Zabransky's got spunk

Ex-Boise State QB and current Pittsburgh Steelers très-man wowed onlookers at the Steelers Spring game with a show of spunk and determination:

3rd string QB Jared Zabransky apparently impressed with his spunk yesterday. His passes weren't a thing of beauty, but they arrived at their target destination, and he was keeping the mood intense and competitive. Good for him. We don't need an expert clipboard holder in Brian St. Pierre. Charlie Batch fills that role just fine.

Also impressing the Spring crowd was Zabransky's charisma, moxie, can-do attitude, chutzpah, Joie de vivre, gameness, heart, mettle and pluck. Apparently.

Artist rendering of Zabransky done by Paul Mcrae...who also appears to have spunk.

Spring Fever

As I have nothing terribly valuable to add to the blogosphere today; check out these links while I go and dip my toes into Parkcenter pond.

Links:

OBNUG hands out some Spring hardware
Statueleft finds his camera lens cleaner...but not in time.
JT Ray rallies the troops for another excellent podcast.
Ryan Clady gets the star treatment
Broncos add one more televised game.
QB Prospect, Nunes has quite a Spring Break.

The long summer awaits

The annual Blue & Orange game wrapped up last night with the offense beating the defense 25-9. You may think that the scoring system favored the offense, and you would be right. The defense, by all accounts played well and showed that they are a cohesive unit that will go back to Boise State's bread and butter of stopping the run. The defense gave up only one late TD—a 3-yard run by Doug Martin.

QB race will be a photo-finish
The QB race, as everyone expected was NOT resolved last night, but it is pretty fair to say that the 4-man derby has become a two-man race between redshirt freshman Kellen Moore and senior Bush Hamdan. Once again, Moore led all QBs at the scrimmage going 11-of-13 for 99 yards and no turnovers. If you are keeping track at home...Moore had the best stats at 2 of the 3 Spring scrimmages and went 26-of-39 with 265 yards and no turnovers for Spring. The other dog in the hunt, Bush Hamdan, was 7-of-10 for 65 yards in the scrimmage and was 19-of-31 with 239 yards and no turnovers for the Spring.

Now, we are definitely in for a long summer and any one of these QBs can make strides and insert himself back into the race, but for now, between Moore and Hamdan...I believe that we are looking at a similar scenario that we faced in 2004 when Jared Zabransky and Michael Sanford were both vying for the spot. Unless the senior (Hamdan) really distances himself from Moore and the other QBs, I think the coaches will go with "the future" like they did in '04. Obviously, at this point, Moore has the better numbers and has been more consistent...but summer workouts and fall camp could change that. Hamdan is a touch more mobile than Moore and has a bit stronger arm, but Moore is very quick at scanning the field and finding the open man and appears to sense pressure when it is coming and moves well in the pocket.

Barring a total meltdown by Moore over the next few months I would put the quarterback odds at this point at:
Moore-55%
Hamdan-35%
Coughlin-10%*
Lomax-0%

*I do believe that regardless of who is named the starter between Hamdan and Moore, we will still see Mike Coughlin in certain game situations.

Defense makes good strides
While injury-prone, the defense still made very positive strides this Spring as the linebacker corps looks to be very deep and very talented. We will probably see any or all of the eligible LBs in games this season. Sophomore Derrell Acrey has impressed coaches this Spring and looks poised to make a big impact this fall. Kyle Gingg, Tim Brady, Dallas Dobbs and Aaron Tevis also have shown coaches what they wanted to see—playing more physical and knowing their assignments.

The secondary has a few question marks with the departure of Orlando Scandrick and Marty Tadman, and the no one really knows who will replace Scandrick across the field from Kyle Wilson this year. The safety position, however, looks to be in good shape as big-hitter Jeron Johnson returns and Jason Robinson has excelled in the off-season. True frosh George Iloka will likely burn his redshirt this year as he's been a force in the secondary all spring.

Running backs a'plenty
The running back situtation, is barely worth mentioning as there is possibly more depth and talent in the backfield than the Broncos have ever had. With a young, untested O-line, the Bronco offense will look to game-changers Ian Johnson, Jeremy Avery, Doug Martin and DJ Harper to blow the games wide-open. While Ian Johnson is the incumbent starter, Martin and Harper have had big Springs while Avery nurses an injury. Harper has been extremely hard for the defense to take down and Doug Martin looks to be a very solid goal-line back.

Outlook
Spring ball should be enough to assuage the most pessimistic Bronco's fears as the team looks to be filling the voids nicely. Thomas Byrd looks like he will be the starting center and the rest of the O-line will solidify itself in the Fall and hopefully add a little bulk over the summer. The kicking game, with Kyle Brotzman back, should be just fine. The bottom line is this: if the Broncos can regain the chip on their shoulder that they had in '06...the schedule favors another WAC title and good bowl game. The team chemistry will dictate what this 2008-09 Bronco squad can achieve.

OBNUG's Blue & Orange take
Nice IPT slideshow of the B&O
OrangeDeath provides proof of new unis
Statueleft will have scrimmage pics and video galore
Idaho Statesman refutes Phil Dailey's claims that a starter has been crowned.

Open mouth, insert cliché

If you've been following Spring ball in Boise (or anywhere else in the country for that matter), you've been treating to a coaching cliche at every turn. Even straight-shooting Coach Pete caught himself dropping one too many cliches a few weeks ago and the previous skipper, Dan Hawkins made it annoying an artform. Well, Eric Lacy of the Detroit News breaks down the top 5 coaching clichés that you will hear this Spring—then when the season finally starts, we'll be treated to a whole new slew of clichés like, "We're taking it one game at a time", or "We're not overlooking anyone"...or "We're going to give 110%". Hooray.

Top 5 Spring coaching clichés

If you've got any more, shoot them my way.

Really?!

To say that Boise State Offensive Coordinator, Bryan Harsin keeps things close to the vest would be a slight understatement. To say that Harsin is a liar would be a slight overstatement. To say that Harsin is being extremely vague and diplomatic with his info would have squarely hit the nail on the head. Harsin yesterday insisted that no quarterback has really established himself as the frontrunner in the highly publicized QB race yet (roll eyes). He did, however, once again fail to include junior Nick Lomax's name among the QBs that he praised for their Spring progress. Not generally one to read too far into things...I am confident that Lomax's repeated exclusion from Harsin's interviews is a good indicator that at this point Lomax is sitting in the #4 QB spot. I also believe that by the end of spring ball on April 11th, we will have a clear favorite.

Luckily for us speculative fans, Harsin gave us a small inkling of how we might figure out the current pecking order:

He plans to give all of them time with the first-team offense this week in practice and reward the guys who play the best with more playing time in Friday’s scrimmage at Mountain View High in Meridian (3:30 p.m.).

Hear that? Take out your stopwatches to Mountain View High on Friday afternoon and determine who is getting the most time in the 2nd scrimmage...already knowing that Lomax is in 4th place (according to my calculations), we should accurately be able to determine the remaining top 3. After the first scrimmage, it looks to be 1. Kellen Moore 2. Bush Hamdan 3. Michael Coughlin and 4. (sorry) Nick Lomax.

One more impressive scrimmage out of Moore and he will be dubbed "the People's Starter"

Not-so-informative Statesman Article (step it up, Cripe)

For those about to suck...we salute you!

Vandals opened Spring Camp on Monday and rumor has it that Robb Akey saw his shadow signifying at least one more season of terrible football. Chin up Vandals, you can't do that much worse than 1-11.

In recognition of this grand event, here is a stirring tribute video:



So impressed was Akey with Monday's first practice...he temporarily forgot that he was actually coaching the Vandals:

Second-year Idaho coach Robb Akey addressed his team following the first day of spring camp Tuesday, reminding them to wear attire that is "Cougar-issued." The former Washington State defensive coordinator's faux pas brought good-natured groans from his team and a hung head from Akey himself.

Akey's comment was followed by a brief "wa-waaaa" played on a nearby tuba.

Brains > brawn.

If you follow internet chatter...especially of the Bronco variety, you've no doubt heard of the miraculous spring scrimmage of Kellen Moore. No, Moore didn't turn water into Gatorade or heal a leper (although could've performed the Heimlich maneuver on a few other Bronco QBs who 'choked') and hey, it was only the FIRST scrimmage of the spring, but many Bronco fans are calling Moore's 10-14 2 TD day a miracle. The miracle lies in the fact that Moore, who is a redshirt freshman, looked to have a better grasp of the Bronco playbook than a sophomore, junior and 5th-year senior.

Moore, a record-setting high school quarterback out of Prosser, Washington is only 6'1" and 180 lbs, but he's a coaches son and voraciously studies film...has since his high school days and probably before that LINK.

Moore has already drawn comparisons to Ryan Dinwiddie ('cept he's a lefty) and I see a little Colt Brennan in him with his quick defensive reads and nickel and dime'n opponents before going deep. The bottom line is this: Kellen Moore has as good a chance (if not better )at the starting job as anyone on the roster and Bronco fans are positively giddy at the prospect of a 4 year starter with all the offensive talent we'll retain.

I know a week or so ago I was giving the inside track to Michael Coughlin, but I sincerely think that with Moore's work ethic and knowledge of the game, coaches may see a small enough "freshman downside" in him that they may just give him the reins.

Granted, Moore needs to continue to impress through Spring ball and into Summer, but with 5 solid running-backs and a slew of fast and talented wide receivers...I think that Moore could reasonably get the starting nod without expectations of "carrying the offense" and in ensuing sophomore, junior and senior campaigns be a true B.M.O.C.

Moore may not have the height of Lomax or Coughlin or the speed and arm-strength of Hamdan, but he has football smarts and a tireless work-ethic and that, I think, may be exactly what Boise State needs again. And do you really think OUR freshman could do any worse than Nathan Enderle?

WOW.

If you were lucky enough to brave the raging Boise winds and catch the first spring scrimmage this afternoon...you were treated to a blistering display of offensive and defensive fireworks, and some of the best 15-yard punts you've ever seen.

All jokes aside, the first spring scrimmage is in the books and it looked like...well...the first spring scrimmage. A lot of guys sitting out, among them: Jarrell Root, Billy Winn, Jeremy Avery, Mike T. Williams, Kyle Wilson etc.

A lot of bad snaps, dropped passes and general miscues...but we expect that in the first spring scrimmage. Bush Hamdan and Kellen Moore seem like VERY early frontrunners for the QB job. I liked Moore's decisions and mobility and Bush made some nice throws and improvised well. Saw the first glimpse of a Ian Johnson/Doug Martin kick-return tandem and I liked what I saw...they will house a few this season.

Didn't get to see as much of Doug Martin's angry running as I would've liked, but all the backs looked capable and even Jarvis Hodge impressed on one long run.

Absolutely stacked at RB: Ian Johnson rushed four times for 70 yards, Jarvis Hodge three times for 57 yards, Doug Martin 10 times for 59 yards and sophomore D.J. Harper nine times for 40 yards. Yikes. Nice job O-line or "get well soon" D-line.

A pretty good crowd on-hand for a windy day with the NCAA tourney going on. A lot of excitement about the new-look Broncos.

I have decided to drop the scrimmage vids as I don't want to run afoul of the practice gestapo. I don't think my grainy vids are going to step on anyones toe with "actual" media credentials...but I also don't want to risk "ruining" it for anyone who consider practice video and reports to be the only real thing to get excited about until August 30th. Hence, here is a link to some "real" scrimmage video minus the pithy comments. Enjoy.

A good recap from the Statesman: Moore shines.

You think you're better than me?!

Today is a big day for Bronco Nation Boise is positively buzzing as for the first time in 14 years, the Bronco basketball team will not be able to attend the spring football scrimmage. Poor saps.

If you consider yourself a rabid Bronco fan...you will excitedly rush to Bronco Stadium at 3:30 today to watch a glorified practice. You better believe I will be there as I want to see the development of redshirts Kellen Moore, angry Doug Martin and to check out Jarrell Root's kneebrace. We also will have an opportunity to try to figure out which streetclothes-clad kids roaming the sidelines may be potential recruits. It will also mark the first opportunity I will have to take my 8-month old son down on the blue turf that he's been itching to touch ever since he left the womb.

Rumor has it that 8th-year senior Bush Hamdan will be getting the first reps with the first-team offense...but this may be more of a gesture towards the most-senior QB than a nod to who will be inheriting the offense this fall. Coach Bryan Harsin conspicuously left out Nick Lomax's name when praising the development of the QBs this spring; from the Statesman:

Harsin said he has been impressed with the springs of Coughlin and Moore, who are still learning the offense.

“Those guys have come in there and done a nice job of being prepared and playing well,” Harsin said. “ … They’ve accelerated their learning just by their preparation in the offseason.”

I could be reading to far into this...but it's the offseason and we need SOMETHING to analyze besides the falling value of the U.S. dollar.

Guys I would like to check out (not in that way) this afternoon are: Doug Martin, George Iloka, JP Nisby, Billy Winn, Kellen Moore, Dominique Vinson, and possibly Ricky Cookman and Kyle Efaw. Show us somethin' boys!

I will be surreptitiously taking my digital camera into the scrimmage to bring you blogsters some images and video from tonight's festivities, so check me out this evening for some "exclusive" content.

Root lives to fight another day

Whatever doesn't completely destroy Jarell Root's knee makes him stronger. Hopefully this is the adage that applies to the Capitol High product Bronco fans are excited to see. Root will miss the remainder of Spring ball with a knee injury, but hopefully will be back at full strength by Fall.

In other news, DT JP Nisby has impressed teammates and coaches alike with his strength...but his inability to play more than three or four downs has the coaches perplexed. Get thee to a Socha, young man!

Statesman linkage