John Schmeelk

The first day of practice at the Senior Bowl was a great start in Mobile, with players on both teams making plays on both sides of the ball. It was very cold, with temperatures at the end of the day dipping into the lower 40s.

Here's what I saw at practice.

* The National team practiced first, and immediately their very talented group of cornerbacks began to impress. Duke cornerback Chandler Rivers, who is capable of playing inside and outside at 5'9 and 3/8 inches and 185 pounds, knocked down a pass on a crossing pattern during one-on-ones.

* Later on, San Diego State cornerback Chris Johnson was beat over the top, but he recovered with his elite speed to knock the pass away. It was a skill he displayed throughout the regular season. Tennessee cornerback Colton Hood started the practice losing some one-on-one reps and getting called for defensive holding, but he recovered late knocking the ball away from Wisconsin's Vinny Anthony II in the competition portion at the end of practice. Iowa cornerback TJ Hall also knocked down a pass down the field.

* A couple of wide receivers had their moments during the first practice, including a small school receiver in John Carroll's Tyren Montgomery. He beat Hood on a comeback on the sideline before making a leaping catch on a deep ball down the right sideline towards the end of practice. He is listed as a slot receiver at 5'11 and 3/8 inches and 190 lbs, but he showed the ability to win against press at the line of scrimmage and make contested catches. I want to see more.

* Texas Tech's Caleb Douglas also had a couple of strong moments. The 6'3 and a quarter inch, 198 pound receiver made a nice catch down the field and showed he can create separation as a bigger receiver. Baylor wide receiver Josh Cameron also made a big play on the final play of practice, making a contested deep catch against cornerback Hezekiah Masses down the sideline.

* The American team features a variety of wide receivers. Some are smaller and quick like Missouri's Kevin Coleman Jr., Boston College's Lewis Bond, and LSU's Aaron Anderson, all of whom are under 6'0 tall, while other have great size like Ja'Kobi Lane, Malachi Fields, and Ted Hurst, who all stand at least 6'3. Hurst stole the show with the play of the day, skying over Julian Neal for a jumping catch, controlling the ball as he fell to the ground down on the left sideline. Hurst is from Georgia State, who went 1-11 last season, but his size and athleticism make him attractive to NFL decision makers.

* Anderson, Coleman and Bond all showed the ability to separate at different times, while Fields and Lane showed they can get open in one-on-one situations despite not being the twitchiest players in the group. Fields scored a touchdown during one-on-ones using his big frame.

* Cornerback Ephesians Prysock forced an incompletion on a pass to Fields during one-on-ones. Ohio State's Davison Igbinosun is huge at 6'2 and 192 pounds and showed the ability to play tight coverage. At least on Day 1, he managed to avoid the kinds of defensive penalties that plagued him as a Buckeye. Texas cornerback Malik Muhammad had the best jam at the line of scrimmage, stymying much bigger wide receiver Ja'Kobi Lane.

* Alabama tight end Joshua Cuevas made a nice diving catch over the middle.

* Illinois edge rusher and likely Day 2 pick Gabe Jacas had a strip sack of Garrett Nussmeier, knocking the ball out of his hands during team drills. There wasn't much contact but Nussmeier was not pleased, nor were the offensive coaches. Michigan edge Derrick Moore was constantly collapsing his side of the line of scrimmage.

* Running backs Mike Washington Jr. and Kaelon Black had good runs throughout practice.

* Overall, both practices were sloppy with a number of fumbles on snaps and hand-offs and a number of procedural penalties. The same thing happened early in Shrine practices as players become acclimated to each other, the playbook, and the quarterback's cadence. Much like in Frisco, there were also a lot of flags thrown on defensive backs as they get used to covering this talented set of receivers one-on-one.

* I'll cover the offensive and defensive line players that stood out after Wednesday's practice.

ON MOBILE

ON DESKTOP