Jerry the Jacket
Jolly Good Fellow
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2002
- Messages
- 1,641
Brad as most folks know started out as a defensive end recruit out of Texas. For whatever reason he has struggled to see much playing time. I know he had a leg or knee injury one season that set him back. He was then moved to tight end but was down the depth chart there. He has had the reputation as one of the strongest if not the strongest player on the team. Quite a performer in the weight room. Last season he was moved to offensive tackle and was put in late in a few games toward the end of the year.
I remember in one game it looked like he was a deer in head lights when the coaches told him to get in the game. This spring he looked much more comfortable in the role. He looks undersized which he is in reality from a weight standpoint for the position but I remember Coach Spencer saying somewhere that Brad was developing a toughness for the position. He relished battling the defensive ends and would not back down from anybody. In the practices this spring I noticed he held his own pretty well going against Derrick Morgan and Robert Hall on some occassions. He was able to neutralize them at the point of attack and he also relished getting downfield and looking for the next guy to block. One practice he actually knocked Brad Jefferson on his butt when he was chasing for a tackle downfield, D. Reese took exception to that and got after Sellers and then it was on with a pretty good scrap between the guys that the coaches had to break up.
With Gardner and Brown graduating, Claytor out with a back injury, Brad took advantage of the opportunity to work hard and demonstrate he could be more than a third string emergency type player. Maybe Austin Barrick's success at converting form the TE position to tackle has served as inspiration for Brad, but for whatever reason, Brad has come out battling for playing time this year.
I watched his performance in several scrimmages. He was usually lined up at the left tackle position and the offense was able to make some nice gains through that area. The fact that he got so many reps this spring tells me that the coaches see some real ability in Brad to play and play well. When Claytor returns he may drop back behind him and I think he will definitely have to battle with Phil Smith for playing time. Smith is a big kid that looked good this Spring as well and will be a major contributor down the line, I am just not sure how far down the line but a suspect sooner rather than later. With a nickname given to him by his position Coach of "Philthee", I think you can imagine how the coaches view his playing style.
The downside with Sellers is that this will be his last year but I am glad to see that it looks like he has decided to make the most out of what time he has left at Tech. I think if Brad can add 10 to 15 lbs. of muscle this summer, he could be a factor on the field this fall. If Claytor is slow to recover we will need Barrick, Sellers, Smith and perhaps the freshman Foster to step up at the tackle spots. We also have Minter and Johnson who are walkons and could play there and I think McRae could play tackle if needed.
I would not be suprised to see Sellers playing signigicant minutes at tackle this fall.
Go Jackets!
I remember in one game it looked like he was a deer in head lights when the coaches told him to get in the game. This spring he looked much more comfortable in the role. He looks undersized which he is in reality from a weight standpoint for the position but I remember Coach Spencer saying somewhere that Brad was developing a toughness for the position. He relished battling the defensive ends and would not back down from anybody. In the practices this spring I noticed he held his own pretty well going against Derrick Morgan and Robert Hall on some occassions. He was able to neutralize them at the point of attack and he also relished getting downfield and looking for the next guy to block. One practice he actually knocked Brad Jefferson on his butt when he was chasing for a tackle downfield, D. Reese took exception to that and got after Sellers and then it was on with a pretty good scrap between the guys that the coaches had to break up.
With Gardner and Brown graduating, Claytor out with a back injury, Brad took advantage of the opportunity to work hard and demonstrate he could be more than a third string emergency type player. Maybe Austin Barrick's success at converting form the TE position to tackle has served as inspiration for Brad, but for whatever reason, Brad has come out battling for playing time this year.
I watched his performance in several scrimmages. He was usually lined up at the left tackle position and the offense was able to make some nice gains through that area. The fact that he got so many reps this spring tells me that the coaches see some real ability in Brad to play and play well. When Claytor returns he may drop back behind him and I think he will definitely have to battle with Phil Smith for playing time. Smith is a big kid that looked good this Spring as well and will be a major contributor down the line, I am just not sure how far down the line but a suspect sooner rather than later. With a nickname given to him by his position Coach of "Philthee", I think you can imagine how the coaches view his playing style.
The downside with Sellers is that this will be his last year but I am glad to see that it looks like he has decided to make the most out of what time he has left at Tech. I think if Brad can add 10 to 15 lbs. of muscle this summer, he could be a factor on the field this fall. If Claytor is slow to recover we will need Barrick, Sellers, Smith and perhaps the freshman Foster to step up at the tackle spots. We also have Minter and Johnson who are walkons and could play there and I think McRae could play tackle if needed.
I would not be suprised to see Sellers playing signigicant minutes at tackle this fall.
Go Jackets!
