Remnants of Tropical Storm Erin left the Bobcats practicing in the rain Thursday morning but the storms held off in the afternoon as Texas State went through its third series of two-a-days.

Thursday morning’s practice schedule was altered by the weather with drills being shortened by about a half hour. But it was practice as usual for the squad.

“As light as it was raining and with the artificial turf, we had no problems at all,” said Texas State coach Brad Wright. “We had a good practice. We thought there was some heavier rain coming this morning so we cut out some individual segments and did more group and team work.”

Wright said Texas State’s defense had the upper hand in Thursday afternoon’s practice as the unit begins to install some blitzes into its package. But Wright added it was the natural ebb and flow of fall camp.

“Now it is a matter of getting our offensive line up to speed,” he said. “Everything is going as planned and we are progressing.”

Texas State will workout again Friday morning. Media Day as well as the taking of the 2007 team pictures, is also slated for today. The squad will hold its first full-scale scrimmage of camp on Saturday at 8 a.m.

“We will get guys into some game-type situations and give them a look,” Wright said. “The game is different when we are going against each other at full speed and guys are trying to make a mark, especially some of the newer guys. It is a chance for them to get on film in game-type situations and for us to see what we need to work on as well as who is getting better.”



Offensive line focuses on not leaping

The defensive line unit, which should anchor the Texas State defense in 2007, has been asked by Tietz, who serves as the line’s position coach, to focus on a specific bad habit lately — leaving their feet.

It’s tempting for any rushing defensive lineman to leap to knock down a pass when the big man has a clean shot at the quarterback. But a crafty quarterback can often slip past defensive linemen with a pump fake to gain a few extra seconds or open up some space to run. Most of the time linemen are better off staying on the ground and laying a hit on the quarterback

To combat certain Bobcat linemen’s affinity for leaping at the quarterback, Tietz brought in Hoppy the Horse, a pink, fuzzy horse-on-a-stick toy for young girls. The item even makes neighing and galloping noises. Any time a Texas State defensive lineman leaps at a quarterback, they have to ride the horse around the field during pre-practice warmups.

“If a defensive lineman is jumping, he’s riding the pony,” Borner said. “If you do that, it’s a pony offense.”

Clark, a senior, was the most recent offender and was slated to ride the pony at the late practice Saturday shortly after graduating. Borner, by his own admission, has been caught leaping and had the quarterback get past him, but not since the arrival of Hoppy.

“It happened right before the rule was instituted,” Tietz said.

 

Honors for Jenkins, MacDonald

Texas State senior offensive lineman Matt Jenkins and punter Chris MacDonald garnered additional All-America honors Thursday as The Sports Network announced its Preseason All-America teams. Both Jenkins and MacDonald are Preseason Third-Team picks.

Jenkins was a Second-Team All-Southland Conference selection as a junior after starting all 11 games for the Bobcats. He was a member of a starting front five which blocked for an offense which averaged 351 yards per game.

MacDonald is the returning First-Team All-Southland Conference punter after averaging 43.39 yards per punt to rank ninth among NCAA Division I FCS players.

 

Demanding Slate

The Sports Network also released its Preseason FCS Poll earlier in the week. Four of Texas State’s opponents are ranked in the Top 25 – McNeese State (10th), Cal Poly (15th), Sam Houston State (18th) and South Dakota State (20th).

Texas State received 28 votes in the first poll which ranks 44th among the teams receiving votes.

 

Burton Sidelined

Texas State junior fullback Blake Burton will be out a minimum of six weeks after suffering a broken ankle during Wednesday’s practice. Burton is a returning First-Team All-Southland Conference selection who caught two touchdown passes during the 2006 season and has 13 career receptions for 129 yards.