Weber State camp notes: Who’s stepping up, team captains, replacing Shaheed in return game
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- Weber State sophomore quarterback Bronson Barron, left, rolls out as junior linebacker Winston Reid (6) pursues in a fall camp practice Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022, at Stewart Stadium in Ogden.
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- Weber State football head coach Jay Hill gives instructions during the first practice of fall camp on Aug. 3, 2022, at Stewart Stadium in Ogden.
OGDEN — Weber State football got a reprieve from the near-100-degree heat this week with a night practice Tuesday, popping the pads under the lights to get a first taste of their Sept. 1 opener.
Sophomore quarterback Bronson Barron looked sharp in 11-on-11 passing sets, making crisp and decisive throws that will be important to how Mickey Mental’s offense operates.
“Bronson has played real well the last four or five days and I like where he’s at right now,” head coach Jay Hill said after practice.
Barron was one of several Hill identified as recent camp standouts, players who are stepping up and making coaches take notice. Some, but not all, are players who have earned starting roles; some are those who are performing in a way to earn more reps or move up the pecking order to provide the depth winning teams need.
With a nod to his experienced corp of cornerbacks — senior Marque Collins, junior Eddie Heckard, junior Maxwell Anderson and junior Kam Garrett — the ninth-year head coach picked out more top defensive performers.
“Zeke Birch on the D-line has stood out. He’s really made that D-tackle group deep and talented,” Hill said of the sophomore.
Senior edge player Raoul Johnson is becoming a guy WSU can count on to make plays.
“This is the best we’ve seen Raoul,” Hill said. “He’s athletic, he’s bigger and stronger than he’s ever been, and he’s stepping up.”
Sophomore Garrett Beck has begun playing plenty of reps with the No. 1s at linebacker, and junior Naseme Colvin is solidifying himself as an anchor at safety.
“He’s playing an all-conference caliber safety,” Hill said of Colvin. “He’s physical, he runs great, he covers, he’s playing like a big-time guy right now.”
On the other side, the offensive line has begun to take considerable shape, Hill said.
First, through injury, as sophomore center Cormac Boyer recently hurt his knee and is likely out for the season. Boyer, a Roy High and Snow College prospect, was recruited to play center once Ben Bos exhausted his eligibility. Junior Ethan Atagi is the likely starting center, with redshirt freshman Cole Casto backing him up, Hill said.
Juniors Noah Atagi and Jordan Lutui are fairly locked into their spots at tackle and guard, respectively, Hill said, with big redshirt freshman Jake Eichorn making considerable strides at the other starting tackle position. Eichorn and junior George Barrera have each taken plenty of reps at tackle with the No. 1s, with Barrera also contending with junior Meleke Tauteoli at the other guard spot.
“There are seven or eight linemen we can win with right now and some of the other guys have got to continue to improve,” Hill said.
Hill echoed the sentiment everyone at this year’s camp has expressed about the deep running backs group: “It’s good to have Josh Davis back, he’s been great.”
Senior Justin Malone and junior Hayden Meacham “look really good right now,” Hill said, and may just be rounding out a skilled, balanced offensive attack after each has shown abilities and glimpses over the years.
Junior receiver Haze Hadley continues to receive high marks for his improvements and as someone who will likely contribute in a big way this season, and Hill mentioned freshmen Tre Parks-Vinson and Tajon Evans as young receivers who are doing good things.
SPECIALISTS
The lineage of Australian punters at Weber State may yet live on for several years despite Mackenzie Morgan’s graduate transfer to Temple. Sophomore Jack Burgess took up American football just more than a year ago, got a call from WSU in February and came to Utah during the summer.
WSU ended Tuesday night’s practice with a punt-catching drill for anyone in return units to get a look at corraling punts with dark skies and stadium lights. The first kick came from Burgess, and he boomed one from the back line of the end zone to just past the 50-yard line in the air, with plenty of hang time.
“Jack Burgess looks like he’s got a chance to be a big-time punter,” Hill said.
Sophomore Kyle Thompson appears set to continue place-kicking duties after going 12 of 15 on field goals last season.
There are questions — or as Hill sees it, opportunities — in the return game after all-time great Rashid Shaheed moved on to the New Orleans Saints with his record seven career kick-return touchdowns in tow.
“As hard as Rashid is to replace, I think there are good candidates to do it,” Hill said. “There’s a lot of guys who could be that role. It will be a work in progress, probably through Game 4 or 5, because there are so many young, talented guys.”
In kick return, Hill listed a mix of redshirt freshman cornerback Jalon Rock, sophomore running back Damon Bankston and true freshman receiver Tre Parks-Vinson as some of his speedy candidates to take over the role.
In the punt return game, Hadley is poised to catch plenty of kicks there, having displayed an elite acumen in that role already. Davis may take some reps as well, something he did in 2018 with a yards-per-return average of 16 yards and a 75-yard touchdown in 14 returns that season. Those two and sophomore receiver Hudson Schenck will be the core group there.
TEAM CAPTAINS
Team captains are chosen by player vote and the 2022 squad learned who will be this year’s captains during Wednesday afternoon’s practice, Hill told the Standard-Examiner.
Those players are: senior safety Desmond Williams, senior receiver Ty MacPherson, junior cornerback Eddie Heckard, junior linebacker Winston Reid and junior offensive lineman Noah Atagi.