The Texas A&M football team had a sluggish practice Wednesday. Heck, even Jeff Fuller dropped a pass. It was only his second in three practices, but he wasn't bragging, just complaining.
"I'm not quite where I want to be," Fuller said. "I'm shooting to be one of the best receivers in the Big 12, if not the nation. I just feel there's room for improvement."
Head coach Mike Sherman feels the same way, which was why he immediately told Fuller he's got to make that catch.
Sherman expects Fuller to build on last year's record-setting season of 50 catches for 630 yards. He had 24 first-down catches and an Aggie freshman-record nine touchdowns. Fuller teamed up with Ryan Tannehill for a solid 1-2 receiving combination, a bright spot in a 4-8 season.
Both players have higher expectations this fall. Tannehill is competing at quarterback, where he was recruited, but Fuller is sticking to wide receiver. That's good news for the Aggies and bad news for Big 12 defensive backs.
"Jeff Fuller has just scratched the surface as a receiver in this conference," Sherman said. "There's a lot of great receivers in this conference and in this division. There's so many things he can do so much better, and he will be so much better. He's taken this off-season as a mission to be the very best. Whether he's there this year or next year or the year after, I don't know, but he's on a mission to be as good as he can be. And I envision him to make a lot of progress."
Fuller was Sherman's first big-name recruit after he replaced Dennis Franchione at the end of the 2007 season. Sherman's first recruiting call was to the son of former Aggie great defensive back Jeff Fuller Sr. (1980-83). The younger Fuller, who had pledged to Oklahoma, made a recruiting visit and was sold on Sherman's family approach and pro-style offense.
He graduated from McKinney Boyd High School in December of 2007. Fuller struggled through spring drills, but after a strong summer blossomed into a freshman All-American by College Football News.
Fuller spent the summer working on improving his first three steps, looking for better explosion off the line, which will put his 6-foot-4, 215-pound body in the best position against the defensive back.
He also spent extra time fine tuning his moves with starting quarterback Jerrod Johnson.
"During our breaks [from spending the summer in College Station], he'd come over and stay at the house," Fuller said. "We'd chill and go to my high school, run a few routes and go over a few plays. [Even] two days before two-a-days we were out in the indoor [facility] working on routes. Every break we got, we still found time to work a little bit."
Fuller said he's never had this good of a relationship with any quarterback at any level, which should pay dividends this fall. Right now though, Fuller is working to eliminate weaknesses.
"There will be days I will be great in 7 on 7, great on team, [but] my blocking needs improvement," said Fuller. "Then there will be days when my blocking will be great, and then there will be days when I'll drop only one pass, but that's unacceptable to me."
Fuller is blessed with an extra coach in his father, who played six years for the NFL's San Francisco 49ers, two of which were on Super Bowl teams. The elder Fuller stresses that his son should stay low and use his body, including a stiff arm, against smaller defenders.
His father's words are being passed along as the younger Fuller is one of the leaders on A&M's offense. Highly touted Uzoma Nwachukwu, Brandal Jackson, Ryan Swope and Kenric McNeal are among six incoming freshmen receivers watching Fuller's every move.
"You just gotta set a good example to guys like Kenric and Easy [Nwachukwu], and Swope," Fuller said. "I take them under my wing and I expect a lot out of them and they expect a lot out of me.
"And really, it just makes everyone a lot better."
AGGIE NOTEBOOK
The skinny on Practice No. 4: A&M practiced for about two and half hours in shorts, shoulder pads and helmets Thursday morning at the Coolidge practice fields. It was by far the hottest day to practice, but the Aggies rebounded well from a poor Wednesday workout.
"I thought we had a good day today," A&M head coach Mike Sherman said. "I thought on both sides of the ball and special teams, we took a step forward today, so I was pleased."
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Aggie Drill: A&M started and ended practice with the popular Aggie Drill. The final two one-on-one battles were in the middle of the players and weren't visible to onlookers. "It was good competition," said Sherman. "It was good enthusiasm."
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Rewarded: Several freshman wide receivers who had good days catching the ball Tuesday and Wednesday with the second- and third-stringers took snaps with the first unit on Thursday.
"I thought they did a nice job," said Sherman, referring to Brandal Jackson, Kenric McNeal and Uzoma Nwachukwu. "Each one of them has made plays that would warrant us wanting to take a look at them. They all catch the ball, which is nice."
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Rating the quarterbacks: Starter Jerrod Johnson didn't play well enough Wednesday for Sherman, while sophomore Ryan Tannehill earned snaps Thursday with the first-teamers after spending much of the last two practices with the freshman-laden third-stringers.
"I thought they both did well today," Sherman said. "I thought Jerrod played better and made some good decisions and had one mistake on an interception, but overall he did better. I thought Tannehill competed very well."
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Competition at cornerback: sophomore Terrence Frederick and senior Justin McQueen, who have been typically working with the first unit at cornerback, are responding to competition. "I couldn't say anybody is ahead of anybody else when I look at that group," Sherman said. "I do think Terrence has made some nice plays on the ball going against Fuller. He's knocked some balls down a couple of times, and was able to go up and win. As well as McQueen, who has been very consistent."
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No gassers: A&M didn't run practice-ending sprints. [It] was a combination of things," Sherman said. "I just kinda have a feel during practice right or wrong, if we are moving around at the speed that I think we should, then we really don't need extra conditioning. I think we're in very good shape from the running we did this summer, particularly in the offseason and spring. We ran every day in the spring. Running in this heat, I think these guys are in pretty good shape overall. I don't think we need to [run sprints] if in fact we have a good practice."
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Observers: UT-San Antonio, which has added football, had assistant coaches David Ross and Eric Roark watching practice along with Roadrunners senior woman administrator Liz Dalton. ... A Houston Texans scout spent a lot of time watching the offensive linemen, which includes seniors Kevin Matthews, Michael Shumard and Lee Grimes. ... Onlookers also included A&M soccer coach G. Guerrieri and radio play-by-play man Dave South.
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Looking sharp: A&M's players dressed in coats and ties for the media guide. "I think they look sharp and they represent our great university," Sherman said. "I think it's imperative for them that they look a certain way, [and] they act a certain way. They play football a certain way, they graduate, and all that stuff."
Sherman said it goes back to what the program expects from each: a first-class citizen. "If you want them to be that, they gotta look like it as well," he said.
Sherman said it's all about developing the right attitude for everything you want to accomplish. Sherman waits daily to see who is the last player out for practice. "The last guy out of the locker room usually doesn't have the best practice," he said.
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Swiping a few passes: Jordan Peterson intercepted a swing pass and Frederick picked off another Johnson pass thrown about 30 yards. Sophomore linebacker Garrick Williams had the day's most athletic interception over the middle.
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Injury update: Sophomore defensive tackle Eddie Brown (fever, chest congestion) returned after missing two days. ... Sophomore running back Cyrus Gray, who tweaked his hamstring Wednesday, didn't practice. "He wanted to go today, but I held him back," Sherman said. Gray, who has had a good start in fall camp, had a slight hamstring problem during the summer and Sherman doesn't want to risk aggravating it, so Gray probably will miss Friday's practice as well. ... Fuller also tweaked his hamstring during practice and missed the last team scrimmage.
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Et cetera: Wide receiver Terrence McCoy had a steady day with several catches. "He needs to have days like he had today, every day," said Sherman, who added that consistency has been the knock on the junior. .... Sherman rated the daily battle between defensive end/linebacker Von Miller and offensive tackle Lucas Patterson a draw. Miller is a load when he turns it on, but Sherman said Patterson, the converted defensive linemen, has gotten better each day. ... The team checked into an on-campus dorm Thursday through next week. ... Sophomore place-kicker Randy Bullock hit two of three field goals from 42 yards and both from 25 yards.
A&M FOOTBALL
* Thursday: Practice No. 4 in shorts, helmets and shoulder pads for about two and a half hours on the Coolidge practice fields.
* Tentative upcoming practice sessions: 8:25 a.m. Friday (full pads for the first time); 8:25 a.m. and 4 p.m. (inside) Saturday; 10:30 a.m. Sunday (Kyle Field); 8:25 a.m. and 4 p.m. (inside) Monday.
* Practice info: A&M students, faculty and staff will be admitted by showing their ID. Students and former students can also enter by showing their Aggie ring. Cell phones, cameras and recording devices are not permitted. No fans will be allowed at practices in the McFerrin Center.
* Blogs: Robert Cessna on Aggie football at aggiesports.com (on open practices, team competition).
* Season opener: Sept. 5 vs. New Mexico