DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Mini camp and OTA part 2

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Throwing to assistant coaches and equipment guys isn't exactly the best indication that a guy is ready to be named the starter.

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The part about throwing to coaches and the part about him looking crisper and more relaxed in practice are two different thoughts.... They just happen to be right beside each other.

Benjamin sounds like he may have a little Braylon in him.. he can't catch it when he's wide open but he can catch it with defense.. that's a concentration issue.

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I was referring to him throwing a ball to a spot with the same speed and trajectory as Weeden..

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They forgot to mention Weeden threw that one left handed .

Actually he snapped the ball between his legs like I center .. We need a back up long snapper ..

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Free safety Eric Hagg, a seventh-round pick from a year ago, looks like the most improved player on the team. He's running with the first team, and he isn't close to losing that job by the way he's playing. Hagg is constantly around the ball

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That is some pretty good news. Kind of filling a hole from within.

If he can be a league average starter it is a great pick. If he is anything more than league average it is one of Heckert's better picks he has ever made. Turning a 7th round pick into a starter is awesome.

I hope that he can become a plus starter at Safety.

Many teams have low draft picks, or even UDFA at the Safety spot, because there are few high quality Safeties in college anymore. I think that the proliferation of 3-4 WR sets and spread offenses has forced teams into more 3-4 CB type defenders, as opposed to having the more traditional 2 CB/ 2 S configuration.

Heck, it's hard enough to find CBs who can cover, but finding Safeties who can cover, and tackle, is even harder. Hopefully Hagg manages to beat the odds and become a plus starter. If he can, and if Ward can stay healthy, then we might just have something cooking at S, He's definitely a guy who prepares the right way, and studies his ass off.

I really liked him comIng out of Nebraska. And I thought he looked the part last year at times. Maybe things all came together and he really dedicated himself to his craft.

I sure would love to have a great FS back there. Maybe he can be it.

My point is he didn't come out of nowhere and I do believe the hype

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The Browns' wide receiver position remains a glaring weakness. Too many dropped passes.

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[Purple] that's shocking news [/Purple]

I wonder what the Browns knew or saw that made them start Hagg from day one. I would have thought he would have had to work his way up by playing well. They did start him and he hasn't let them down.

I've been wondering about this for a while. A 7th round pick, out for most of the season, yet we didn't IR him.

Somebody saw something in this kid.

This sounds good now. I appreciate the eyes on the field report. Sounds like we are chugging along.

Can Weeden be the right choice and throw 15 picks?
Print Comment
By Steve Doerschuk

Eleven observations about the offense after hauling up to Berea for three days of spring practice:
• Quarterback. You can tell Brandon Weeden will be the quarterback. You can also tell he’ll make some rookie mistakes, despite his age, and throw about 15 picks this year. Still, worth the draft pick, we think.

• Running back. While watching Trent Richardson run against a defense that was allowed to neither hit nor tackle him, one writing pal played along. What’s the over-under on the rookie’s season rushing yards. He thought about it and said 1,050. We’re betting over if he plays at least 14 games.

• Greg Little. Remember OSU wideout David Boston, who flashed in the NFL and then might have eaten his way out of stardom? Greg Little weighed close to 230 pounds last year. Too much. Now. “I’m scraping 219, 200 pounds,” he said. It’s not so much about the waistline with him, we think. It’s the hands. It’s the No. 1 wideout quickness and No. 1 wideout speed. See you in September on all of those. Just not sure.

• Mo Massaquoi. Three years in the league is a long time not to have proven you can be a strong No. 2 wideout. All of the nice thoughts and high expectations being heaped on him by the brass would amount to a lot of pressure for anyone. We see No. 11 as the type who needs to find a comfort zone to take off and thrive. Not sure how he’ll handle all the attention from within. He dropped one deep pass the other day when he was wide open and the ball was right in his hands. One of the coaches went on for quite a while in telling him what a young veteran surely knows. Can’t drop those. We suspected it was a thinking-too-much drop, not a lack-of-concentration drop.

• Tight end. Don’t have time to do it now, but we’ll get on this in a little bit. Ben Watson turns 32 during the 2012 season. How many tight ends that age have had really good years? How many tight ends that age are part of emerging teams during the three years they break through and grow? Watson looks fast and fine, but you see where we’re going with this. Some athletic tight end with the size to block and catch needs to break through. That someone is Jordan Cameron. And no matter how fast he looks in a no-pads/no-contact setting, no one ever saw what the Browns need from him while he was transitioning from basketball to football at USC. The team will be lucky for him to become more than just an extra guy.
(An apology. I know, mom. Transitioning isn’t a word.)

• Joe Thomas. A cornerstone rock. Knock on wood. A cornerstone rock who hasn’t missed a game in five years.

• Mitchell Schwartz. One of the coaches was saying yesterday what crazy-good lucky it is for the kid to be under big Joe’s wing. Any pretense of making him work his way into the starting right tackle job was over early. Or maybe it wasn’t a pretense. It just became so clear so early that he is big enough, smart enough, polished enough and gritty enough to get in there, now. Great team guy, great addition, we’re hearing and seeing.

• Jason Pinkston. Joe Thomas caught us off guard when he said the brass probably would bring Eric Steinbach back as a backup, if he comes back. Pinkston was a left tackle at Pitt in 2010 who exceeded hopes in a taxing move from tackle to left guard.

• Joshua Cribbs. One thing that caught my eye yesterday was a square-in on which Cribbs just kept on running from right to left across the field and stayed ready in case Brandon Weeden wanted to bring the ball his way. He wasn’t really open, and he hasn’t been the choice of quarterbacks in many situations during team drills we’ve seen, but this time Weeden jammed one in there. Don’t remember who the DB was. Do remember that the DB took a healthy swipe at the ball as it arrived in Cribbs’ hands.
Cribbs is a strong man who bodied the DB away, made the catch, and turned upfield with the DB having sold out for the ball and in no position to come back and make a tackle against a guy with Cribbs’ power.
Weeden has been jamming in a lot of throws to a lot of receivers, and why not? He has the big arm and the mentality to squeeze footballs through small windows. One thing about that, though: A lot of these passes to other receivers have been getting broken up. This pass simply reminded us that Cribbs is a strong-willed fighter who might have the makeup to show off some catch and run as one of Weeden’s extra but regular targets.

• Josh Cooper. Undrafted, little, average. On the other hand, he spent the last few years at Oklahoma State developing a sixth sense with Brandon Weeden. He seems to have a sneaky ability to get open, and Weeden clearly has a feeling as to what his exact position will be at release time. It’s not perfect with those two. Cooper might not have finished a corner route the way coaches wanted, or Weeden might simply have overshot him, but the result was a pass that didn’t come close yesterday. Still, giving Weeden the security of a decent slot guy whom he knows very well is an intriguing option.

• Colt McCoy. He is signed through 2013, working on a rookie contract that called for $5 million over four years. The big question with him is not whether he can move ahead of Brandon Weeden ... we don’t think he can, outside an injury to Weeden. But that’s a key point. The Browns have used an injury replacement at quarterback frequently. Let’s say Weeden has a decent season going and gets hurt. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a replacement who is good enough to keep the team in a game against a tough opponent?
It’s not far-fetched to project McCoy as such a guy, but he can only be that guy if his mind is right. We weren’t sure about that for a while. The last couple of days, it has appeared McCoy’s mind is right.
He has spent almost his entire football life being the man. Getting knocked down a peg actually could be a useful part of his psychology, if he lets it be. That process may have begun.

Is that 11? web page

Eric Hagg putting in the work to earn a starting safety role: Browns Insider
Published: Thursday, June 07, 2012, 9:30 PM Updated: Thursday, June 07, 2012, 9:31 PM
Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer By Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer

Edgy ending: The three-day minicamp came to a chippy end on Thursday. While the players remain in shorts and bereft of pads, the intensity was high and coach Pat Shurmur twice told his defense to tone it down. At one point he yelled at rookie free agent Antwuan Reed for tackling Jermaine Saffold. “Don't do that,” Shurmur barked. Tight end Evan Moore also exchanged words with linebacker D'Qwell Jackson.

Scrimmage highlights: Quarterback Colt McCoy had a solid day, throwing a touchdown pass to Owen Spencer. Jordan Norwood had the day's best catch, a one-handed grab in the corner of the end zone on a fade pass from Brandon Weeden. Free safety Eric Hagg nearly had his third interception of spring practice as he broke up a deep Weeden pass. Defensive backs Emanuel Davis and Usama Young each had interceptions.

Next: Browns will have four more days of organized training activities, starting Tuesday.

— Tom Reed

BEREA, Ohio -- Eric Hagg earned an ethnic studies degree from the University of Nebraska, but the Browns free safety's days of copious note taking and classroom study are just beginning.

He filled two notebooks last season as a rookie, jotting down formations, defensive coverages, alignments and advice from coaches. It didn't matter whether Hagg had committed an assignment to memory, he put pen to paper anyway.

"Football is basically like school work," noted Hagg, who said he graduated with a 3.0 grade point average. "They say when you write something down it helps you remember it more. I believe it."

For now, it appears the Browns might have Hagg's name scribbled in pencil for starting duties. While training camp doesn't open until late July, the second-year pro has been running drills with the first-team defense. He will challenge Usama Young for the job.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Hagg has been noticeable in 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 drills in the past week during organized training activities and minicamp, which concluded Thursday. He's intercepted a pair of passes and nearly added third on Thursday as he broke up a deep ball from quarterback Brandon Weeden.

However, succeeding at the NFL level -- especially for a second-year pro drafted in the seventh round -- is about more than creating a few turnovers in June.

"Making plays builds your confidence, but so does just knowing what you are doing," Hagg said.

Coach Pat Shurmur sees a player making significant strides since missing the first six games of his rookie season due to torn cartilage in his left knee. Hagg played the final 10 games at strong safety, registering 10 tackles and recovering a fumble in a reserve role.

Shurmur notices the attention to detail that's going into Hagg's notebooks -- he's onto a third one this spring.

"Communication is huge when you play safety and you have to learn it in the classroom first and then be able to come out here and do it," Shurmur said. "There are players that can learn it in the classroom and it doesn't transfer. There are players that can't handle it very well in the classroom, but once they practice they get it. I see there is some transfer of learning and he's doing well in the classroom and it is showing up out here."

Hagg said Nebraska coach Bo Pelini imparted the importance of knowing his position before stepping on the field. Browns linebacker D'Qwell Jackson also stressed it, encouraging Hagg to write down pertinent information on the grease boards in the locker room and classrooms.
Mary Kay and Tom report on the final day of Cleveland Browns minicamp Mary Kay and Tom report on the final day of Cleveland Browns minicamp Plain Dealer's Cleveland Browns beat writers Mary Kay Cabot and Tom Reed report on the third and final day of the Browns minicamp in Berea. Watch video

Understanding the nuances of the position and the tendencies of opponents, Hagg said, have helped "slow down the game." Safeties have to make rapid coverage decisions as their team's last line of defense. He was up to the challenge Thursday as he and Joe Haden combined to break up a long Weeden pass intended for Mohamed Massaquoi.

"He studies the game well and asks a lot of questions," strong safety T.J. Ward said. "Hagg is going to be a good player whether he starts or not. He has good range, good feet, good cover skills."

No suspense: Shurmur isn't quite ready to name Weeden his starter at quarterback. He's not, however, prolonging the drama concerning his other first-round rookie. Asked if Trent Richardson will be the starting running back, Shurmur said: "I think that is probably fair to say."

Quotable: All-Pro tackle Joe Thomas on the potential of the offensive line: "I think it's going to be the strength of this offense for years to come. I'm the oldest guy and it's only my sixth year."

Extra point: Offensive tackle Oniel Cousins returned to practice after missing Wednesday's session to deal with a family matter, a team spokesman said.
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I'm not arguing or disagreeing w/ anyone, but am I the only one who doesn't remember Little's weight being mentioned as an issue or a red flag last season?

I mean he had the year off. He had the drops. But that's all I remember . . .

The guy look like he was cut from stone, so I didnt really see the weight as an issue but rather a strength. Think back to the end of the year with him breaking tackles and dragging defenders.

Right now I wouldn't put too much stock in how Eric Hagg looks.Lets consider who he is going up against in practice. I don't see a Rob Gronkowski, Jermichael Finley or Dwayne Bowe calibur type skill players he has to worry about.
Greg Little can pull off a 1,000 yard season. He would be a sleeper fantasy pick.
Especially if the Browns are playing catchup in the 4th quarter.Easy yards.

Maybe it's me, but Weeden seems to be throwing an awful lot of interceptions. I know it's early and he's a rookie, but without being there, I have read a lot of pass breakups/INTs.

Have you also read the articles talking about how great he's looked?

Considering he's a rookie, I'm not necessarily sure we should be all that worried if he's still throwing INTs into the regular season.

Not saying we should be happy about it, but it's just the way it is, IMO.

That's true ...... but this is kinda what strong armed QBs do. They take chances, and see just how much their arm will let them get away with.

Guys with strong arms and plus accuracy don't start out timid and try to work themselves into a position of strength ... they start out strong, and maybe even overconfident ..... and work themselves into position of not doing things that they can't get away with in the pros.

I imagine we will see a lot more picks. Never worked from under center, never ran an NFL type offense combined with a gunslinger mentality is bound to produce a lot of picks especially early on. Honestly I was expecting the guy to look really bad early on and way behind Colt and Wallace. The fact that he has already locked down the starter spot is good news, but there will be growing pains.

It's exactly what I have said all along.

There are some QBs who start out believing that they can make every throw, and they have too much confidence in their arms. They have to learn to restrain themselves a bit, and that they can't make every single throw they made in college.

There are other QBs who start out more cautious. They are careful almost to the point of being afraid to make a mistake. They rarely, if ever, learn how to take a chance down the field. It is hard to get a QB like this to open things up. We have had guys like Frye and Quinn who fell strongly into this category. They threw short, took no chances, and accomplished nothing.

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• Quarterback. You can tell Brandon Weeden will be the quarterback. You can also tell he’ll make some rookie mistakes, despite his age, and throw about 15 picks this year. Still, worth the draft pick, we think.

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jc..

...about 15 picks?...

...that would put Weeden in some rare company if he only had about 15 picks his rookie season.

Posted this in another thread earlier this week...

.List of QB Ints in 2011...

1. Ryan Fitzpatrick, 23
2. Josh Freeman, 22
3. Rex Grossman, 20
4. Philip Rivers, 20
5. Mark Sanchez, 18
6.Cam Newton, 17
7. Carson Palmer, 16
8.Eli Manning, 16
9. Matthew Stafford, 16
10. Matt Hasselbeck, 14
11. Michael Vick, 14
12. Drew Brees, 14
13. Ben Roethlisberger, 14
14. John Skelton, 14

I'm expecting 20-25. I think he'll throw more ints than tds.

Hagg received more praise from the Nebraska coaching staff than Amukamara and Suh combined. Hell he was voted team MVP over those guys.

I remember one quote it was from his HC or DC but they said the only thing holding Hagg back was belief in that he was just as good as the guy lined up across from him.

Now if our coaches saw the same thing, throwing him out there as a starter is a great way to build confidence and the kid does have a wealth of talent. He was 2nd or 3rd team all american in most of those post season awards listings.

Funny what you see and hear at Browns practice

By Steve Doerschuk

• It can’t be cheap to charter a bus to Omaha. It would get their in good time if Joshua Cribbs was driving it.

Honoring his Kent State roots this way is one of the many things about Cribbs that make you smile.

Cribbs reaches out the people impulsively and routinely. You may recall that a year ago he rode into Canton Township for a pee wee baseball game. It was a coach-pitch league for kids in the 6-8 age range.

Cribbs wound up pitching an inning. It was the only time all year the pitches were coming in faster than 40 mph.

Another set of eyes at spring practice:
• Defensive end Brian Sanford, 24, is one of those edge-of-the-roster guys no one ever thinks about.

Yet, the former Temple Owl has managed to stay in the team’s defensive picture for two years.

He was among the longest of the longshots when he arrived in a cluster of tryout players in the spring of 2010. He climbed the hard-to-reach rungs for players in his position, first getting invited to OTAs, then to training camp, then to the practice squad, then to the active roster for Eric Mangini’s final eight games.

He retreated to the practice squad in 2011, making better money than he would on the other side of the NFL, about $6,000 a week. Then he hit the jackpot again, making the regular roster.

He was in on three tackles in the season final against Pittsburgh, in which the Steelers managed just a touchdown and two field goals in the season finale.
Now the 6-foot-2, 280-pounder is headed for his third training camp.

At Tuesday’s practice, he was conspicuous with his hustle. He motored around, making such impressions as one can in a helmet and shorts.

It’s a fine line between hustle and the precision he must achieve to make the team again.

At one point during 11-on-11s, a coach yelled, “Hey, Brian! Stay onsides, dammit!”



• One clue that Brandon Weeden is a virtual lock for the No. 1 quarterback job ...
Even when he gets a mix-and-match group of wideouts and backs, he has almost always been behind the No. 1 offensive line in team drills.

• How big an advantage is it to undrafted wideout Josh Cooper that he will spend summer vacation in Oklahoma playing catch with Weeden?

Weeden needs to avoid any shows favoritism to Cooper to keep up his developing relationships with the other guys. On the other hand, Weeden and

Cooper work so well together that it would be foolish for them to back off much of what they have done as good pals the last few years.
Some people play catch with a football on the beach. It’s a different kind of fun for the buddies.


• Colt McCoy has to crank certain throws to get them to the target. Weeden seems to make some of those throws effortlessly.

But it’s not how you drive, it’s how you arrive, and on one long McCoy throw to tight end Jordan Cameron, he had to crank and grunt, but the ball was right there in stride.

McCoy’s touch seems to have come in as the spring melts into summer.


• Both Weeden and McCoy might want to erase the films of their first 11-on-11 segment yesterday.

Weeden went first, behind the No. 1 line. The first three plays:
- A simple handoff to Trent Richardson, who went over right guard.
- Weeden fakes left then fakes right as he drops back, and quickly throws a slightly off dink pass to Owen Marecic releasing out of the backfield.
- Weeden throws over the middle, but the ball is batted at the line by D-tackle Ahtyba Rubin. Scott Paxson, who has been running with the ones a lot as the other D-tackle, hustles to the ball and picks it out of the air. A big cheer from the every player wearing white (the offense is in brown) goes up.


• McCoy’s first three plays in his segment:
- Montario Hardesty swings out of the backfield to the right sideline. McCoy throws a pass that way but it is so far in front of Hardesty’s feet that he doesn’t even try to lunge back to the ball.
- Throwing on the move — the brass is experimenting heavily with moving pockets — McCoy overshoots tight end Evan Moore by a lot on a short route.
- McCoy hands off to Brandon Jackson. You can tell about as much about how a run might actually work in real competition as you can about how the mystery meat in the aluminum foil might taste when it comes off the grill.


• Seneca Wallace was up third in this 11-on-11 segment.
It was a quick shift before adjourning to special teams drills, but there was time enough for him to throw a lovely completion deep over the middle to rookie burner Travis Benjamin.


• One of the hardest things to do for a punt returner is run up on a poorly booted punt and catch the ball before it can hit and give the punt team a 20-yard roll it doesn’t deserve. On one such punt Tuesday, Joshua Cribbs sprinted to make a catch but didn’t get there soon enough. The ball glanced off his hands into theoretical big trouble.

• Benjamin was catching punts alongside Cribbs. The rookie dropped one of them. As is his custom when he drops a pass, he went, “Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!’


• That offensive line is etched in stone. What it means:
- It took the brass about 20 minutes to see that rookie Mitchell Schwartz will be the best option at right tackle.
- Shawn Lauvao is in a crossroads year in which he’ll solidify his hold on the right guard job or have the brass seeking a replacement. He’ll get the year to further prove himself.
- A center couldn’t be more confident than Alex Mack is.
- Jason Pinkston has a chance to be a good starter, not just an acceptable starter. He grew up as a rookie starter and has had a good offseason.
- No. 73 has done fairly well out there on the blind side.


• Mohamed Massaquoi has had a nice spring but not a great spring. His occasional drops, such as when a simple sideline throw from McCoy yesterday went right through his hands, need to diminish.
• Another good Seneca Wallace moment later in practice ...

Eric Hagg has moved past Usama Young as the No. 1 free safety partly because he mixes athleticism and intelligence and projects as the kind of DB who can make the right back-end calls at the right time.
Wallace had lined up the offense when Hagg barked out, “Reno, Reno, Reno, Reno, Reno, Re ...”
Before Hagg made it through the sixth Reno Wallace was dropping back. Hagg hustled over to pick up a receiver who had drifted into an open area near the right sideline, but Wallace read Hagg and his target perfectly, dropping in a touch throw that would have been a long catch and run in a real game.

• A later McCoy 11-on-11 shift, with the team working on third-down plays (McCoy is with the ones here):
- He throws a quick sideline pass to Massaquoi. The pass is fine, but a coach sees a need to yell to No. 11 ... “Finish, Mo!”

- RB Richardson lines up as a receiver, way wide right, but McCoy’s pass goes the other way, to the left sideline to Greg Little. Joe Haden is in blanket coverage and swats the ball away as it arrives.

- Third down again. McCoy goes to the other sideline and hits Carlton Mitchell, one of the intriguing players in camp. Mitchell’s jersey is sleeveless, showing off his guns. Mitchell takes off with the pass and runs 50 yards to the end zone, then makes a U turn at the pylon to return to the huddle.

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So Massaquoi isn't cutting it, T. Benjamin still has the dropsies (at what point can we "go there?") and 6'4" Weeden is having his passes batted at the LOS. Seneca Wallace had the best day of the QBs.

Just want to remind everyone about these things for when we go talk about reality and who deserves what in other threads.

Good read.

I'm a quiet fan of Scott Paxson. I think that he could be our next Rubin.


Awesome news about the OLine; to hear that the brass is this settled on the positions this early is great - now we just need everyone to stay healthy so we can avoid a year of doing the OLine Shuffle.

Rookie WR Josh Cooper looking to make a home with Cleveland: Browns Insider
Published: Tuesday, June 12, 2012, 9:50 PM Updated: Wednesday, June 13, 2012, 7:39 AM
Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer By Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer


BEREA, Ohio -- When Josh Cooper returns for Browns training camp next month, the rookie receiver will be staying with quarterback Brandon Weeden and his wife, Melanie.

The arrangement between old Oklahoma State teammates is temporary, but Cooper admits to feeling a bit like the Owen Wilson character in "You, Me and Dupree."

"I'm definitely the Dupree in the equation," Cooper said in reference to lodging with a married couple. The undrafted free agent isn't worried about crashing on somebody's basement futon. He's just trying to find a home on the Browns' roster.

The slot receiver from Mustang, Okla., lacks the size and NFL experience other competitors enjoy. Cooper does, however, hold one advantage: a familiarity with the Browns' presumptive starting quarterback. He was Weeden's second-favorite target at Oklahoma State behind Justin Blackmon, making 161 catches for 1,696 yards and 11 touchdowns.

The duo's chemistry, as well as Cooper's ability to catch the ball, have been evident during the minicamp and organized team activities. The coaching staff will get a more accurate evaluation of the 5-foot-10, 190-pound receiver when the Browns don pads and the defense can begin applying punishing hits.

Cooper is used to having to prove his durability and nerve while running routes in high-traffic areas infested with linebackers.

"You have to be tough in the slot," Cooper said. "I've always prided myself on being a hard-nosed player and that's what I will try to do here."

Every NFL organization trolls the late rounds and free agency looking for the next Wes Welker, the undersized, undrafted possession receiver who has flourished in New England. Cooper, who grew up near Welker's hometown of Oklahoma City, doesn't pattern his game after any specific player, he said.

Browns coach Pat Shurmur seems to appreciate Cooper's football acumen, route running and ability to maximize his talents. The 23-year-old has seldom dropped a pass in drills.

"I'm very impressed with what I've seen from him," Shurmur said. "I think he generally gets it. He understands how to uncover in the slot area. There is something to that because you are surrounded by lots of guys, and to understand leverage and how to get open is a skill."

During the draft's final round, the Browns asked Cooper's future landlord to help recruit him should the receiver not get selected. Cooper said he didn't need much convincing.

The Browns aren't the only team outfitting their rookie quarterback with a pass-catching security blanket from college. The Indianapolis Colts, who selected Andrew Luck with the first pick, drafted Stanford tight end Coby Fleener and signed receiver Griff Whalen.

Even in drills, observers can see Weeden knows where to find Cooper and where to place passes. But the receiver knows his friendship and association with Weeden means little as the club whittles its roster.

"It's a business," Cooper said. "I am not here because of him. I have to come out here and prove myself every day."


Get on the bus: Josh Cribbs is ensuring Kent State is well-represented in Omaha, Neb., as the Flashes make their first trip to the College World Series. The former KSU quarterback has secured a bus for about 50 fans to attend the school's tournament opener against Arkansas on Saturday, according to the Web site teamcribbs.com.

The cost is $150 per person, which includes beverages and snacks on the bus, a game ticket, a hotel room and a Flashes/TeamCribbs shirt. More information can be found at the Web site.

"Greyhound, if necessary," Cribbs said Tuesday before detailed plans were revealed. "I love they are giving us something to cheer for. It's good for the university."

Cribbs and teammate Usama Young, who also played at KSU, said they hope to make it to Omaha for the first game. Both watched the Flashes' 3-2 super regional win over Oregon. Cribbs said he was receiving a massage and hopped off the table with excitement as the game ended.

Making an impression: Shurmur said he has witnessed substantial growth in second-year tight end Jordan Cameron, who caught six passes in eight games during his rookie season




"He's one of the players, now I'm only comparing training camp to an off-season, but he's one of the players in my mind at his position that's made the biggest jump in my eyes," Cameron said. "I see a guy that number one, didn't play much football before he got here. He competed and really showed the world that he had some skill and ability, and now in this off-season he's gotten his body stronger. He looks more explosive."

Extra points: Shurmur called Tuesday's practice "sloppy." Among the examples: rookie Travis Benjamin failed to field two straight punts . ... Not surprisingly, kicker Phil Dawson skipped the voluntary OTA . ... Undrafted offensive lineman J.B. Shugarts (Ohio State) and defensive back Johnson Bademosi (Stanford) attended their first OTA practice Tuesday because they were completing college courses . ... Weeden picked the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the NBA title over Miami in six games.
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Browns notebook: Fullback Owen Marecic benfits from his mission to ‘restructure the body’

By Nate Ulrich
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published: June 12, 2012 - 11:37 PM | Updated: June 13, 2012 - 09:41 AM
RELATED STORIES

Browns QB Seneca Wallace doesn’t see enough room for him, Colt McCoy on roster

BEREA: Browns fullback Owen Marecic looked in the mirror last year, and he wasn’t satisfied with what he saw.

“I was feeling a little sloppy,” Marecic said. “So I tried to restructure the body.”

Marecic said he weighed about 255 pounds when he reported to training camp last summer as a rookie. Since the end of last season, he has cut sweets and fried foods from his diet. Now his weight fluctuates between 240-245 pounds, his arms are ripped and he seems better equipped to hold off challengers for his starting spot than he would have been a year ago.

“I haven’t done anything different from a workout standpoint,” Marecic said. “It’s just eating right, eating healthy. That’s really made a big difference. I don’t eat whatever I want anymore. So sometimes it can be tough, but I really feel the gains out on the field, and it just helps with energy and getting stronger in the weight room.”

Browns coach Pat Shurmur has noticed.

“Physically, he looks fitter and trimmer,” Shurmur said Tuesday after the Browns wrapped up an organized team activity practice. “I’m not going to call him fat because I didn’t feel that about him last year.”

Marecic also said he has not experienced any lingering symptoms from the two concussions he suffered last season. He switched helmets last year after the second concussion, and he’s been wearing the same one ever since.

“I feel ready to go,” he said. “I’m really looking forward to the season. I got a good helmet. Everybody’s been great from the trainers to the equipment staff just taking steps to make sure that everything’s ready to go in terms of concussions. [It’s] making my job easy. All I have to do is focus on what I have to do on the field and play ball.”

Kent State pride

Browns wide receiver Josh Cribbs bought 53 tickets and chartered a bus to Omaha, Neb., so he and other Kent State fans can support the Golden Flashes when they face the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday in the College World Series.

Cribbs, a KSU graduate, said he went wild Monday night when the Flashes defeated the Oregon Ducks 3-2 in Game 3 of a Super Regional to earn their first CWS berth.

“I was getting a massage,” Cribbs said. “I jumped off the table. I felt like I was at the game. I was jumping around. I grabbed my phone, tweeting. [Strong safety] T.J. [Ward] went to Oregon. I was like, ‘We beat them seagulls,’ messing with him. I can’t get enough. They’re going to the big show. That’s what it’s all about.”

Brownies

Rookie right tackle Mitchell Schwartz practiced with the first-team offense throughout minicamp and most of the OTAs, but he worked with the second unit Tuesday. … Kicker Phil Dawson continued to skip the voluntary OTAs after attending mandatory minicamp last week. … Undrafted rookies Jeff Shugarts, an offensive lineman from Ohio State, and Johnson Bademosi, a defensive back from Stanford, attended their first OTA practice after missing previous sessions because they were still in school. … Defensive lineman Brian Schaefering (recovering from surgery for a sports hernia) and fullback Eddie Williams (back) did not practice. … Offensive lineman Stanley Daniels participated after sitting out previous practices with an undisclosed injury. … In an 11-on-11 drill, Ward broke up a pass over the middle from quarterback Brandon Weeden. Defensive tackle Scott Paxson later tipped a pass from Weeden at the line of scrimmage, allowing linebacker Kaluka Maiava to intercept it. … Rookie wide receiver Travis Benjamin struggled to cleanly field punts, dropping two in a row at one point. … Weeden is a huge fan of the Oklahoma City Thunder, and he predicted they’ll defeat the Miami Heat in six games in the NBA Finals, which began Tuesday night. Benjamin, a University of Miami product, picked the Heat to prevail in six games. … President Mike Holmgren is scheduled to speak to the media at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. web page