All Entries Tagged With: "Adam Froman"
Froman, Louisville want best face on offense
By Paul Sykes
When you look back at the Louisville-Kentucky series, the list of quarterbacks is impressive.
Redman, Brohm, LeFors, Ragone and Cantwell for the Louisville. Couch, Lorenzen, Woodson and Boyd for Kentucky. This season’s starters don’t have the name recognition and skills but neither coach is putting major pressure and responsibilities on them either.
Although this is his second season, Louisville fans really don’t know what to expect from Froman. He’s still pretty much of an unknown, as is Mike Hartline from the Lexington school. The coaches just want them to maintain, getting the ball to the running backs and wide receivers while avoiding costly turnovers.
- Louisville — Froman won a three way battle for the position over Will Stein and Justin Burke. U of L head coach Charlie Strong is looking for Froman to just operate the offense and get the ball to the right guys in the multiple options in Mike Sanford’s spread offense. Froman calls the Cardinal attack “fun” and likes the aggressive options available. He’ll have a strong, experienced offensive line and will help shape the “identity” that Strong says the Cards need to establish
- Kentucky — Mike Hartline returns as a starter, beating out Morgan Newton and Ryan Mossakowski for the snaps. His job will be to “feed the studs” like Randall Cobb and Derrick Locke…guys that are proven game changers. The debate on the Lexington campus is whether Hartline is the right call, and UK will probably use Cobb and Newton under center in certain situations. Joker Phillips defends his decision to go with Hartline, saying that he is “the experienced guy and he’s going fast, being more efficient with things we want to get done.”
Advantage: Kentucky. Hartline never lost to a Steve Kragthorpe-coached team, and the Cats have options in Cobb and Newton if Hartline is ineffective. Neither starting quarterback is a powerhouse.
Froman gets nod as starting quarterback for Louisville
Adam Froman has been picked as the signal caller for the University of Louisville football team in the opening game against Kentucky.
Froman started seven games for U of L a year ago after transferring from Santa Rosa Community College. He threw for 1,354 yards and six touchdowns last season.
He should be much more comfortable with a year under his belt. That plus taking direction from Mike Sanford, an offensive coordinator who had great success at Utah (22-2) before taking over the helm at UNLV.
No quarterback controversy at U of L
There is no quarterback controversy at the University of Louisville. But there is the question about who will be the starting quarterback when the football team faces off against Kentucky in three weeks.
Justin Burke, Adam Froman or Will Stein?
Incoming freshman Dominique Brown is out of the question.
None of the candidates flourished in the Steve Kragthorpe system last season. Froman won two games, Burke one and Will Stein another.
If Charlie Strong knows, he’s not telling. What he will say is that he’s going to sit down with offensive coordinator Mike Sanford and quarterbacks coach Mike Groh when the time is right and make a decision.
“It’s going to come down to who can go lead this team,” he has said.
“All those guys have started at same point in their career, but it’s critical that we get the leader who the other guys truly respect and just tell them that, I don’t need you to go out and make a bunch of great plays, I just need you to play within the system.”
So no one has distinguished themselves yet. Not during spring drills, nor the first week of fall practice.
That’s not good.
A quarterback controversy would be better. Much better.
Only the second practice but Louisville football is fun again
Copyright (c) 2010 U of L Card Game
Victor Anderson (20) bursts from a crowded backfield on his way to daylight during the second day of practice for the University of Louisville football team. Friday’s session was the last one open to the public.
Michaelee Harris, a freshman from Florida, has already dazzled Louisville fans after only two days of practice. Based on Friday’s performance, he expects to catch everything thrown his way.
Beautiful afternoon for football, nice breeze, lots of shade. Perfect in every way for the final practice open to the public. More than 800 wanting their University of Louisville football fix.
Mostly the crowd is quiet during the sessions, straining to pick up on what the coaches are saying, trying to separate the wheat from chaff on a field with players often divided by positions into four or five groups.
These sessions are vastly different from the previous coaching era. Charlie Strong seems to be everywhere and in everybody’s face, as are all the coaches. They don’t let anything slide.
As when Darius Ashley saunters back into line to await his turn. “Why you jogging?” bellows Vance Bedford, defensive coordinator. “We’re picked to finish last in the conference, and you’re jogging?”
That’s just the way it is, and that’s what it’s going to take to make up for lost time.
Some fans can’t help but get involved, as in the one who beseeches: “Come on, Cards! West Virginia’s going to go at you a lot harder than that!” Attracting a wide grin from Victor Anderson.
Speaking of Anderson, he appears to be all the way back, as in 100% recovered from all the injuries that kept him sidelined most of last season. Couple of break away runs Friday, as impressive as he was when he was finally inserted into the lineup during his freshman season.
The crowd can’t contain itself watching Michaelee Harris, the Florida freshmen wide receiver. He has moves U of L fans haven’t seen since Harry Douglas. But he’s taller, maybe just as quick, with bigger hands, and hopefully more durable. He’s going to be a great one.
Dominique Brown, the freshman from Cincinnati, appeared more at ease taking signals. He’s plenty mobile and has a strong arm, reminiscent of Chris Redman and Hunter Cantwell with those bullet throws.
Adam Froman will be the starting quarterback, based on his performance Friday. He seems to be a lot more confident. May have something to do with him knowing what the coaches expect of him for a change. He’s hitting receivers on a regular basis.
Troy Pascley seems to have all the tools, big target, speed, knows the plays. All he has to do is start catching passes, none of this hit and miss stuff we’re still seeing.
The overall impression one leaves with is the practice sessions are tightly organized, players know what’s expected of them, and no nonsense is tolerated. This is not what one usually finds during practice sessions of teams picked to finish last in the conference.
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Louisville Football Camp Begins Aug. 5, Practices Will Be Closed
The first of many questions will start to be answered when the University of Louisville football team reports to campus on Wednesday, Aug 4.
Among the issues are whether Demar Dorsey, the would-be transfer from Michigan, and Dominique Brown, the Cincinnati quarterback prospect, will be eligible for the 2010 season. The other big question is whether Adam Froman actually has competition for the signal-calling job.
Practice actually begins Aug. 5. All practices will be closed. Going to be brutal.
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The new terrace, installed as part of Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium expansion, now has a name. It is the Norton Terrace, presumably named in honor of a local health care provider.
The Terrace will be the location for the football team’s annual open house at Noon on Sunday, Aug. 15, giving fans opportunities to see the changes and to meet Coach Charlie Strong and collect autographs. The event ends at 2:30.
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Samardo Samuels has apparently landed a spot with the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to Card Chronicle. He just kept on keeping on. Still, don’t be too disappointed if he doesn’t see much playing time in the NBA. How would you like to be the guy who inherits LeBron James’ locker?
Downpour Dampens Turnout But Not Outlook
Gusting winds and driving rain an hour before the University of Louisville’s spring football game, the worst weather conditions since a tornado warning played havoc with this event at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium two years ago.
The drenching coming after a week or more of perfect weather, the kind that fills stadiums on Friday nights. In a community wanting to get behind a new coach, back to becoming competitive, on the road to winning ways. 
Not to be this night, a steady and soaking drizzle putting a damper on Coach Charlie Strong’s public debut, attracting mostly hard-core football fans — somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 — for an event that attracted more than 15,000 last year.
- Good to see Doug Beaumont finally get to the end zone after three years. Would have been twice if he hadn’t been stopped on the one on a previous drive. He has the desire and talent, now the coaching and responsibility, to do so a regular basis.
- Bilal Powell moving the ball better, reminding fans of what made him a fan favorite during his freshman year.
- Jacques Caldwell is lightning quick, looks like he is going to have opportunities to put his 4.3 speed to work at last. A couple of impressive runs.
- Cornerback has always seemed to be a worry at U of L. Good to finally see a super athlete like Darius Ashley at that position.
- Quarterback Adam Froman doesn’t inspire confidence but he’s compared with a lot of great quarterbacks in U of L’s past. Still, one knows he going to be challenged quickly at that position in the fall.
Kragthorpe Makes Will Stein The Fall Guy
Will Stein apparently didn’t know he was going to be the University of Louisville’s starting quarterback until Friday. No surprise. Steve Kragthorpe is adept at keeping everyone guessing.
This has to mean that either Adam Froman or Justin Burke must have been taking lots of snaps in the days leading up to the West Virginia game. Or maybe Zach Stoudt, the son of a former pro quarterback, was finally getting some repetitions?
Don’t expect any clarification from Kragthorpe. The great communicator.
So fans are left wondering why a quarterback gets the call who has no ability to spot open receivers, not much of a throwing arm and no scrambling ability. His only offensive skill is handing the ball off to Darius Ashley.
West Virginia was all but begging to go down but Will Stein, bless his heart, just couldn’t deliver.
Somewhere out there a coach is wondering what he could done better.
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