Miami Hurricanes coach: Everything 'up for grabs'
BY SUSAN MILLER DEGNAN
sdegnan@MiamiHerald.com
University of Miami football coach Randy Shannon said Sunday that he still has not determined his final depth chart for the Sept. 7 opener at Florida State.
The Hurricanes' second scrimmage, closed to the media and public, was Friday. The final scrimmage, also closed, is Tuesday -- a day before classes begin.
``Still up for grabs, everything,'' Shannon said Sunday morning after the first session of the final two-a-day format of fall camp. ``When you have depth on your football team, you've got to keep guys sharp. Some guys can get lazy. They have all the answers and the next thing you know they get lazy in what they're dong technique-wise, and then the next thing that happens is they're not as sharp as they were. And then you're relying on them and you have bad practices and the cohesiveness with the offense and defense [is not there].
``You can make [a depth chart] up today and tomorrow it can change. You've just got to wait to the week of the game and then you develop it -- or 10 days out. If you try to do it before then somebody gets nicked, an ankle or a bruise, then you're changing it again.''
Sunday was the first time since Wednesday that Shannon met with the media.
Shannon said wide receiver Leonard Hankerson was held out of practice Sunday. ``He's fine. He'll be moving around a little. He's sore more than anything.''
Other players who were held out and ``sore'' were running back Mike James and offensive lineman Jermaine Johnson. ``Freshman soreness -- but he's doing fine,'' Shannon said of James. He said of Johnson: ``He's doing fine, really good. He's sore, too.''
Defensive end Eric Moncur also did not practice but was at the session working out. ``He has been walking around the last two days getting his conditioning back,'' Shannon said. ``He'll probably start jogging and doing something in the next week.''
Also, he said tailback Graig Cooper, who had a boot on his leg one day last week, did some individual drills Sunday and worked on kick returns.
The standout of Friday's scrimmage, said Shannon, was sophomore running back Lee Chambers. ``He did a good job on the scrimmage special-teams wise and also running the football. I'm really, really pleased the way he stepped up. He's the one who stood out big-time.''
Shannon also praised cornerbacks Sam Shields, Brandon Harris and Chavez Grant. Grant also has been playing some safety.
Shannon seemed pleased with Friday's scrimmage, saying it went well. ``We started off fast on offense and the defense responded to it and it was good to see those guys respond back. We did a lot of work on different guys at different positions. We treated it as [if] guys got injured. We sat some guys out for maybe a series or two and said, `OK, This could happen.' You've got to make sure you cover all your bases.''
Shannon on starting quarterback Jacory Harris: ``He's still solid. He still has a lot more to improve on and the more he keeps the improving, the better we'll do as an offense.''




















My Yahoo
@Nyx.replyAnswerText@