BROOKINGS South Dakota State opened fall camp a week ago, a month ahead of the Jackrabbits season opener against Oklahoma State on Aug. 31, and I took in practice for the first time on Tuesday.
After watching, here are five things that stood out to me during Tuesdays practice session.
Intensity was very high
This was the first day of full 11-on-11 drills and you could tell the players were hyped up. Not all of the starters played, but from the starters down to the third string guys, there was a different intensity from what Ive seen at an SDSU practice.
Defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit said it was like that during every practice in the first week of fall camp.
Theres been awesome energy. The best part about [the first week] was that everyone was locked in and there wasnt a day where there was a lull. [Head coach Jimmy] Rogers brought that up, that the best thing was that energy, the communication, the competition between the offense and defense has been great, and guys are stepping up right away, Bobbit said.
On the defensive side of the ball the Jackrabbits lost seven starters from last years championship team that gave up just 9.27 points per game last season. Sixth-year senior linebacker Adam Bock said he thinks part of the reason the intensity at fall camp has been higher is because there are open starting positions and more opportunities for playing time than there has been the past two seasons.
I think one of our main goals heading into this year was to compete for our roles, no matter what that looks like for any position. Everybody is just competing for their role and I think that has really brought the energy here in this first week, Bock said.
Bock is the defensive leader
The aforementioned Bock is no doubt the leader of the defense heading into the 2024 season. Former SDSU head coach John Stiegelmeier was at practice on Tuesday and I caught up with him after practice. He said what is going to make the Jacks great again in 2024 is having Bock and quarterback Mark Gronowski as the two main leaders of the team. He said it wasnt because of the way they play, but the way they lead.
Bobbit mentioned Bocks leadership as well, saying hes noticed him being a lot more vocal at the beginning of this season than he was last year.
Hes done a really good job of taking leadership on with the younger guys. I look out of my office window and hes been out here communicating and putting in extra work with some of the freshman linebackers. Thats a big step for him, Bobbit said.
Bock said the vocal leadership is something that hasnt always been there for him throughout his time at SDSU, but in his final season he wanted to make an impact for the other guys in the linebacker room.
I feel like I worked on [being more of a vocal leader] in the spring too. As a sixth-year guy, you just have to sort of be that guy who leads everybody verbally. Just being through it so many times, you have to pick people up when things arent going the right way, Bock said.
D-line depth is still there
One of the position groups that lost the most production was the defensive line. SDSU lost five players on the defensive line to graduation and all five of them were in the top six in tackles for defensive linemen last season.
With the loss of those five, the Jacks are looking to reload and Bobbit said hes confident in their replacements and feels theyre just as deep up front as they were last season.
[The defensive line rotation] is going to be similar to last year. Were going to be rotating and rolling. When I talk about week one of fall camp and guys have already shown up and stepped into their roles, its a lot of positions, but its specifically D-Line, Bobbit said.
That depth showed during the 11-on-11 portion of the practice on Tuesday when the starters were out there as both Amar Johnson and Angel Johnson had a hard time getting past the first level. Bobbit talked about almost everyone on the defensive line but specifically highlighted some of the new faces in junior transfer defensive tackle Kobe Clayborne from Northwest Missouri State, sophomores Dawson Ripperda and Logan Green and redshirt freshman Bryce Hawthorne.
When you look at Bryce Hawthorne and Max Baloun taking huge strides and becoming a leader and Jarod DePriest is already there. When you look at Dawson Ripperda, the guy we expect him to be, hes already there. Randy Keumogne, hes finally healthy. Theres so many guys that are stepping up. Transfer Kobe Clayborne, hes twitchy and hes making plays. Theres not much drop off. Logan Green is becoming the guy that weve imagined and its just been reps and hes there. Man, theres depth on the D-Line and were really excited about it
Confident in the corners
Cornerback is another position where the Jacks lost a starter as DyShawn Gales graduated. His replacement is likely going to end up being one of four players in senior Steven Arrell, senior transfer Colby Humprhey from Northern Arizona, junior Aydan Dautermann and sophomore Myles Taylor.
Bobbit was high on Arrell after practice and after watching I could see why. Arrell has great size for a corner at 6-foot-3 and made his presence known. He also noted how returning starter Dalys Beanum is doing a great job of showing the other corners what it looks like to be a starter.
Dalys is a great leader and a great person, Bobbit said. Hes going to play at a very high level and he knows what hes doing and doesnt make mistakes. When you look at Steven Arrell, he was out a majority of last season because he had shoulder surgery. Hes back healthier and hes faster and hes Mr. Physical. Hes making plays.
He made multiple plays out here and is bringing a different energy and juice just with his playmaking ability and his presence. When you look at Myles [Taylor], Colby Humphrey and Aydan Dautermann, theres just this rotation of guys that we feel comfortable with.
Large leads talented safety group
A year after being an All-MFVC First Team selection, junior Tucker Large has high expectations from both fans and coaches heading into the 2024 season. He was sixth on the team in tackles with 49 last year and had four interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
Bobbit said the next step for Large is going to be becoming one of the leaders of the defense, which has already started as he was voted one of the six team captains on Monday.
He got voted a captain, which is already a testament to what he did in the spring, but hes taken [the leadership] to another level, Bobbit said. Hes just got such a juice and an energy to him. Hes kind of just a baller out there.
He makes plays and has great feel, but he also has great feel for leading off the field. Guys respond to him and he knows how to talk to different people on both sides of the ball. Hes truly becoming one of the best leaders on this team. The best thing about him is he just continues to get better [on and off the field].
Large will lead a safety group that has two seniors in Cale Reeder and Colby Huerter that will rotate alongside him. On Tuesday both Huerter and Reeder were flying around and making plays near the line of scrimmage.
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