Takeaways on SMU Football in fall camp | Is it a competition between Preston Stone, Kevin Jennings?

this is the on the Pony Express podcast part of the on three Network check out all the SMU coverage you need at on the pony express.com now here's your host Billy embody Billy embody 1 2 [Music] Go welcome in ladies and gentlemen to another edition of the on the Pony Express podcast thanks for listening I am Billy ody we've got a lot to get to today including breaking down position by position what we learned from Fall Camp so a lot to get to overall about tons of players across the board for the Mustangs and um so we'll have plenty to talk about but first we are presented by our friends at status Jet statusjournal whether it be a family trip a work trip but most importantly an SMU game day with an incredible level level of luxury that you'd expect and week zero is just a week and two days away for SMU fans and that means getting out to Reno maybe do a little Lake Tahoe however you want to plan your trip status Jet can help use code ponyup ACC to get a discount on a round trip flight just have the conversation with them that's what I tell people we had I believe four on the Pony Express subscribers in the last month just have the conversation with David Henry and his team they'll explain to you the costs what it can look like all those things for you and you'll get a better understanding of what flying like this could really look like for you your family your friends your work colleagues all of those things so reach out to status today we appreciate status Jet and all they do for on the Pony Express as well as them being proud supporters of SMU athletics as we dive into is now the end of fall Camp it is over they are into game prep for Nevada on Thursday they were doing their mock game the guys will get maybe a little bit of a reset this weekend and then they'll get into a full game week before traveling out next Friday to Nevada for That season opener for week zero before we talk about takeaways position by position and player by player I want to give a special shout out to the 1911 group and this is a group that I came across last uh month I want to say and they have burst onto the scene Mitch Brown and what they're putting together is really special it's a networking group for SMU uh Lums in the area it's not associated with SMU or anything like that uh but the membership is free if you're approved and they have great events just today got done with lunch at the Dallas Country Club where Lance Melaney Jared Romo Garrett Gilbert and my quarterback when I was at SMU on the team for a year Kyle padone were LED through a panel discussion with Rich Phillips to play byplay and we had a nice lunch at DCC saw a ton of familiar faces including some on the Pony Express listeners as well as on the pony express.com subscribers so I just want to give them a special shout out appreciate all they're doing uh it was an awesome event so go to 19 11 gp.com and just look at their events they've got a directory it's a great opportunity for people to network in the Dallas area in particular and just had a great time today so was a nice little Thursday getting over to DCC for a little lunch for a little SMU football and uh just was uh you know thrilled to be there it was great so uh check out the 1911 group now SMU fall Camp has come and gone they started two days after ACC media day for SMU and before you know it we blinked and it's over game week begins on Sunday I guess we can say that that's probably the official start Rett lashley's radio shows next Wednesday we're in the full swing very quickly here or will be here soon for football season which is exciting but for fall Camp it was a I think a really interesting B Camp from the standpoint of you you knew a lot of the faces last year it was wow this entire defense is new we've seen a lot of the guys in the spring don't get me wrong but there was a lot that was unknown and this year I feel like going into fall camp we have a better understanding of where this team is from a Personnel perspective and where they need to go to be successful this year in the ACC which is a different conversation in terms of you know talking about the season and and putting together what has to put together to be successful which is why I'm going to try my best and if you listened to the podcast earlier this week uh it did kind of not spiral but change into just a much longer discussion about the season and all those things but SMU has a really strong roster is is one of the things that I learned through fall camp and that isn't to say that that was a question that I had I I felt that way going into it I did feel like there were questions that needed to be answered but we're going to go position by position here and I'm going to try to try to hit on all 85 now to lay the groundwork for you guys on this we got around six periods of fall Camp practice viewing periods uh each practice we were allowed at every single practice which was great out outside of the scrimmage last weekend it was closed technically the former player barbecue was then and and they had it in the stadium but in general we got a glimpse of SMU every day and then of course you talk to sources you talk to coaches you get a better feel for this team so I'm gonna try to put all of that together and talk about it on this podcast position by position and of course for our on the pony express.com subscribers we're going to have all of our takeaways and we're going to go through them kind of again position by position we'll have it in the written form we'll also break down the transfers in particular maybe what their stock is looking like heading into the season but I'm going to try to keep this as on uh topic of what do we learn about a player in a position overall versus well here's all the things that can happen this season and all those uh types of things so let's start at the top quarterback and this is an interesting position from the standpoint of when we talked with Casey Woods on Wednesday I did not expect the discussion with him to turn into what ended up being a a a major talking point and probably out of fall Camp the the most important quote that might have been thrown out there over the course of of the entire fall camp and I asked him I said how do you handle keeping Preston Stone Kevin Jennings uh Happy how you know what's the plan for them and and where do you go going into the season and he talked a lot about you know how well they've handled the competition and how well they've been able to be good teammates and they and they have complete trust in them to run the offense and there's not going to be a drop off and all those things and then the followup was well do you see them there being a do do you know who's going to take the first snap against the wolf pack and he said no quote no I don't think so I think there's ongoing conversation as there has been since January right I think we've got a good mindset about hey we want to evaluate this thing all the way to the end and let those guys compete and separate themselves in the places where they could or couldn't fortunately we've got two Proven Winners that really that are really good strong men and they believe in themselves they believe in this team and we're goingon to execute a high level either way and I think that quote is important and there's a lot more you can watch it on our YouTube um Channel as far as the full video and his comments there's also the story at on the Pony Express with his full comments but I I think the big thing that you could take away from it is they really trust these two quarterbacks and and they're not going to settle for average Quarterback play this year and this is what I learned about the quarterback position the biggest takeaway is they're not going to settle for all right this is a learning time SMU is moving up into the AC this is a learning time for these quarterbacks and quite frankly you can apply this to the entire team because there is too much talent and I said this La earlier this week there's too much talent on this team there's too much just overall depth that you can't be held back trying to learn and everyone is going to have to raise their level of play that's been their offseason Mantra is rais it and and and for the quarterbacks they have to do that when the games come on and in particular when he says in places that they could or couldn't that might involve this thing going into the season where SMU opens at Nevada Preston Stone could play Kevin Jennings could play they could both see time they also have what should be a layup against Houston Christian the next week they have BYU the week after a team that missed a bowl game I think I believe they missed a bow game and so you're going to have a three-week stretch where you have a chance to truly evaluate this thing and it isn't going to be something where hey we're evaluating this thing and we know we might have to take some lumps because there's a first year player in terms of a starter like Preston was last year SMU was patient and it paid off with Preston Stone through those first six games he got in the back half of the schedule he was playing really well played well in the second half against Memphis was obviously cooking against Navy led the offense to some wins over some poor competition and and got it rolling now this team the way they've assembled it and the experience they have they believe they have a team that can make noise in the ACC and the quarterback position this year is not going to be one that has a short leash it's not going to be one that that is allowed to in my opinion struggle as maybe much as it did last year because there was this kind of understanding that Preston won the job he's going to get his opportunity and we're going to see how it goes and until we're forced to really make a decision and go elsewhere with it Preston's got the Reigns this year I don't think that's the case Preston has done plenty in Fall Camp he's looked the part he's done better at checking down the football he's been able to push the ball down the field I think that's a credit to what we'll talk about in a bit with the wide receivers being a little bit more seasoned with both quarterbacks and Preston has had a really good fall Camp from what I've seen the reality too though when evaluating these guys is the defensive line is so good it's hard to get a good read on how these guys are going to play When the bullets are flying against other teams because as I'll share when we talk about the defensive line I believe that defensive line that SMU has is probably better than nine of the 12 just kind of off the top of my head defensive lines that SMU smu's offensive line will face over the course of the season so kind of think about it in that perspective when we talk about how good this defensive line is how maybe the offensive line has struggled hand them but as far as the quarterbacks to evaluate this position and this is where this whole thing turned into insane five-page threat on our board which quarterback is a hot button discussion but we've said that Preston and Kevin are competing and they've been competing this off season and especially once Preston got back healthy what that means is not there is an end with the first snap of the Nevada game because they're now at a point in their careers and what they've both done on the field where they have earned the coach's trusts and you can if you want to believe coach speak like that was coach speak with Casey Woods saying we're going to operate at a high level anyway and things like that with who regardless of who's in there that's fine they do believe that though and for Kevin he has shown some ability to make some plays and some throws that arm strengthwise Preston maybe doesn't necessarily have but Preston also in his own right as we know can make plays can create and do things and that's where later Casey says we're not having Preston try to be Kevin and Kevin's not trying to be Preston they need to be their own people and their own players and that's why I think this quarterback competition works so well they couldn't be more different in terms of how they came to be at SMU and they couldn't be really more different in terms of where they're at in kind of their careers so far in college either and that's what makes this intriguing because SMU staff knows that they have Preston who has played a ton of football from high school to now at SMU and was coming on strong at the end of last year and really showed Improvement and has had a very good fall camp and then they also have Kevin who can quite frankly run around make a little bit more plays than than Preston can Preston can extend Kevin can maybe run a little bit more than than Preston can and you can also see it in his arm strength that he's got a little bit of a gun and he's got a little bit of a gunslinger mentality if there's something that Preston does differently than Kevin it's that yes you want him to check it down and instead of extending and making plays but also Preston early on last year wasn't pushing the ball down the field as much as he should have and we kind of talked about that and how inconsistent the the downfield passing game was for SMU at times earlier in the in the year it was a I mean I it was pretty wild and so to look at this competition you don't look at it as they need to have an answer and they need to be done and this is you know can't believe we're having this discussion it's a credit to both guys quite frankly like Preston ended last season on a a bad note with getting hurt and I feel for him because I would have loved to have seen him in the two-lane game and I would have loved to see him and how the bowl game would have gone but Kevin got an opportunity and led SMU interceptions and all to a Championship win over a two-lane team that hadn't won it or haven't Lo hadn't lost at home in like three years and there's there's Kudos that are deserved for that and the coaches see something in Kevin as well and whenever you talk about quarterbacks so many so much of the time it has to be oh you're on xplayer side or why player side that doesn't need to be the case here and that's what I learned about this competition is that they really do both buy into the team aspect and they're both excited when they make plays and they're both uh they were great together when they went to ACC media days together mind you and think about all the leaders on this team that could have gone in and I'm I'm just gonna say Kevin's place because Preston is the returning quarterback he's on all the preseason watch lists and all of those things but there are other guys that could have gone in Kevin's place but he Brett lashley's words deserved to go they got Kevin to this season the whole idea that oh we needed to SM needed to bring him to keep him and help you know do this or do that for him like no like Kevin is Kevin is back they will have some sort of either decision or storyline when this season ends around one of these two quarterbacks because they're both getting into the back end of their careers and Es is gonna have to make a decision most likely so this season will play out however it plays out but in Fall Camp these two guys showed their maturity they showed their competitiveness and they both made plays amid kind of tough tough uh circumstances with the injuries to the offensive line and having to go through that in team period but when you get a chance to watch them every now and again in seven on seven you can see why SMU might want this thing to play out into the season potentially and that's also confidence in the team that SMU has if you want to read even further into it you look at last year and there were moments like think about this SMU rotated Brandon Crosley and CJ Sanders CJ obviously grabbed the nickel job and really held on to it but SMU was so good defense defensively they sat back and said let's just red shirt Brandon Crosley so he can come back that's where smu's at with the rest of this team when trying to decide how to handle the quarterbacks they feel like they can play both they feel like they can get a little bit more information on both and that's a good good problem to have so um shoot 18 minutes in already but I learned that those two are handling the competition well they both can lead this offense and direct it the right way just remember that whenever Preston's in whenever Kevin's in it looks very different you know last year SMU took out a lot of the RPO slow developing things that in my opinion kind of plagued Preston added another situation that he needed to deal with and it's not from a processing standpoint it's from a comfort level in the offense and what you're trying to do like let Preston drop back and just go that's kind of what he can really do Kevin does a really nice job in the RPO he's got the threat of being a true Runner a little bit more in in the ground game we saw that in the two lane game a little bit just his ability to extend plays and run and I think that's something that is different when he's in there and so just kind of keep that in mind you know scvu has two really good quarterbacks and they also have a guy to transition finally out of those two Krick Lester had a really strong fall Camp he was one of the guys that really stepped up and however you want to look at it from well he's going against the third team or doing this doing that I tell you what he might have the strongest arm out of the three main guys that could could in theory play for SM this year Tyler Aronson's going to shirt in all likelihood unless there's a ton of injuries and SMU will continue to develop him he showed some improvement I thought from from Spring to Fall Camp a little bit more comfortable in what they're doing and and and how they're uh you know what they're asking him to do keldrick though took the biggest jump out of maybe all three quarterbacks and and that makes sense right you you have your first college season and your head swimming you get a little bit of an opportunity to get in there and play and get your feet wet I think against Prairie View and then uh you fast forward and your season's over well what do you need to do you need to get back to work and that's what keldrick does really well so he's got a big arm made a lot of plays in fall and he really when when people were talking about the quarterbacks and all the coaches and interviews and things like that Krick Lester came up a bunch from a lot of these coaches and players so credit gets thrown his way uh rightfully so for the fall camp that he had but he showed a big arm and just a a much better understanding of the offense and what they're trying to do as well which you would expect going into your second year so um with that um we'll get into the rest of the team now but first I do want to remind you guys about about our friends at akm turfing greens go to akm turfing greens.com use code Pony up for uh $500 off your lawn project whether it's a big lawn whether it's a chipping green putting green you can turn your backyard into just kind of an average space into an electric uh putting and chipping area uh for you your family and your friends and your kids to enjoy uh they can also just lay down rock uh and and use that code Pony up for $500 off your project email info at akm turfing greens.com Alex Carpenter and his team will take care of you and make your backyard a incredible Paradise just in time for football season too so give him a call today had an on the Pony Express subscriber Come Away incredibly impressed and some other people are already reaching out about it as well so uh check them out all right let's jump into the rest of the team here and we'll I promise there's Nuance to quarterbacks guys as one I can promise you there's there's Nuance to it but we'll jump in here to the running back room and Jaylen knon and LJ Johnson quite frankly we didn't see much of in Fall camp in a sense that when we're allowed in as reporters they saw some time here and there they kind of Switched Off being the first team uh running backs during the tempo period which shows you where they stand on the depth chart no question but also that they they've earned a lot more trust and I think that's one of the other things that I learned in Fall Camp about this team is this coaching staff and Casey Woods had a really good answer to this you can't be dumb tough in Fall camp where you get a bunch of guys hurt and all of a sudden you're going from a team that they feel like they can challenge in the ACC and make some noise early on to all of a sudden being down and out because you've beat up your guys you've gotten guys hurt they're out for the year and I think Jaylen Knighton and LJ Johnson between themselves need to be more consistent on the field this fall but what SMU can't have is them getting hurt and then not being ready to go and if my football memory serves me right on this I think Jaylen Knighton got hurt right before the season I could be wrong on that and and and maybe he got nicked up and he and it was kind of something that we were we were watching really closely early in the season I could be could be off on that LJ Johnson also got nicked up later in the season and they just battled consistency issues so they're a group that LJ has shown the ability to flash with power flash with speed Jaylen knon has that that smoothness that Vision that explosiveness he can catch the football a little bit all those things can factor in those are your 1A 1B but the the biggest change outside of Kamar weaton being hurt uh and and he's out for for a bit we'll just leave it at that Rett Lashley hasn't been able to formally address it yet but he's out for a bit brashard Smith coming into fall Camp Looking ready to go physically and then stepping up into that role really well from a running back perspective this is a guy that was fourth nationally in kickoff return average for last season across the country and SM we brought him in as hey we need to upgrade our kick return game let's bring him in and maybe he can play a little bit of running back for us as well and sure enough he's come in look the part physically and you're going to see him be used in I think special teams of course with the return game but also being a running back he's got a little bit more of a um a a an explosiveness that SMU hasn't had since you List's Bentley quite frankly and so if he hits he's probably one of those players that if you look at if he hits for SMU this year One what an incredible late edition by Kyle coper running backs coach and special teams coordinator basically he didn't have to convince Rhett Lashley but at the time they were pretty tight on roster spots and uh CP kind of pushed and you know said hey I think I think we should go for this and so sure enough they did and I I if it pays off it's going to be one of those great last additions to this team like a Kobe Wilson was last year for the defense SMU has a a decent group of running backs Derrick McFall looks like he's going to be a star at some point for SMU but he's still just a true freshman but brashard Smith has that true Elite level talent that again if he if it hits look out this offense just added a big piece of explosion and in the kick return game if those things can be if those issues can be alleviated man SMU is going to be dangerous for the first time in a minute on special teams with him back there so um that's kind of the running back group I think they're just going to try to find the hot hand early in the season and go from there the wide receivers this is one of everybody this is one of uh our message board's favorite favorite discussions if you're not at on the pony express.com use code smu1 that's SMU the number one for two months for just a dollar gets you into the season gets you into ACC play at this point so jump on board with us and get on the message board it's the number one message board for SMU fans chatted up during games over recruiting what have you and uh we can chat on there as well but the wide receiver group Jordan Curley moves on and they now have six guys coming back that they really feel like they trust so with that is the question of are they going to rotate what's that going to look like and at least this year I will say there there's kind of a an odd number in a sense when Jordan Curley got hurt last year I believe they moved Jordan Hudson over to start learning his position or they made some change mid-season there and for this forsome of mcci Dixon romelo Brinson kesan Smith and Jordan Hudson it's not I mean it's put up or shut up but they all have their own ways in Fall Camp of standing out and last year I felt like all right kesan is inconsistent drops the ball a little bit too much that was something that was talked about coming over from Miami romello as bouncy and as as athletic as he is uh he has stick stick figures for legs and he needs a weight room and and just just kind of mature a little bit more Jordan Hudson came in late wasn't here in the spring and was needing to learn the offense develop a little bit more find that like maturity not that he was immature he just wasn't as just like fully like in it like he's whenever I'd pop down to campus this summer I saw Jordan Hudson working out in the indoor and he was working out with trainers he was working out with you know this guys that guy like in it and and all all these guys are I mean they they all spend so much time on this craft but Jordan Hudson really has gotten into his bag so to speak in terms of using all the tools that he has both to improve and get better and just from a talent perspective he's raised his level of game from what I've been able to see his competitiveness when the ball's in the air just what he's able to do as far as setting up Corners he's a he's an issue is what I saw in Fall Camp romelo has now taken the step from being That Bouncy athletic guy to really being a ball winner and and that's going to be something to watch is if he turns that into being a ball winner on the field in the fall in a couple weeks that's going to be really special and then muchi to back up to him muchi is the fastest guy on the team period that's it if you ask just about any player who's maybe not involved in that conversation of I am the fastest muchi is the guy that they pick out now the other one is Jaylen Davis Robinson and and rightfully so you know one of the fastest guys to be on the team and and what he did at waxah hatchee running track but you look at muchi Dixon and he's just he just rolls and he kind of looks like a sprinter in a way like if he trained he would if he trained for it he would look a little bit differently physically but he's he's super veiny very very athletic and last year he had that finger injury which really he just couldn't catch the ball with it and this year he's really developed that top end speed and being able to go get it and that is something between him and kesan I think they're both on the same side from what it seems like Jordan and romelo kind of both on the same side from what it seems like those those guys can now go and they can rotate back and forth I think that is going to help this downfield passing game Jordan Hudson's intermediate and short route running is really improved I think Khan's more willing to go over the middle romelo is willing to go over the middle you've got to see it turn on when it comes to on the field and putting it together for these guys but you know when you have these receivers and they have put so much into being more physical being physically ready to go you know it it it can make a difference and so um I'm very intrigued to see how this receiving group looks when the lights actually come on who is gonna be consistent will it be Jordan Hudson will romello take what he's done and turn it into a terrific season will muchi be able to take the top off of Defense as like he can in SMU practice you know th those those are all questions these are going to be answered quickly because Nevada does have enough talent to obviously give SMU a little bit of a run for its money it's not going to be something where it is a uh layup so to speak and smu's favored by 25 but still they're going to be at least athletic enough to to make SMU earn it there's no question about that in the slot Jake Bailey and Roger Daniels the only takeaway I have really on um rodri Daniels is is with Kamar Wheaton's injury could we see Rodrick end up getting a couple more snaps in the running back room because quite frankly whenever he's been back there for SMU good things have happened so uh I don't know if maybe they'll toy with that a little bit more but who knows maybe Jake Bailey really looks pretty good um again guys we're we're only in there for so much and I am intrigued to see how SMU walks this line of all right six receivers we really trust RJ RJ Maryland really really really good tight end Matthew hibner they really like as well how do we get those guys to all figure it out and be productive and that's the one that's one of the takeaways that I I will will point to with this team they just want to win the culture is there for that it it's really quite something and and until you go out of practice and you really see how they work and you get that extended look at them you it's tough to understand everybody always says yeah they're happy but last year's team they really showed it they were able to put aside their ideas of being starters and this and that they want a championship and so it's proven where the wide receiver and tight end room has to factor in together is SMU had one one really one tight end that it trusted last year and that was RJ Maryland this year they have Matthew hibner a national champion he is an old man in a sense um in that tight end room and athletic and can block do you run a little bit more 12 personnel and all of a sudden you're looking at a team that is not only having to you know rotate all these different positions and things like that but you're having to just be so versatile because you have the opportunity to be uh and you have the the the Personnel to be that's the big thing that is going to be interesting as this tight end room emerges and so with that tight end room RJ RJ Maryland is is an absolute stud uh he's up to 24ish uh now at least entering fall camp they're really excited what about what he's going to bring to the table for this offense they feel like this is his money year and if he shines like they think he can then he's gonna have a decision to make and he's got an opportunity to make a lot of money on Sundays but Matthew hibner has come in and pushed him he's not going to overtake him there's no change in the starter at tight end there's no question there Adam Moore has done a lot of good things over the course of fall camp and there's going to be a natural competition there with those guys to earn snaps and continue to see the field just overall and so blocking will be the biggest area that RJ has to continue to step up with and see if he can take that to the next level um because that is such a big part I mean that's what makes Roger Daniels one of the best overall players on on the team because of his commitment to do all the things that they want him to do like if I mean you you can go back to Rodrick either freshman year or maybe I guess yeah I guess it would have been freshman year and he hits 21 and a half miles an hour on that you know short pass that he takes to the house for a touchdown against North Texas but oh by the way he is blocking his absolute tail off to help a guy score and he does that day in day out and so they just have a lot of guys that are committed to doing the little things but the biggest thing that needs to happen from Fall Camp to to the season is you I think you need an alpha merge at wide receiver you know I I don't know like many teams that are really good offensively that roll the receivers like smu's done and I know I think at Yukon it was somebody mentioned to me that Rhett had a lot of different receivers catch passes and and yards and they improved a lot in that one year he was at Yukon but when you have when you have athletes like a Jordan Hudson romelo Brinson Kean Smith Lui Dixon Jake Bailey Roger Daniels I don't know you want one to be that complete Alpha and go be an all ACC receiver and I think that changes the way teams can prepare for you if you have a an an opposing defense that is going to say okay they're going to rotate receivers that their prerogative but you're not necessarily going to have to bracket a Jordan Hudson or bracket a romelo Brinson that means that one they don't respect your receivers or they're very worried about you running the football or they're really worried about RJ Maryland whatever and RJ does draw a lot of attention that allows one-on-one coverage but SMU needs one of these guys to emerges in Alpha I've seen them win enough one-on-one balls I've seen them be competitive is all get out in particular romelo and Jordan Hudson but you need them to do it in a game and so for fall Camp what I learned about these receivers I think they took the next step in their development but it's got to translate onto the field in a tougher conference and so it's still an unknown for the younger receivers Jackson lavender jamarian Carroll Ashton Kart Randy ree um couple quick thoughts Jackson lavender continuing to be you know quintessential like coach's son and in terms of his work ethic and what he does day in day out um in practice I mean he works his tail out he's continues to develop his game um and and Ashton Ashton Kart the Oregon Transfer has come in and I I felt like he was he was nicked up earlier in Fall camp and that kind of you know held him back a little bit but he's come on strong the last week with a couple of really nice catches uh on deep balls and and things like that um to make some big plays Jamari and Carroll out of kind of guys who maybe aren't household names yet he probably had the best clothes of maybe any offensive player he had a strong scrimmage on Saturday he looks like he's running around really well he's playing his his way into being a strong option next next year when SMU loses five receivers potentially six and then Randy Reese has come in and shown a lot of explosiveness I mean he looks the part running around there now that he's healthy after gray shirting so trip rean another big body he's gonna play on special teams he's he's done some good things as well so um Stone eie uh another uh football guy uh really you know for the brand uh so to speak and and he'll be in there at times as an HB back um in a heavy set I would imagine for SMU when they need a lot of meat out there when you get to the offensive line uh this is a group that I think if if they were completely healthy we would be feeling a little differently about them right now but you get to fall camp and I kind of felt like it was going to be a group that would be fairly settled as far as look Logan Parr was still coming back from shoulder injury um Ben Sparks you see out there if you're watching on YouTube coming back from his own shoulder but was a little bit ahead of Logan and the question was gonna be okay Savon bird battling Andrew chamble at right tackle How's that gonna go well Andrew chamble goes down like day three of fall camp and has been out for a while now Savon bird okay this is your time you're going to step out step up well it was wasn't working and they made a change and went with Nate Anderson at right tackle and he's been serviceable he's fairly athletic I think laterally in pass protection you know you want to see a little bit better from him at times but between him and Caleb Johnson they've been battling it out for a while now in Fall camp and um you know it's gonna be Nate Anderson when they start that season opener I would imagine I don't think Andrew chambley will be back for that game and they're going to have to weather that storm and if it if that storm is bad then they'll have to get really creative and that would mean probably I'm guessing jakai Clark who's gonna start at Right Guard would move to Center Justin Osborne would kick out if it's really bad if they can weather it they'll be okay because they know at some point Andrew chambley the all SEC freshman from Arkansas is gonna come back so if you run down these this group Justin Osborne is looked incredible at Center I mean he is he was on the Remington award watch list he's got an opportunity to to really boost his draft stock this year Graham uter has come in behind Justin Osborne and taken a lot of snaps at Center and been terrific needs to continue to work on his snaps he I believe he had to play right or left tackle as a senior for his high school and then at some point he switched to Center to he's been all over the place uh but he's settling in they view him as the center of the future without a doubt jaai Clark's been at Right Guard he's been holding that down Ben Sparks has come back and also put pushed him Garen Justice shouted him out earlier this week and then left guard they move Savon bird back to a spot where he played at Oklahoma and he looks a lot better for that and that helps because it probably alleviates concerns of oh we need Logan parb back we need Logan parb back we need Logan parb back well now you have a guy that's played a bunch he wasn't he never broke through and was a lead at Oklahoma but he's played a bunch he's got experience there they're gonna be able to make it work because he does have that amount of um just experience and he just looks more comfortable there it's very apparent that uh that's the case so then you have PJ Williams who's probably been the best offensive lineman in Fall camp and uh he's just looks I don't want to say night and day from Fall camp or from the spring but but it's pretty close he's been outstanding uh and has been dominant at times in one-on ones and has really been able to control the line of scrimmage at that left tackle spot so that's kind of where the starting group stands and then you get into okay Caleb Johnson the former Notre Dame transfer is kind of your swing tackle at this stage with Andrew chamble still out and if not him then they'll get creative but also King large has worked it offensive tackle and then I believe kaan sap a little bit but he's also been a guard and so then you have Alex Woods who with graham uter stepping in at Center and being so good he's been put back at guard and that's a great spot for him he can really add some size there I think he'll work out really well in the future if you're looking kind of way ahead to next year I could see an very early starting lineup of PJ Williams at left tackle Logan par at left guard it would probably be o it would be probably Graham uter at Center that's how high high they are at on him and then you would have Alex Woods at Right Guard is my guess and then you would have Andrew chambley at right tackle that just way too early 2025 starting offensive line for SMU but they brought in Paris Patterson and um kaan Sapp is kind of Reserve guys and I would say that right now those two look like they have a lot of development to do they'll add some dep they were power five transfers uh in a way Kon sap went FSU to ECU and then left and went to SMU so um those guys will provide some depth and you know the offensive line I think as a quick takeaway as a group they're going to be more athletic than they were last year and you return Logan par so net net Kai Clark is in better shape and ready to go at Right Guard and he's kind of a fire hydrant he's physical he's played 40 plus starts at Miami and once they get chamble back they're going to be more athletic at right tackle I mean I liked hren white A Lot H he was very very good but chamble kind of looks the part just a little bit shorter but still a massive human and then at Center you're far more athletic at there with Justin Osborne than Branson Hickman and I like Branson coming out of high school I like Branson what he did for SMU I defended him a lot during time where he you know just took some lumps being a smaller guy but J is much stronger he can run he can move around I think theyve smu's inside Run game should take a considerable step up this year and again remember they're playing a very good defensive front but they should be able to make some serious inroads running the football up the middle because they have I think a more athletic experienc physical interior of their line than maybe they did last year um and and so this will be quite the year to see if SMU can make those moves running the football uh something they have been good and you know bad at at times is running along the interior and then left tackle um as far as the backups King large is probably in there as well uh they like him uh so with that uh the the overall offensive line though they should be better along the interior just run blocking in particular and then left tackle I think you're well more well-rounded with PJ Williams versus Marcus Bryan who was an excellent pass protector just wasn't as good in the Run game PJ has really stepped up and seems like he's gonna round that out very well so um the offensive line we'll see bullets bullets start flying we'll see how much pressure they allow to see if they can hold it down all those things but it was clear SMU is ready to make some moves overall and kind of um make some changes to that group as they let two veteran multi-year starters walk out the door um in the end so uh quite the move there and we'll be obviously keeping a close eye on that group as as the season gets going so uh with this defensive line I I I don't want to spend too much time on it because I think I talked about it for 15 minutes on the podcast on Tuesday but again going to Rapid Fire here as far as what we learned about some of these players and Elijah Roberts I think is gonna be an all ACC guy I think enough said on that he can bend he's athletic he's a leader he wants to be dominant he wants to be a first round draft pick and he when he's on plays like it so that's it that's that's the Elijah Roberts I'm just not going to get into to too much more I'm interested to see how they move him around um and we knew he was going to be good in Fall camp and he was that opposite of him Jafar Harvey Jafari Harvey comes in from Miami and he's going to play a lot he's a bigger Bandit than maybe smu's used to uh you know having a guy like Nelson Paul who's more of a speed Edge rusher having Isaiah Smith when he was a little smaller in terms of mass last year and they bring in Jafari and he's a big strong I think sixth year or fifth year player who's started multiple seasons for Miami and then Isaiah Smith comes in and puts on 30 pounds or so and he looks like a grown man I said this before Isaiah Smith's stepped up in Camp and when I did a story for on the Pony Express and I said here are the players I feel like have stepped up in Fall Camp I didn't put turbo on there but the reason why I feel like I didn't put turbo on there is one I was really trying to limit it to I think I did one two three four five six and one two three four five six seven so I actually did seven for defense which is good but I I didn't want to go to eight like I I just I don't know I was trying to draw the line it doesn't mean people other people that haven't stepped up or whatever but I also have been so high on Isaiah Smith since he got to campus that he just has continued to develop and do the things that I thought he was going to do like I think he's got a chance to have an explosive I have arrived know my name type of story this season for SMU and helping him and Jafari Harvey play off each other I think is a huge deal those two guys both have the ability to be weapons for SMU rushing the passer then you have Cam Robertson who's backing up Elijah Roberts who physical play some quality snaps has the athleticism I think that you want at the defensive end spot he's a little thicker than Jaylen Samuels was for SMU as well so that helps in the Run game and that'll help Elijah Roberts rotate out a little bit so maybe he's not as Gass at times during the course of a game then you have a lot of depth David abiara Omar abore Braden flowers once he's fully back uh healthy again from his knee injury and Billy Walton the transfer all look to provide good depth that's that's I'm going to leave it there Billy Walton looks like he's going to be a real big player for SMU next year David abiara and Omari abore have really bought into what Calvin tiido wants for them I don't know if it'll pan out into a ton of snaps but we'll see along the interior do look you can't go wrong here's tank Booker and Jonathan Jefferson are going to hold down the nose tackle spot with Blake Burrus helping out there the Texas Tech transfer then you're gonna have Jared Harrison hunt you're gonna have Mike lockheart you're gonna have Cory Roberson and then the interesting thing is Mike Johan sanjo and chei got hurt um and that was unfortunate for for SMU so he's been out uh for a little bit actually and and quite honestly they're they're so deep at defense tackle I I might have forgotten about mentioning that in the practice report now that I think about it um but um they've been able to uh take a look at this group and really put the guys in the right position to succeed here and um that's something that um I think smu's uh gonna be able to to really help themselves with is having this depth along the interior is so important for this group when you're talking about the stretch of SMU games that they're going to have when it's hot in September Florida State in Dallas they're going to go up to Louisville will still be hot there the first weekend of October I bet you know that's going to help them overall and then Kevin Allen is a at this point gonna be backup Reserve type and uh we'll see how he goes uh this fall just as far as his continued de development when it comes to the linebacker room for SMU this is a group that is really really exciting and last year Kobe Wilson uh did a postseason event with me and he said people were sleeping on the linebackers last year and I I raised my hand I said oh yeah might have been me and you look at it now compared to last year and again everything is relative to stepping up into this ACC the linebackers for SMU are all season now with Ahad Walker and Kobe Wilson I didn't learn anything about them in Fall Camp I didn't already know they're physical they're smart football players they have on their shoulder they practice like they they should and the same goes for Alex Kilgore who I still think is a freak still think is going to be one of the best linebackers to come out of SMU in the last couple decades when it's all said and done the question I still have of this group after uh fall Camp is who are the starters out of those three and then because of how good Brandon Booker has been as a true freshman and being able to make plays he's on the skinnier side still he's not big like Kobe or mod or randomiz zono but does he factor in because he has a knack for being around the ball making big plays and then Brandon maizono has done a lot in his own right and I mean he is a guy that has a lot of physicality and Edge to him which you know Scott Simons loves in a in a defensive uh player what how does this pecking order all shake out and by the way Justin Medlock has had some really good fall Camp moment moment and Zack Smith is a true freshman who can very well help es on special teams so they went from having a linebacker room that was okay we have dandis Burns back you know jondis ended up moving on and uh you know was is gonna graduate or whatever but last year there was so much question of well can Kilgore play a lot can Kobe Wilson go from Temple linebacker who played a good bit to being a starter he did this year they have so much more depth and and talent I'm intrigued to see how they use him when you go to the cornerback room this is probably one of the most important positions on the team in terms of it's got to get right and you look at jari Rogers uh jari Rogers he had a funny quote he basically needed to focus on academics he needed to get right off the field and he did that and that has allowed him to focus more on football from what he said and not worry about what's going on off the field and that has allowed him to play a lot vet in Fall Camp he's still somebody I don't know if I necessarily trust just yet because there have been moments throughout his career at SMU where you haven't been able to see that talented player that I saw in high school and has all the upside and all those things emerge as a kind of a shut down Corner that's why they moved Brandon Crosley to corner and you know made that decision to do that and so the Brandon Crosley move has been terrific he's competitive which when you watch corners and I evaluate Corners as far as who's SMU going after you know who's getting out there on the field and things like that competitiveness is one of the biggest things and willingness to be physical and Brandon Crosley has that I think there's going to be moments where Brandon Crosley might might have some struggles in coverage at times but he's got that competitiveness and that drive to be physical and that will help him overcome some of those things I don't know how the move back to Corner is going to go for him but he's been strong in Fall camp and he's been sticky in coverage which is a good sign at least um for SMU the guy who has probably changed the narrative the most though is Du Harmon in in the spring I would I would say Ricky Hunley was borderline disappointed with kind of just where he was at and then he came in this summer with a renewed sense of work ethic and and just kind of got his head on straight in a sense and he's really been impressive in Fall Camp so Duce Haron now stock back on the rise the same could be said for Jaylen Davis Robinson and AJ Davis now these are two players that are both young red shirt sophomores that have a lot of football left to be played but both have tools that Ricky Hunley likes Jaylen Davis Robinson has a ton of speed AJ Davis is a very very good talent at corner it hasn't come together for them fully yet to grab starting jobs on the field during the season Jaylen Davis Robinson has a big chance to be a starter it wouldn't shock me if he is based on his fall camp and then you have AJ Davis who went from being this true freshman that was playing a little bit down the stretch and was looking like he was going to be a starter as a true sophomore or I guess a red shirt freshman and it didn't pan out and he almost needed to hit the reset he did he came back this fall and I thought has been a lot better in Fall Camp as well and then you have the two freshman Alex Rogers who probably red shirt needs a weight room and then Speedy Nettles is kind of the wild card because physically Speedy is ready to go and he's going to be able to provide help if SMU needs it so the cornerback room is going to be one where we're going to have to see it to believe it and kind of similar to some other positions you might have to evaluate it in in game when things are when the bullets are flying and they might have to make some decisions on who really is going to be leaned on for that group as the year unfolds finally the safety room I don't want to spend much time on this I'll say this CJ Sanders if you want a kind of lukewarm take if you've been out of practice CJ Sanders might be the best safety on the team he might be the best back seven player on the team you know so Elijah Roberts front CJ Sanders and how physical he is how smart he is how good he is in coverage it wouldn't shock me at all if if he was the best now the good news for SMU is Ahad Moses and Jonathan McGill are outstanding isaia wobe is outstanding as well but he's also coming back from a little bit of a hamstring so I'll be interested to see once SMU gets to game week does SMU manage an Isaiah wakia like they're going to manage maybe some other guys here and there and they let CJ Jonathan Ahmad Moses roll and then you have quite honestly you have Jaden Milner Jones who they think is gonna be a stud and I would agree Solon High School played a lot for Colorado he's gonna be a stud Abdul muhamad has made plays all fall Camp he's earned some opportunities in the early season as well but so is Kiron Chambers physically he looks a lot stronger he looks a little bit more comfortable he's been working out after practice and then you have jayen Moses who has had a couple interceptions now in practice but the true freshman will probably red shirt so Scott Simons has whittel it down to CJ Sanders Jonathan McGill mod Moses Isaiah wobz the four is what he calls them and then you're looking for somebody to be able to be plugged in and be trusted on the back end beyond that so safety room I'm not worried about I I knew a lot of things I will say Abdul Muhammad had a great Camp Kiren Chambers had a strong camp and and Jaylen Moses looks like another one another under undersized safety that Scott Simons might have hit on so finally Colin Rogers will be your kicker we didn't get to see much of him Isaac Pearson is gonna be your punter he kind of been a mixed bag in a sense watching him uh in at times uh punt the ball but when he hits he can absolutely boom it will Benton will be back as your Long Snapper he's a SMU Legacy there and then kick return will probably be brashard Smith and Roger Daniels punt returner probably be Roger Daniels or Jake Bailey back there catching punts for SMU so didn't learn too much about special teams I'll be honest with you guys it's hard to get a read on it it's during some other key portions of individual drills that we really would almost rather see but I'll say this I think with the depth of this team SM is going to be able to play some different guys out there on special teams and and um potentially help the starters stay fresh but also because they have depth that they trust they can also maybe play a couple starters here and there on special teams because we know at times last year special teams was was an adventure especially in the kick return game which we think they have figured out punt return kind of same story they got it figured out now and we see how it goes um Colin Rogers is a veteran now so you got to feel good at least on paper about him but um it's tough to get a read on special teams until until the season so with that guys reminder reach out to status.com use code Pony UPAC for a discount on a roundtrip flight kept you long enough now but hope this episode helps you get through the weekend and running your errands because guess what it's the last weekend I think it is yeah it's the last weekend without college football we're back baby it's game week next week so jump on on the pony express.com talk to a lot of people appreciate all you guys listen to the podcast if you want to be a part of the message board Community with the bullets are flying in the live game updates jump on onth Pony express.com so hope you guys enjoyed this edition of the on the Pony Express podcast we'll catch you next time with another Edition and uh we'll see you at on theep Pony express.com as well so thanks for listening have a great weekend everyone thanks for listening to the on the Pony Express podcast with Billy embody follow us on your socials on X smmu on3 and on Instagram @ on3 SMU and keep it locked to on the pony press.com for more coverage