So then Adam Schefter must be an expert in NFL player/personelle.
I would certainly call Adam Schefter an expert on NFL rostering and free agency, would you not?
He's just like Sam. Has connections to rumors/scoops and reports them. He is not a talent evaluator, and neither is Sam.
Yeah in Flint, but usually when you are talking about whether a media figure or coach played you are talking about college or pro ball. 70% of men with high school diplomas played high school ball. I'm not knocking Sam on that one, I'm the one sticking up for him here, it's just that HS ball is not usually used as evidence of knowledge.
Sam was in Rome. Cannot comment on the other person.
Other guy was there too
I would tend to trust Sam Webb more since he is constantly around football for his job. The other guy is a venture partner for something called Touchdown VC. He is a Michigan grad and big fan of Michigan football.
http://www.touchdownvc.com/team-member/eric-budin/
is not a good thing
I'm actually impressed they were able to stay on their feet all the way to the bottom of the stairs.
Minus for missing the first step, but +++ for hitting the next 7 before belly flopping... all the while clutching her purse.
But then again, she didn't get a "boost" from anyone's foot in the middle of her back, either
but the guy you provided the kick is a dick
As to your "how" question for #3 - there's only two possible answers: motive or ability. Either the MaizenBrew writer is biased towards Speight or is trying to go against the current to make a name for theirself, OR they watched the practice and sincerely came away with a different take because their ability to judge football is bad. Either way it's pretty obvious between Sam and MnB who people should listen to.
so it sounds like the left side looks decent
LT - Cole
LG - Bredeson
C - Kugler
what about the other 2 spots? lots of chatter about Onwenu's weight
Onwenu has looked good but needs to drop weight to get a bit quicker, especially on blitz and stunt pickups.
No mention of RT - at least I don't remember anything.
at Onwenu's size it would take DL a long time just to run around him, which would make him ideal for pass blocking.
offensive line is good. Big Ben should be improved from his freshman campaign.
and wrong on the 2nd half.
I don't think anyone denies Speight has a ceiling that's lower than Peters, but Peters remains a RS Freshman who is probably going to be prone to throwing truly laughable interceptions when he's under pressure in a game situation. I don't think it's unreasonable to think Speight is Speight and starts the whole year because Peters (again, a RS Fr) just isn't there yet
I don't think anyone is going to suggest JOK is going to usurp Speight after IU last year
I don't get how people can use "game situations" against Peters. The spring game was the closest thing he can have to a "game situation" without taking snaps in an actual game. He clearly out preformed Speight during a game situation.
Are they back from Rome?
Some of the coaches are back. I think Zordich was quoted saying him and his wife might take a couple days to visit family in Czech. There was some reports of coach Partridge being back on the road already in Georgia this past weekend.
I hope he got the right Georgia
What's the background/pedigree from the guy at Maizenbrew?