August 7, 2012

Bryan Cisler

New Camp Schedule

On Tuesday the players began the two a day portion of fall camp or what Charlie Weis calls the second phase of fall camp. The schedule for the rest of the week is the players had two practices a day on Tuesday, one on Wednesday, two on Thursday, and one on Friday. This is how the daily schedule shapes out when the day contains two practices.

7:00 am - Wake up

7:30 am - Check in for breakfast

8:40 am - The players have to be taped and on the field

11:00 am - Practice is over and the players get a few hours to rest.

1:00 pm - Position meetings

4:00 pm - Players get prepared for second practice

5:30 pm - Players are on the field for second practice

7:30 pm - 9:30pm - Players go through second round of meetings with coaches

This week is one of the toughest weeks of the year for college football players. Players are learning how to best maximize their day.

"You got to make sure you take care of your body, eat right and get in the cold tub," running back Taylor Cox said. "You want to be on top of stuff and your schedule has to be tight because you don't want to waste any time."

The players were in pads both yesterday and this morning. Weis mentioned that the coaches have to monitor how players handle the drills so they avoid injury. For example, Weis said the team has to have live periods where the defense can learn how to handle a cut block, but also keep the player's safety in mind because there is a higher risk for injury.

"They need to understand the tempos because you have to practice hard but at the same time take care of your teammates," Weis said.

Play of the Day

The play of the day on Monday consisted of a 70 yard touchdown pass from quarterback Michael Cummings to wide receiver Christian Matthews. At the moment it appears Cummings has an edge for the number two quarterback position backing up Dayne Crist. Kansas coach Charlie Weis said that Cummings has been unfairly labeled as just a dual threat quarterback and doesn't get enough credit for his arm strength.

"Michael is a drop back quarterback with a cannon for an arm," Weis said. "The only thing he lacks is height and experience."

Running Back Situation

Even though running back James Sims is suspended for the first three games of the season, that doesn't mean he isn't getting his fair share of reps during camp. Weis even went as far as to call him the most complete running back on the roster on Tuesday.

"I think James is even better than I thought he was," Weis said. "He just unfortunately can't play right now. He can run inside, he can run outside. People told me he couldn't run outside, they were wrong, he can. He has another gear, people told me he doesn't have another gear, he does."

Weis also spoke at length about running back Tony Pierson. Weis is hoping to limit Pierson to 10-15 carries a game to make sure the 170-pound Pierson holds up through the season. At Florida last season one of Weis' most successful plays was the outside zone run which he used to utilize his running backs speed. Pierson's eyes lit up when asked if that play could be a bigger part of KU's offense this year.

"That's my favorite play," Pierson said. "You just get me to the outside in the open field and do my thing."

Reggie Mitchell Q&A

On junior James Sims:

"James has been better than I thought he would be. I've coached him for two years, but he is a different guy. It's night and day from the Missouri game last year to where he's at now. He's lost weight; he's probably down to 195 pounds. He looks faster, he's shown ability to make people miss and he's had a good attitude this fall. He's shown a lot of improvement."

On having running backs that are skilled in different areas:

"I think with Coach Weis, with him being big into personnel groupings, he wants a guy that for a certain type of personnel. It's fortunate that we have those types of guys in the program. Right now, Tony (Pierson) is the only smaller (running back) we have, but that's kind of how (Coach Weis) wants it."

On sophomore Brandon Bourbon coming back from injury:

"You don't see any of the injury things that are popping up, but he is a little rusty because he hasn't played since the Iowa State game. He didn't go through spring (practice). Every day you see him getting better and better."

On how Brandon Bourbon fits into the offense:

"He's a big guy that's fast. The thing he has to do is be more consistent. With the more reps he gets, the better he'll get. The hard thing is we have a bunch of guys who we need to give reps to, so he's got to make an impact with the five or six carries he gets in practice."

On Marquis Jackson's transition to running back:

"Marquis has progressed pretty well. We moved him midway through spring. He had a pretty good spring game and this fall he's coming on. The hard thing for Marquis is that we have those other guys, because there are only so many carries that you're going to get. But he's progressing pretty well. We're going to have to use him to play this fall. Coach Weis will find a place for him in some personnel grouping."