Indiana University Athletics
NOTEBOOK: Philyor and the Hoosiers ‘Flashing’ Toward Football Success
8/11/2018 11:20:00 AM | Football
By: Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – What's wrong with being confident?
In the case of sophomore receiver Whop Philyor, absolutely nothing.
Philyor continues to show during Indiana's football camp that he's set to become a big-play guy.
You'd better believe coach Tom Allen has noticed.
"He's a lot more confident than he was a year ago," Allen said. "He's faster. He understands what he's doing. He just flashes."
"Flashes" is a good thing from a guy whose college debut season consisted of 33 catches for 335 yards and three touchdowns. That included a monster game against Maryland (13 catches for 127 yards and a touchdown).
The Hoosiers expect more this season, and Philyor has worked to deliver it.
"He can beat you deep," Allen said. "The thing is, last year, he was really quick. This year, his speed has gotten better. He can run away from people while he couldn't last year. You get the ball in his hands and he's going to turn it into something.
"He's a dynamic player. I love his competitive spirit. He's a winner. He has expectations from himself."
So does sophomore receiver Ty Fryfogle.
At 6-2 and 210 pounds, he has the size and athleticism to punish defenses. He played in eight games last season with one catch for 13 yards.
"I've challenged him," Allen said. "He's a big body. We need him to step up. We really do.
"He's had a good camp. He's gotten faster. He's learning the offense. He's a lot more comfortable with his route running. He just has to attack the ball. He's doing more of that."
Receivers coach Grant Heard has emphasized that for Fryfogle and all of the receivers.
"Coach Heard is high on (Fryfogle)," Allen said. "That receiver corps needs to grow and develop and rise up and respond. I think we're ahead of where we were last year as a group, but we're not where we want to be.
"There's a lot of hard work ahead of us. Coach Heard is relentless on those guys. That's good to see."
Don't forget redshirt junior Nick Westbrook, who missed all but one play last season with a knee injury. He's back seeking to regain the form that earned him honorable mention All-Big Ten honors in 2016 with 54 catches for 995 yards and eight touchdowns.
Also returning from his third ACL injury is receiver/return specialist J-Shun Harris II, who earned honorable mention all-conference honors last season while returning two punts for touchdowns in eight games.
They were among the guys making big-time red zone catches during Friday's let's-get-it-on practice.
"Nick Westbrook continues to make plays," Allen said. "J-Shun Harris as well."
RED ZONE MATTERS
It's no secret IU coaches keep pushing for more offensive and defensive success inside the 20-yard line.
For the offense, it's scoring touchdowns. For the defense, it's holding opponents to a field goal or less.
Take Friday's practice, for instance.
"That's the whole objective, the red-zone defense has to do a better job of forcing field goals, and the offense has to score touchdowns," Allen said. "That's what they did down there. There are some things schematically we can do, but at the same time, it's execution.
"Guys were making plays. They were making catches right at the edge of the sideline."
Allen added with a laugh, "The defense thought there should be some reviews (on those catches), but there are no reviews in practice. Guys were making some great catches. It was good to see."
Viewing pleasure also included sophomore tailback Morgan Ellison, looking for more after a freshman season in which the 6-1, 225-pounder rushed for 704 yards and six touchdowns.
"He's big and strong and fast," Allen said. "I'm proud of his effort."
It helps to have a healthy offensive line, something that was a problem last season.
"They're bigger, stronger and together," Allen said. "They were so beat up last year, but they're healthy now. That gives the backs confidence. They get a big push. We have to have the big men lead the way. They're doing a good job."
As far as an overall assessment of the first week of practice, which included a couple of days in pads, Allen said, "I love our effort. Guys are practicing hard. They're competing hard. There's a lot of hate to lose. That's what you want. That's the whole objective.
"When you put the pads on and go live, that's when the true playmakers step up on both sides of the ball."
Sunday's scrimmage will be the biggest test yet of who this season's playmakers will be. That will include true freshman safety Devon Matthews and true freshman cornerbacks Reese Taylor and Jaylin Williams.
"Guys like Devon Matthews were really flashing," Allen said about Friday's practice.
IU's success this season could come down to developing quality depth.
"We're getting there," Allen said. "The scrimmage (set to run for more than 100 snaps) will really help see some of that.
"We've used these first practices to see who's ready to be in the No. 2 and No. 3 roles, which means they have a great shot at getting into games. I feel more comfortable with certain guys getting in there. The scrimmage -- they'll all get reps – we will give the most fair evaluation. There will be a lot of live plays to see who can finish and who can't."
QUARTERBACKS BATTLING
Sunday's scrimmage should go a long way in determining the starting quarterback.
Redshirt sophomore Peyton Ramsey, true freshman Michael Penix Jr. and graduate transfer Brandon Dawkins have received equal practice reps.
"No decision has been made," Allen said. "It's still very competitive. Sunday won't be the final decision maker, but it will be a big step to see how they operate, run the offense, move the ball and score touchdowns. How they handle game situations."
Ramsey started four games and played in nine last season. He threw for 1,252 yards and 10 touchdowns while completing 65.4 percent of his passes. He also ran for 226 yards and two TDs.
The 6-3, 218-pound Dawkins was a dual-threat guy at Arizona. In 23 games, 14 as a starter, he threw for 2,414 yards and 15 touchdowns, ran for 1,582 yards and 20 TDs.
Penix had a strong spring performance after enrolling for the second semester. Last season the Tampa, Fla., standout threw for 30 touchdowns and 2,165 yards.
KICKER COMPETITION
How do you replace All-Big Ten kicker Griffin Oakes, a guy who basically never missed?
The Hoosiers are working on it.
Welcome to the three-man battle between Charles Campbell, Logan Justus and Jared Smolar.
Campbell, a true freshman, is the only scholarship kicker. He earned Tennessee all-state honors the last two seasons and was rated as the nation's No. 5 kicker by Rivals.com. He scored 237 career points for University School of Jackson with a long field goal of 50 yards.
Justus and Smolar are walk-ons.
Smolar, is a redshirt sophomore from Valparaiso who originally signed with Rutgers. He played in three games for the Scarlet Knights in 2016, totaling 21 kickoffs and no field goal attempts. He transferred to IU and redshirted last season.
Justus, a redshirts sophomore, did not play in his first two seasons with the Hoosiers.
"We'll ramp it up," Allen said, "and try different ways to pressure those guys. Right now it's pretty balanced competition.
"All three of those guys are competing. None of them have had a chance to kick under pressure. We have to apply that pressure."
As for redshirt junior punter Haydon Whitehead, who averaged 40.7 yards with 33 of his 85 punts ending up inside opponents' 20-yard line, Allen added, "Haydon is doing a great job with the punts."
Oakes, by the way, was 16-for-17 in field goals and 38-for-39 on extra points last season en route to Big Ten Kicker of the Year honors.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – What's wrong with being confident?
In the case of sophomore receiver Whop Philyor, absolutely nothing.
Philyor continues to show during Indiana's football camp that he's set to become a big-play guy.
You'd better believe coach Tom Allen has noticed.
"He's a lot more confident than he was a year ago," Allen said. "He's faster. He understands what he's doing. He just flashes."
"Flashes" is a good thing from a guy whose college debut season consisted of 33 catches for 335 yards and three touchdowns. That included a monster game against Maryland (13 catches for 127 yards and a touchdown).
The Hoosiers expect more this season, and Philyor has worked to deliver it.
"He can beat you deep," Allen said. "The thing is, last year, he was really quick. This year, his speed has gotten better. He can run away from people while he couldn't last year. You get the ball in his hands and he's going to turn it into something.
"He's a dynamic player. I love his competitive spirit. He's a winner. He has expectations from himself."
So does sophomore receiver Ty Fryfogle.
At 6-2 and 210 pounds, he has the size and athleticism to punish defenses. He played in eight games last season with one catch for 13 yards.
"I've challenged him," Allen said. "He's a big body. We need him to step up. We really do.
"He's had a good camp. He's gotten faster. He's learning the offense. He's a lot more comfortable with his route running. He just has to attack the ball. He's doing more of that."
Receivers coach Grant Heard has emphasized that for Fryfogle and all of the receivers.
"Coach Heard is high on (Fryfogle)," Allen said. "That receiver corps needs to grow and develop and rise up and respond. I think we're ahead of where we were last year as a group, but we're not where we want to be.
"There's a lot of hard work ahead of us. Coach Heard is relentless on those guys. That's good to see."
Don't forget redshirt junior Nick Westbrook, who missed all but one play last season with a knee injury. He's back seeking to regain the form that earned him honorable mention All-Big Ten honors in 2016 with 54 catches for 995 yards and eight touchdowns.
Also returning from his third ACL injury is receiver/return specialist J-Shun Harris II, who earned honorable mention all-conference honors last season while returning two punts for touchdowns in eight games.
They were among the guys making big-time red zone catches during Friday's let's-get-it-on practice.
"Nick Westbrook continues to make plays," Allen said. "J-Shun Harris as well."
RED ZONE MATTERS
It's no secret IU coaches keep pushing for more offensive and defensive success inside the 20-yard line.
For the offense, it's scoring touchdowns. For the defense, it's holding opponents to a field goal or less.
Take Friday's practice, for instance.
"That's the whole objective, the red-zone defense has to do a better job of forcing field goals, and the offense has to score touchdowns," Allen said. "That's what they did down there. There are some things schematically we can do, but at the same time, it's execution.
"Guys were making plays. They were making catches right at the edge of the sideline."
Allen added with a laugh, "The defense thought there should be some reviews (on those catches), but there are no reviews in practice. Guys were making some great catches. It was good to see."
Viewing pleasure also included sophomore tailback Morgan Ellison, looking for more after a freshman season in which the 6-1, 225-pounder rushed for 704 yards and six touchdowns.
"He's big and strong and fast," Allen said. "I'm proud of his effort."
It helps to have a healthy offensive line, something that was a problem last season.
"They're bigger, stronger and together," Allen said. "They were so beat up last year, but they're healthy now. That gives the backs confidence. They get a big push. We have to have the big men lead the way. They're doing a good job."
As far as an overall assessment of the first week of practice, which included a couple of days in pads, Allen said, "I love our effort. Guys are practicing hard. They're competing hard. There's a lot of hate to lose. That's what you want. That's the whole objective.
"When you put the pads on and go live, that's when the true playmakers step up on both sides of the ball."
Sunday's scrimmage will be the biggest test yet of who this season's playmakers will be. That will include true freshman safety Devon Matthews and true freshman cornerbacks Reese Taylor and Jaylin Williams.
"Guys like Devon Matthews were really flashing," Allen said about Friday's practice.
IU's success this season could come down to developing quality depth.
"We're getting there," Allen said. "The scrimmage (set to run for more than 100 snaps) will really help see some of that.
"We've used these first practices to see who's ready to be in the No. 2 and No. 3 roles, which means they have a great shot at getting into games. I feel more comfortable with certain guys getting in there. The scrimmage -- they'll all get reps – we will give the most fair evaluation. There will be a lot of live plays to see who can finish and who can't."
QUARTERBACKS BATTLING
Sunday's scrimmage should go a long way in determining the starting quarterback.
Redshirt sophomore Peyton Ramsey, true freshman Michael Penix Jr. and graduate transfer Brandon Dawkins have received equal practice reps.
"No decision has been made," Allen said. "It's still very competitive. Sunday won't be the final decision maker, but it will be a big step to see how they operate, run the offense, move the ball and score touchdowns. How they handle game situations."
Ramsey started four games and played in nine last season. He threw for 1,252 yards and 10 touchdowns while completing 65.4 percent of his passes. He also ran for 226 yards and two TDs.
The 6-3, 218-pound Dawkins was a dual-threat guy at Arizona. In 23 games, 14 as a starter, he threw for 2,414 yards and 15 touchdowns, ran for 1,582 yards and 20 TDs.
Penix had a strong spring performance after enrolling for the second semester. Last season the Tampa, Fla., standout threw for 30 touchdowns and 2,165 yards.
KICKER COMPETITION
How do you replace All-Big Ten kicker Griffin Oakes, a guy who basically never missed?
The Hoosiers are working on it.
Welcome to the three-man battle between Charles Campbell, Logan Justus and Jared Smolar.
Campbell, a true freshman, is the only scholarship kicker. He earned Tennessee all-state honors the last two seasons and was rated as the nation's No. 5 kicker by Rivals.com. He scored 237 career points for University School of Jackson with a long field goal of 50 yards.
Justus and Smolar are walk-ons.
Smolar, is a redshirt sophomore from Valparaiso who originally signed with Rutgers. He played in three games for the Scarlet Knights in 2016, totaling 21 kickoffs and no field goal attempts. He transferred to IU and redshirted last season.
Justus, a redshirts sophomore, did not play in his first two seasons with the Hoosiers.
"We'll ramp it up," Allen said, "and try different ways to pressure those guys. Right now it's pretty balanced competition.
"All three of those guys are competing. None of them have had a chance to kick under pressure. We have to apply that pressure."
As for redshirt junior punter Haydon Whitehead, who averaged 40.7 yards with 33 of his 85 punts ending up inside opponents' 20-yard line, Allen added, "Haydon is doing a great job with the punts."
Oakes, by the way, was 16-for-17 in field goals and 38-for-39 on extra points last season en route to Big Ten Kicker of the Year honors.
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