Well bob, I did it. I did nothing but read the blog all day.

Bob..

How did Jordan Polk look?? The guy def. has the speed..and I love the fact TW is actually thinking of putting Chris Polk at RB full time, I wish he would put Kavario at DE though because when I saw him in HS(granted HS) the guy looked Merriman/Demarcus Ware like...And with the depth at RB I would of like to seen Fogerson at Safety as some people have compared him to a mini Shane Paoakoa...

In a previous post this is the freshman I expect to play in 2008.

RBs:
Fogerson - Special teams but not a RB this year unless some unforseen injury occurs. Yak will be the surprise and Griffin will be #3.

WR:
Boyles - True freshman by class 08 but really signed in 07.
AguilarTrue freshman by class 08 but really signed in 07.
Chris Polk - Will play WR and special teams
Bruns - Surprise recruit, remember Dane Looker!

TE:
Middleton - will be a monster at TE

DL: Taamu - size needed, rest will redshirt. Noble has a chance but that depends on his situation.

LB:
Magnum - Special teams and a 3rd string MLB.

In my opinion, 7 true freshman play and 2 second year true freshman (Boyles and Aguilar).

Only 1-2 will find starting roles (Boyles/Polk/Aguilar) and all others will be backups, add depth to their respective positions and play on special teams.

I think Bruns will be a stud, never can have too many smart, good route running, great hands, type of WR.

Husky19..I agree with pretty much all of your assesments except for the fact that I think CP would be better off at RB since that is what he's played all through HS. That means Kearse should play WR as well.

As much as Kavario could be a beast at TE, I think he could reak more havoc on the defensive side of the ball.

Bob, thanks for the updates - you were on it with the blog today! Do you think Cody Bruns will see a lot of time this year if he can keep up the strong start? How did Tolar look at center in terms of clean snaps and blocking assignment? Thanks

Is Savannah out with grade issues? The P.I. is saying he is.

I also wrote that Savannah is academically ineligible. That's what Willingham announced to all of us today so there shouldn't really be any difference in what anyone is reporting. He is out with academic issues but he also has some other, unspecified issues that apparently also have to be resolved once he becomes eligible. And he has to get healthy.

On Jordan Polk --- I didn't really notice him much today. During the team stuff, it was the other freshmen I mentioned who were making plays.

I do think Bruns will play this year.

On Tolar, this was a no pads workout so kind of hard to tell on the blocking stuff. The snaps seemed to go off pretty well. I think he's been working on this all summer so he's had some preparation.

Bob a question: who is going to win: UW or Oregon?

firety, I'd like to see Fogerson at Safety as well. I think a lot of people remember that hit he put on the WR in the state title game against Skyline.

I don't think he is really a mini-Shane Pahukoa. Pahukoa was around 6'3" and 205 while Fogerson is a legit 6'2" and around 202-205 already. I think they are similar type athletes in that both were outstanding HS tailbacks and also were good at other sports like basketball and track.

Bob,

Thanks for all the Husky news today. Been a bit of a roller coaster but the first game is less than 4 weeks away.

HB

Bob, curious to know if Curtis Shaw or polk will be used on kickoff returns. Both are lightning fast

LOL AT U DUMB GETTING 1 STAR RECRUITS. DUX GO 4 STAR OR BUST. LOL ENJOY THE STOMPIN in A FEW WEEKS U HASBEENZ I MEAN NEVER WASES LOL

Think PUKE-D needs to take his medication...or he's been abusing it, could be it just runs in the family?

Anything on Ta'Amu? the huskies are going to need him now that craig noble is not playing

Bob is there any truth to the rumor that the new missile defense system revolves around Jake Lockers arm?

Bruns will play this year, and here's some video of my young gun pick at RB for this year. I think this kid looks amazing. Terrance Daily

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwNd1eSuFxU

Just to take a step back...

Purple is doing a good thing with the 30 reasons posts, and, not to be the spoiler, I'm wondering if Jake is going to be #1. Jake has the potential to be up there with Emtman, McElhenny, and Sixkiller. I guess we should just enjoy and not speculate. The weather win was a pleasant surprise in that it is certainly possible and something that I didn't see on here previous to the post.

Also, of course recruiting stars are not absolute, but they do mean something. People ooh and aah over higher rankings, and sometimes they pan out. Sometimes you get surprises (Emtman being a 1-star, yes, a 1-star). Although the class last year was quite highly rated, the thing I am most excited about was how well it filled the immediate holes, and not just in one place, AND it was (allegedly) very strong for the lineman (something that had a lot to do with the 80's and 90's successes).

RE Lappano: I am actually impressed with what Lappano did with last years offense. The first area I'd like to see improved is a higher 1st down conversion percentage, and if Jake has improved his passing, we have a more experienced line, and we find a running back with a better chance of picking up 3-4 yards when we need it (even if not a home run threat), then our offense can be really good. Last year we put some serious points on the board, and yes, a lot of that had to do with defenses having to respect Jake's running ability.

Also, I find merit in Willingham's assessment of needing more bullets. Our defense seemed to fade in games, and the best explanation for that type of fade is lack of depth (even if the starters made mini-camps, they simply couldn't do it all, you need a certain amount of rotation, or at least an offense that gives the D a break). That being said, I'm really excited about an attacking D. "They don't give it to you, you have to take it." (~J. Nicholson's character in The Departed).

Do we have enough information to confirm anything about half-time adjustments? Maybe, but not really. People could argue we didn't adjust at half-time well enough because we performed worse in the second half. The problem is, there is more than one pretty good explanation for that outcome, and either side is using the same result to continue confirming their assertion (poor coaching, or lack of depth as primary cause). But, we seemed pretty well prepared for the starts of games, otherwise we wouldn't have been in so many of them (3rd quarter tie with a very good Oregon team, close to USC, leading OSU). Those are not flukes, the team last year fought hard, and was prepared for game day. I believe the lack of depth on D and the inability to convert on O were the biggest problems.

This makes the Husky in me pretty excited for this season, even with the hard schedule. We'll all define success differently, but if we compete in every game, then this program is much better off than it was 3-4 years ago, and really is probably only a year away from convincing most fans (no matter who the coach is).

Either way, I think Oregon is going to have its hands full.

Also, a sincere thanks to Bob for putting in the work to develop a pretty damned good blog, and in particular, his ability to report relevant news regarding the team.

Bob, you obviously love what you're doing, it shows in a good way. Thanks.

..."Also, I find merit in Willingham's assessment of needing more bullets."...

...seeing that this was willingham's third season...and most of the bullets were his...don't you think that his assessment was an indictment of his own recruiting?...

On Ta'amu --- He appeared to have minor issue of some kind, medical or equipment, that sent him to the locker room for a little while today, so we didn't see a lot of him. But he looked fine while he was out there. He's a big guy, no doubt about that.

Shaw will have to prove he can hang onto the ball after what happened against Ohio State last year. Polk for sure I would think will be involved in that as he did some in the spring. They didn't do KO returns today so we didn't get to see that.

No. His first class is viewed as poor, and although people will argue either side about who's fault it is, it was his class. That being said, the program had no foundation when he took over. His classes have improved every year they've been finalized (this one is obviously not there yet). Coming from his lack of undeniable success at other schools (although what he did at Stanford, really was quite good considering the lack of tradition, etc.; and he seemed to set Weis up pretty well with what would have been TW's fourth year there).
This program is in better shape than you think. In fact, if we stay reasonably healthy (Jake included), then I expect a win over ND, probably the same way you expect a win over Washington. The good thing is that they should play the game. If ND wins convincingly under the circumstances above (health), then I was simply a homer and slow to realize something you were right about. If, on the other hand, UW wins, then you'll probably have to adjust your view. I'm fine with that.

Didn't anyone else wonder why Ty hired Gervais? He is a HS coach with no college experience, and he does not specialize in running backs. I dont have a problem with him coaching, but coaching the RBs? Why put someone with no college or pro experience in charge of teaching Pac-10 running backs? It's a joke, they are obviously just buddies slappin each other on the back. Also, Ty and Gervais's sons hang out together all the time. And LOOK! WoW! Who's that on the roster? RILEY GEVAIS! Surprise! What a f***ing joke. Tyrone is possibly the biggest joke of a coach ever. Once he gets fired he won't even be able to get a job... good thing we are financing his retirement with millions of dollars of UW money... terrible investment.

firety.com, I agree Polk could be a good RB but with his speed I see a Reggie Bush type player.

purple kaya, I have always felt that Johri Fogerson was going to be a safety not a RB. It appears that he has a shot at RB but I do think he will end up at Safety.

Also, Boisetruth, I saw the T Daily highlights on dawgman and I wondered why he wasn't recruited by all the Pac-10 and more. Those highlights are awesome, he has good balance, apparently pretty darn good speed and is a strong runner. Plus at 200lbs he isn't small. Last great back who's high school highlights I thought was absolutely outstanding, Jonathan Stewart. Noel Devine was pretty damn awesome too.

Not comparing T Daily to those two but his highlights are really close! If he can emerge, than Johri can move to defense.

dawgfather11,

get a gripe there buddy. Gerviis is a great coach, do either you me or anyone here know how good or bad he will be at UW? Nope, but there have been many great D-1 coaches and NFL coaches that coached high school at one point in time.

Plus Gervis does know how to run this kind of offensive system and will be a great asset. Also regarding his son, he is a walk-on, paying his own way. Him being on the team has nothing to do with his dad. Plus the kid is pretty big at 6'2" 215.

Husky19,
The writer from Scout (Huffman - ranked Daily #5) who ranked the Cali RB's last year called Daily an Ian Johnson clone. Johnson didn't get any respect from the Pac either, but it's worked out pretty well for him. I think part of it may be the fact that Daily played in NorCal. Just guessing, but I think the SoCal guys get a lot more exposure, and respect than the NorCal guys. Or, may be they think the competition in NorCal isn't as good so Daily couldn't have performed like that against SoCal competition. I think he would have done well anywhere.

That tape shows good strength, and balance. I think the things on the tape that most impressed me the most were his vision (he just seems to naturally flow to the area that he needs to get to), his ability to make subtle moves while continuing to move forward (if anyone really remembers Jacques Robinson running you'll know what I mean), his speed (he constantly get players to take the wrong angle on him and then beats them with his speed - whether it's taking the corner when it doesn't look like he can get there, or running straight down field between two pinching D-backs that think they have him all the way. Strength, balance, vision, makes moves going forward, and apparently deceptive speed. If he turns out to be tough, we'll have a winner despite what the rest of the Pac may have thought.

Also, as I said in a post awhile back, I really like Myk Ikehara. I just have a feeling that he's going to be a special player at UW. Husky19, or any our our Island-Dawgs, if you've got any good info, stories, etc. on Ike, please pass them along. I appreciate any info you have (human interest, player or personal attributes). Thanks

hey Bob, check out "Poster's" post for an example of solid reporting that doesn't focus on the Ty-slamming themes which fill your columns and blog threads.

dawgfather11, Google Jake Heaps, Kasen Williams and Gino Simone. There's your answer. Anyways Gervais has about as strong a track record as any hs coach could possibly have, and his kid is a walk-on so there's no downside.

Seattle Dave and others--I am well aware that there are some top-tier prospects coming out of Skyline. But you failed to read this line in my post--"I dont have a problem with him coaching, but coaching the RBs?" So I don't necessarily have a problem with him being on the staff, but I don't see any sense in him coaching the running backs. He ran a pure passing offense at Skyline, they barely ever ran. So don't you think that background lends itself better to working with Jake and the passing offense? He has no experience working with high-level RBs, so I'm curious as to why he got hired to that position. And the second argument about Gervais, the one about the prospects... The idea that you NEED to hire a HS coach to sign his former players is ludicrous. These kids are from Issaquah, less than a half hour from Husky Stadium. We should have these guys in our pocket from day 1. The fact that we think we need a HS coach on our staff to be able to recruit these athletes just shows how down-and-out the program is. By that logic, we should hire every coach from every reputable high school in washington. Face it, this is a sad and desperate program...

BoiseTruth,

I'll try to look out for articles on Ike, I have to admit he has already exceeded my expectations. During his senior year, he wasn't the best OL prospect that I personally saw. But what can't be measured on the field is his dedication, focus, desire and work ethic, which apparently he has all of that! He reported to UW camp bigger and stronger than what he played in HS. I hope he follows in the long line of Hawaii Husky OL:

Bern Brostek
Roland Ruff
Frank Lutu
Malamala
Patrick Kesi
Petrocelli Kesi
Olin Kruetz

df11: we agree that UW should get the Skyline kids anyway. But we need to look at what IS and those guys will be recruited nationwide. If as appears likely Heaps and Williams in particular turn out to be all american types then Ty ought to do whatever is legal and necessary to get 'em. That is the next generation's Locker and Kavario right there.

What his position title is, is less important than whether he fits in with what Lappano is teaching. The position-specific things for RBs aren't exactly rocket science anyway. And again, having the kid as a walk on costs the program nothing.

...there's only one reason why a college coach hires a high school coach...it's called a conflict of interests...

What ever happend to Hasty? I heard he left the program and then returned. He was a great high school RB in high school why isnt he getting any touches in college?

Thanks Husky19. I know he wasn't the biggest name so there's probably not a whole lot on him. If you comes across something interesting, or someone that knew him that has a story - that would be great. No stress if you don't though. Thanks again.

We should just rename UW football program to Skyline west...

How did special teams do?