UCLA Football Spring Practice Day 6: Coaches Talk Offensive Progress
New UCLA Football Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch and new OL Coach Hank Fraley talk about the progress of the offense and what they are seeing after nearly two weeks of practice.
After six practices, the UCLA Football team is settling into their roles, especially on the offensive side. After the sixth edition of Spring Practice, OC Jedd Fisch and OL Coach Hank Fraley gave their takes on the progress, though slow going.
Fisch had started out talking about seeing some improvements, though a to of it was in coach speak. “We are progressing. We are getting better. There are flashes that are really promising and exciting.” The offense has taken its time, but things have looked up recently. “It has been a better last two days”
Some of the things he is seeing improvements on is the running game as the team is blocking better, getting lower, getting better pad level and are slowly able to get through the line of scrimmage.
Fisch was also asked about what was going on when he got on Josh Rosen during practice and it was a lesson for the junior QB and his crew.
"I think we just start trying to demand a certain tempo in and out of the huddle, we are trying to demand a way you call a play. We are trying to really teach him and all of our quarterbacks when you walk into a huddle, what your presence should look like. There is moxy when you leave the huddle, there is a way you leave a huddle. There is a way you call a play in the huddle. And there is an ownership and you have to be an expert and we want to train our quarterbacks to be NFL quarterbacks. That is the mentally."
The videos below are via
Thuc Nhi Nguyen of InsideSoCal.com
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New OL Coach Hank Fraley also talked to the media had had some words of encouragement to start, “They are hard workers. I really appreciate that.”
Asked if he spent time watching video of his group, he responded, “I watched the guys I knew I would be coaching. I just watched the four, not really the schemes of it. You could see what was good, what was bad, it happens, it happens all over football. It just watched those four. I just wanted to know what I had.”
When asked about what they are improving, Fraley was not afraid to get specific, “Not singling anybody out, you’re always working the hands, you’re always working the feet. You’re feet always have to be perfect. Your hand placement. I am a believer in technique. If you can be technically sound, you don’t have to be the best all the time, you don’t have to be the best at all, but if you are technically sound, you give yourself a chance.”
Fraley has been reworking the line. He moved Andre James to left guard while Kenny Lacy is handling the right tackle spot. This is what is working best for Fraley right now as he is looking for the best players to fit their scheme and is looking to vastly improve off of the little production the line had last season.
Injury News
DeChaun Holiday had left practice with his arm in a sling after taking a vicious hit from Bolu Olorunfunmi on a running play. The severity of the injury is not known or how long Holiday might be out.
Next: Spring Practice Day 5 - A Deeper Look at the Offense
UCLA resumes practice on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. PT on the IM Field on the campus of UCLA.