DIPRIMIO NOTEBOOK: Freshman Javon Swinton Catching a Lot of Passes (And Eyes)
10/6/2020 7:50:00 AM | Football
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – You don't know Javon Swinton, but you will.
Indiana's freshman wide receiver has yet to make a big college play, but it's coming.
Last Saturday's one-handed scrimmage catch reflects the potential this former Virginia high school standout has shown in practice, and what could happen this season, and beyond.
"He made some plays that really caught my eye, as he has done so consistently this fall," coach Tom Allen says via Zoom press conference.
The 6-2, 170-pound Swinton was a threat wherever you put him in high school. That included the basketball court, where he averaged 27.0 points as a senior and finished as North Stafford High School's all-time leading scorer.
He was a two-way football standout. As a senior receiver, he caught 48 passes for 858 yards and 13 touchdowns. As a cornerback, he totaled 46 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions.
But it's what Swinton does away from football that has Allen's attention.
"The thing about Javon that has really impressed me, is that when you think about a young man coming in as a true freshman, he does everything as he is supposed to do. There are never issues academically. Whenever he is told to do something, (he does it).
"He always takes care of his business and does not say a whole lot. He studies. He has been prepared and he has made plays. That is a great formula for a true freshman."
Then there's redshirt freshman Da'Shaun Brown, a do-it-all 6-2 player from Wisconsin with a high upside.
He redshirted last year and twice earned IU's offensive scout team player of the week award.
That followed an all-state high school career during which he played quarterback and defensive back while leading St. Catherine's High School to a 14-0 state title in 2018.
In three seasons, Brown threw for 4,566 yards and 66 touchdowns, and rushed for 3,776 yards. He was the top-rated player out of Wisconsin and rated as the No. 30 athlete nationally by 247Sports.
"Da'Shaun is another one that showed flashes, made some big plays, and needs to," Allen says. "We would expect him to rise up."
Tight end Gary Cooper and receiver Jacolby Hewitt (who redshirted in 2018 and missed all of 2019 with a torn ACL) also show promise, Allen says.
"(Cooper) made plays in space," Allen says. "(Hewitt) is still learning the playbook. He is making progress. He's a guy we need to win some of those one-on-ones when you get a lot of man coverages."
Add it all up and you have plenty of receiver depth behind standouts Whop Philyor and Ty Fryfogle.
"It is definitely a group we have challenged to see who is going to rise up," Allen says.
*****
IU scrimmaged last Saturday even though it was its first day in full pads, and just the second since last January's Gator Bowl.
As Allen says, "That's not usually the case," but under pandemic conditions, what's usual no longer applies.
"We have tried to speed up the learning process," Allen says. "We have done more situations even during walk-throughs, situational things in special teams, offense and defense trying to get guys ready to play at a high level."
The scrimmage exposed flaws, but not insurmountable ones. Allen says he's watched film of the scrimmage three times to evaluate every aspect.
"For the first time doing some of those things in a long time, it was pretty clean. There were not a lot of false start penalties on the offense, not a lot of penalties in general terms. It was pretty clean execution from my perspective."
That reflects returning a veteran team, he adds.
"We still had mistakes and still had things that that we have to clean out, but it was not one of those sloppy scrimmages that you sometimes find yourself in. That was definitely something that I was encouraged by."
Something else that encouraged Allen was redshirt sophomore kicker Charles Campbell's 57-yard field goal to end a two-minute drill. He's positioned to take over the kicking duties after Logan Justus' two-year run during which he made 32 of 39 field goals, an IU record for accuracy (82.1 percent).
"He nailed it," Allen says. "He's got a strong leg and a lot of confidence. He's an excellent kicker."
*****
Preparing for Penn State in the season opener and the rest of the Big Ten demands physical practices. Not all the time. Not without a strong plan.
You'd better believe the Hoosiers have that plan.
Allen says they will have some live practice sessions this week, mostly in short-yardage, goal-line situations.
"I do not see us doing a full-bore scrimmage during the middle of the week. We will save that for Saturday. We will have a pretty lengthy (scrimmage) this weekend. That is the plan.
"We are trying to be very careful. Evaluate our guys, know where we are at, know which workload we can handle as we continue to build this thing."
*****
For the Hoosiers, doing the right things goes way beyond the football field.
Everyone on the team, Allen says, has registered to vote in the upcoming election. Assistant coaches Brandon Shelby and Mike Hart spearheaded that effort.
"They came together and took ownership of that," Allen says. "I commend them for that.
"I want our guys to execute their right and their privilege to vote in our democracy. We never tell them who to vote for, but we challenge them to study, know the issues and vote for the person or individual that you believe represents what you want."
With so many issues facing the country, from pandemic to racial injustice to global warming and more, Allen wants his players aware and engaged. The opportunity to make a difference in society resonates.
"It is very important," Allen says. "I know (voting) has been a national emphasis, but we have really taken that to heart here. Our guys have gotten into that, like they should.
"The Big Ten Conference has made it so that we all have the opportunity to exercise our right to vote. This is something that we have been very aggressive with in regards to getting our players squared away. Most of our guys are out of state, so that is not a simple process to go through. I am encouraged by the way they have responded."
Football was one of 10 IU programs that has registered all of their athletes. The others are men's and women's basketball, field hockey, volleyball, women's soccer, men's tennis, water polo, softball and rowing.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – You don't know Javon Swinton, but you will.
Indiana's freshman wide receiver has yet to make a big college play, but it's coming.
Last Saturday's one-handed scrimmage catch reflects the potential this former Virginia high school standout has shown in practice, and what could happen this season, and beyond.
"He made some plays that really caught my eye, as he has done so consistently this fall," coach Tom Allen says via Zoom press conference.
The 6-2, 170-pound Swinton was a threat wherever you put him in high school. That included the basketball court, where he averaged 27.0 points as a senior and finished as North Stafford High School's all-time leading scorer.
He was a two-way football standout. As a senior receiver, he caught 48 passes for 858 yards and 13 touchdowns. As a cornerback, he totaled 46 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions.
But it's what Swinton does away from football that has Allen's attention.
"The thing about Javon that has really impressed me, is that when you think about a young man coming in as a true freshman, he does everything as he is supposed to do. There are never issues academically. Whenever he is told to do something, (he does it).
"He always takes care of his business and does not say a whole lot. He studies. He has been prepared and he has made plays. That is a great formula for a true freshman."
Then there's redshirt freshman Da'Shaun Brown, a do-it-all 6-2 player from Wisconsin with a high upside.
He redshirted last year and twice earned IU's offensive scout team player of the week award.
That followed an all-state high school career during which he played quarterback and defensive back while leading St. Catherine's High School to a 14-0 state title in 2018.
In three seasons, Brown threw for 4,566 yards and 66 touchdowns, and rushed for 3,776 yards. He was the top-rated player out of Wisconsin and rated as the No. 30 athlete nationally by 247Sports.
"Da'Shaun is another one that showed flashes, made some big plays, and needs to," Allen says. "We would expect him to rise up."
Tight end Gary Cooper and receiver Jacolby Hewitt (who redshirted in 2018 and missed all of 2019 with a torn ACL) also show promise, Allen says.
"(Cooper) made plays in space," Allen says. "(Hewitt) is still learning the playbook. He is making progress. He's a guy we need to win some of those one-on-ones when you get a lot of man coverages."
Add it all up and you have plenty of receiver depth behind standouts Whop Philyor and Ty Fryfogle.
"It is definitely a group we have challenged to see who is going to rise up," Allen says.
*****
IU scrimmaged last Saturday even though it was its first day in full pads, and just the second since last January's Gator Bowl.
As Allen says, "That's not usually the case," but under pandemic conditions, what's usual no longer applies.
"We have tried to speed up the learning process," Allen says. "We have done more situations even during walk-throughs, situational things in special teams, offense and defense trying to get guys ready to play at a high level."
The scrimmage exposed flaws, but not insurmountable ones. Allen says he's watched film of the scrimmage three times to evaluate every aspect.
"For the first time doing some of those things in a long time, it was pretty clean. There were not a lot of false start penalties on the offense, not a lot of penalties in general terms. It was pretty clean execution from my perspective."
That reflects returning a veteran team, he adds.
"We still had mistakes and still had things that that we have to clean out, but it was not one of those sloppy scrimmages that you sometimes find yourself in. That was definitely something that I was encouraged by."
Something else that encouraged Allen was redshirt sophomore kicker Charles Campbell's 57-yard field goal to end a two-minute drill. He's positioned to take over the kicking duties after Logan Justus' two-year run during which he made 32 of 39 field goals, an IU record for accuracy (82.1 percent).
"He nailed it," Allen says. "He's got a strong leg and a lot of confidence. He's an excellent kicker."
*****
Preparing for Penn State in the season opener and the rest of the Big Ten demands physical practices. Not all the time. Not without a strong plan.
You'd better believe the Hoosiers have that plan.
Allen says they will have some live practice sessions this week, mostly in short-yardage, goal-line situations.
"I do not see us doing a full-bore scrimmage during the middle of the week. We will save that for Saturday. We will have a pretty lengthy (scrimmage) this weekend. That is the plan.
"We are trying to be very careful. Evaluate our guys, know where we are at, know which workload we can handle as we continue to build this thing."
*****
For the Hoosiers, doing the right things goes way beyond the football field.
Everyone on the team, Allen says, has registered to vote in the upcoming election. Assistant coaches Brandon Shelby and Mike Hart spearheaded that effort.
"They came together and took ownership of that," Allen says. "I commend them for that.
"I want our guys to execute their right and their privilege to vote in our democracy. We never tell them who to vote for, but we challenge them to study, know the issues and vote for the person or individual that you believe represents what you want."
With so many issues facing the country, from pandemic to racial injustice to global warming and more, Allen wants his players aware and engaged. The opportunity to make a difference in society resonates.
"It is very important," Allen says. "I know (voting) has been a national emphasis, but we have really taken that to heart here. Our guys have gotten into that, like they should.
"The Big Ten Conference has made it so that we all have the opportunity to exercise our right to vote. This is something that we have been very aggressive with in regards to getting our players squared away. Most of our guys are out of state, so that is not a simple process to go through. I am encouraged by the way they have responded."
Football was one of 10 IU programs that has registered all of their athletes. The others are men's and women's basketball, field hockey, volleyball, women's soccer, men's tennis, water polo, softball and rowing.
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