April 16, 2010
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
It is a Civil War of friendly fire, UNM brother vs. UNM brother, but Lobos will be coming hard at Lobos on both sides of the ball.
And it won’t always be so friendly.
Expect big Byron Bell to be using his 6-foot-5, 330-pound frame to pancake a Lobo defensive lineman or two.
Expect Jaymar Latchison to set his sights on a Lobo quarterback and expect linebacker Carmen Messina to go headhunting after any and all running backs that come within his wide strike zone.
Expect quarterback B.R. Holbrook to try and burn some baby-faced Lobo cornerback.Expect some smash-mouth football.
It’s Cherry-Silver time at University Stadium Saturday and even though it will be Lobo looking at Lobo, there are still starting spots to be won or lost, and it’s still in-your-face, get-down-and-dirty football.
So, the Lobos will divide, line up and do some smashing. “It’s always a fun time,” said Latchison, a defensive end. “But there will be some hitting. I can promise you that.”
The gates open at noon, admission is free and kickoff is at 1 p.m. If you can’t catch the action, go to Lobos.com for a broadcast with Scott Galetti calling the play-by-play.
The Cherry-Silver Game concludes the Lobos spring drills. Mike Locksley’s Lobos went into spring ball emphasizing the run and physicality up front. That concept was emphasized on both sides of the football.
The Lobo run game was impressive in the spring, but that time also allowed Holbrook to separate himself in the huddle. He did that in part because Brad Gruner and Tate Smith got banged up. Smith will play Saturday. Gruner will be nursing a sore shoulder on the sidelines.
Holbrook also separated himself with productivity, on-target passing and solid decision making. He has a chance to look good again in the Cherry-Silver war. Tate and Holbrook will be judged on their passing, but also in their general execution of the no-huddle, quick-strike offense.
Football coaches hate turnovers about as much as they love touchdowns.
“Before you can win a game, you have to make sure you don’t beat yourself,” said Darrell Dickey, UNM`s offensive coordinator.
“We want to line up correctly. We don’t want a bunch of penalties. We want to execute without mistakes. If we do that, we should move the ball down the field.
“Being in the second year, the offense is playing without having to stop and think too much. The offense is much more comfortable with what they are doing out there.”
Lobo quarterback coach David Reaves has basic expectations from his quarterbacks Saturday. “I want to see execution without any turnovers.”
The Lobo offense of 2010 has a big advantage over the unit that went into Locksley’s first spring game a year ago. That unit was looking at a new offense, a new coaching staff and the no-huddle concept wasn’t always a quick-strike concept. Like Dickey said, there was too much thinking and not enough pure reaction.
The communication, the reading of the defense, the snaps from center, are on a higher and quicker level this season.
“It takes time for players to adjust to a new system and it takes time for coaches to evaluate and really get to understand their personnel,” said Locksley. “We are on a different level this season. Now, we have to go out and execute and take that level of improvement to the field.”
Spring games don’t always show the level of potential on a team because the talent has been divided and even jumps back and forth to different teams.
But the individual talent still has a good chance of shining and sometimes it has a great chance of shining because you might be looking across the line of scrimmage at a second-unit player. There is a lot of outstanding Lobo talent on the field.
A year ago the Lobos went into the spring expecting Donovan Porterie to emerge as the huddle leader in 2009. That did happen. This spring Holbrook sits in the No. 1 spot, but UNM will bring in two highly regarded freshmen to challenge Holbrook, Gruner and Tate in the fall.
A big spring game would only help Holbrook’s future.
The Lobo defense also should be improved in 2010. That unit is more comfortable with the 4-3 front and there is more talent and more depth on the defensive line.
An interesting unit to watch on defense will be the Lobos defensive backfield. There is talent and speed in the secondary, but it is wrapped up in some inexperienced bodies.
Locksley said a key part of the Cherry-Silver game is to see how the players react in a game-like situation. It’s also a live study sheet for the coaches to carry into the off season and figure out what needs to be improved for the Fall wars of 2010.