Charles Fischer Administrator No. 1 Share Posted September 15 Let's just say that I have plenty of content over the next two weeks before we play UCLA, but something I want to point out is how left guard No. 50 Nishad Strother, is blocking incredibly well. He is shielding/sealing the defenders inside superbly with left tackle Josh Conerly No. 76 on some plays, and with center No. 72 Poncho on others. I pointed this out in my analysis on Friday, and I am seeing more of it today. Matthew Bedford is not a shoo-in for starting when he returns, as I really like what I see of Strother's run-blocking thus far. More later... 1 1 2 3 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drake Moderator No. 2 Share Posted September 15 The upside is that Bedford will provide depth for the long haul. A long way to go… 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 3 Share Posted September 15 On 9/15/2024 at 2:22 PM, Drake said: The upside is that Bedford will provide depth for the long haul. A long way to go… True, as we will have three experienced guards for two positions. A former weakness could turn into a strength! Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Marsh No. 4 Share Posted September 15 On 9/15/2024 at 1:43 PM, Charles Fischer said: something I want to point out is how left guard No. 50 Nishad Strother, is blocking incredibly well. He is shielding/sealing the defenders inside superbly with left tackle Josh Conerly No. 76 on some plays, and with center No. 72 Poncho on others. Strother was in position to secure a starting role at left guard LAST year before his injury. At that point Harper took over at left guard. I'm actually SHOCKED that they didn't slide Strother in as left guard and move Harper over to right from the get go. I think Harper has prior experience at right guard. I know Harper was taking reps at center (not this year) but the previous years. So he is probably our single most versatile lineman we have. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Author Administrator No. 5 Share Posted September 15 Well, I’m going to politely disagree. When they played Picard and Poncho…that told me they did not want to play Strother. They also indicated to me that they weren’t confident in Strother when they recruited Bedford, because we already had Harper returning at left guard where he had been most of his career. I do not think they had confidence in Strother, thus why they did not want to play him much, but I believe he has proven himself now. 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drake Moderator No. 6 Share Posted September 15 Interestingly, Strother had the highest pff grade on the OL for the game, followed by Cornelius, and then Conerly Jr. Perhaps Strother is a better gamer, than practice guy. The coaches found an OL combo that played a clean game together. A huge step in the right direction. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Marsh No. 7 Share Posted September 16 On 9/15/2024 at 3:44 PM, Charles Fischer said: Well, I’m going to politely disagree. When they played Picard and Poncho…that told me they did not want to play Strother. They also indicated to me that they weren’t confident in Strother when they recruited Bedford, because we already had Harper returning at left guard where he had been most of his career. I do not think they had confidence in Strother, thus why they did not want to play him much, but I believe he has proven himself now. I would tend to agree with that... But perhaps it was also fear of Strother's recovery. It just seemed weird that they insisted on playing him at right guard when he's always been left. And I've been told many times that it's harder to flip linemen around than it seems. It just kinda feels they weren't putting him in the best place to succeed. When Harper seems flexible. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicroBurst61 No. 8 Share Posted September 16 On 9/15/2024 at 6:58 PM, David Marsh said: It just seemed weird that they insisted on playing him at right guard when he's always been left. Maybe it has something to do with protection for a "leftie" quarterback? But was nice to see our "leftie" protected as well as he was. GO Ducks! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solar No. 9 Share Posted September 16 With regards to Strothers, I'm always dubious of coaches being so sure about their evaluations based on practices alone. I'm a long time believer in saying that when a player goes on the game field and shows you who they really are, you need to pay attention and forget about how they practice. There are some people that will always have that extra something when it's the real game. My hunch is they reviewed the film from BSU and thought he did well, and spent practice for the week just getting the lineup solidified with him in it. Kudos to them for doing that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
