[h1]Defense shines on Day 1[/h1]
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- White team defensive line coach Scott Early is starting off the New Year in a happy mood. His D-line was dominant from start to finish of the first day of practice for the 2012 UA All-America Game.
"There's a lot of raw talent but guys across the board with a very nice skill set," Early said. "They all have great upside. It was a very good first day."It starts with the nation's top prospect, defensive end
Mario Edwards (Denton, Texas/Billy Ryan). About 20 minutes into practice, it just seemed to click for the 6-foot-4, 270-pound FSU commit and he just took over.
"You can tell that Mario has been so well coached," Early said. "He's big, physical, fast and athletic."
And anxious to battle the nation's top prospects.
"It's great to compete against the best," Edwards said. "When I wasn't in and just watching I was really impressed. They all have a special talent."
But Edwards wasn't the only one to shine on Day 1. Defensive end teammates
Channing Ward (Aberdeen, Miss./Aberdeen),
Chris Casher (Mobile, Ala./Davidson) and Dante Fowler (St. Petersburg, Fla./Lakewood) all had a very good first day.
"Casher asked the right questions," Early said. "In fact, when we were done he asked me what three things he needed to work on for tomorrow. I love that.
"Channing and Dante are both very gifted. They did some really good stuff today."
A trio of tackles --
Jonathan Taylor (Millen, Ga./Miller County), Isaac Gross (Batesville, Miss./South Panola) and
Dakota Ball (Pepperell, Ga./Pepperell) -- also made their presence felt.
"My day one impression of those guys are that they are big effort players," Early said. "Isaac has a great get off, the best I saw today. Dakota is so strong. Sure he has some things to work on, but you can't move him.
"Jonathan may be the rawest guy I have, but he may have the most upside of any guy in this group. That's my impression of him but only after day one."
Taylor has committed to Georgia, Ball to Alabama and Gross to Ole Miss. Ward is undecided and will make his decision on Thursday during the game between Ole Miss, Mississippi State, LSU, and Auburn. Edwards, Fowler and Casher are all FSU commits.
"Mario is so big and so strong," Casher said. "Dante is quick and fast. We all do something a little different. It's exciting to think that we will hopefully all be teammates real soon."
In the meantime, they have three more practices and the game itself to showcase their talents and gel as a unit. If Sunday was any indication, they should be just fine.
"That's a solid group," said White team offensive lineman Brock Stadnick (Greensboro, N.C./Western Guilford). "They are athletic and physical. They all flow to the ball very well. It will be a challenge for us this week."
There was no shortage of intensity from Van (Texas) High School four-star linebacker
Dalton Santos on the first day of practice.
From the dynamic warm-up stretching to the live action drills, the Tennessee commit made his presence known.
"That No. 44 is going to knock someone out this week," said Black team wide receivers coach Reidel Anthony. "I just have a feeling it's going to happen."
Marvin Bracy, who has posted a 4.39 40-yard dash, had never been overthrown on a deep route -- until four-star quarterback
Jameis Winston did so on Sunday.
"It was shock to me because it's never happened before," Bracy said. "I was always under thrown so when you get overthrown you're either doing something wrong or he was just doing something right."
[h3]Gator arms[/h3]Florida commitment
Brian Poole nearly picked off a pass that would have likely resulted in a touchdown. Instead, he was just able to tip it away.
"I was pretty close," the standout from Bradenton (Fla.) Southeast said. "I could have brought it in with a little more effort."
The White team got more than its fare share of hands on passes on Sunday. Safety
Eddie Williams tipped a pass into the air then reeled in an impressive interception.
"We've got a great defense," Poole said. "We've got a lot of speed on defense. I feel like we're going to win on defense."
Oklahoma cornerback commit DeVante Harris impressed the coaching staff during the first practice for Thursday's Under Armour All-American Game at the Wide World of Sports Complex.
Former NFL coach and current ESPN analyst Herman Edwards, who is the head coach of the White team, singled him out when asked about the top performers on his squad from the first day.
“He’s got good hips, uses his hands and his feet very well and has good recovery ability,