Here’s the transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s post-practice press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. Enjoy. On whether he is adding more situational plays into practice due to the upcoming preseason game against the New Orleans Saints: “Yes.” On where he would be in training camp if the lockout had not occurred: “We would have been a little bit ahead if there were more practices, but not that significant. A couple days…
SANTA CLARA – You’ll love this. The quarterbacks were doing their standard drills to start practice today, and Harbaugh was watching them closely. Standard. They were doing this drill right in front of the end zone bleachers, which were filled with fans. The fans watched quietly as Alex Smith, Colin Kaepernick, Jeremiah Masoli, and McLeod Bethel-Thompson practiced play-action passes. All of a sudden Harbaugh wanted take a snap and show…
SANTA CLARA – Last week Anthony Dixon had two showdowns with Patrick Willis on the practice field. Dixon won the first one, giving Willis a hard helmet-t0-helmet hit, but Willis won the second, stripping the ball from Dixon in the backfield and seemingly twisting the backup running back’s ankle. Today, Dixon shed some light his injury, or non-injury, and his confrontations with Willis. He also compares the coaching styles of Jim…
It’s too early to take stock of the quarterbacks, so I’ll just give an observation. The three top QBs on the training camp roster – Alex Smith, Colin Kaepernick, and Jeremiah Masoli – are all most comfortable throwing the ball from the shotgun. Each guy played strictly in shotgun or shotgun-like offenses in college. Smith ran the spread, Kaepernick ran the pistol, and Masoli ran the option. When you think…
SANTA CLARA – Here’s the complete transcript of Jim Harbaugh’s post-practice press conference, courtesy of the 49ers. On whether he has a different perception on the look of his team compared to last week: “We’ve added some new players, it’s changed that way. I wouldn’t say any dramatic change. The guys have come in and worked and have been very hungry throughout the training camp. I think it’s just been…
SANTA CLARA – After warm-ups and drills, the real practice started with a 9-on-9 goal line scrimmage. It was the first team offense against the first team defense, but backup Anthony Dixon lined up at tailback instead of Frank Gore. Alex Smith hiked the ball and handed it off to Dixon, who chose to bounce his run outside to the left. This was a bad move. Patrick Willis caught him…
Head Coach Jim Harbaugh was the first person to speak at the podium after practice. He was winded at the beginning of the interview and he was sweating. He spends a ton of energy coaching during practice. He participates in every drill he watches. It’s good to see a coach so actively involved. Here’s the complete transcript, courtesy of the 49ers, of his fascinating interview. Play close attention to what…
SANTA CLARA – Practice was windy and cold in the Santa Clara dusk. Braylon Edwards lined up with the first and second-team offense today and looked good, considering he’d been on the team for about an hour. He caught a few short passes and hustled hard. Madieu Williams stood behind the defense with secondary coach Ed Donatell and took mental reps. Donatell seemed to be talking Williams through the plays….
SANTA CLARA – When you watch Aldon Smith work individually with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, you think, “Here’s a rookie with a lot to learn.” Today Fangio worked with Smith on the blocking sleds, and he’d repeatedly stop Smith to work on his technique. Fangio wanted Smith to hit the sled, rip away to the right and square up. But Smith wasn’t squaring up, he was ending up sideways. Parys…
SANTA CLARA – If you thought today’s practice would start with a Harbaugh-Kaepernick quarterback lesson, you were wrong. Harbaugh left Kaepernick alone with quarterbacks coach Geep Chryst for a change. Instead, Coach Harbaugh spent the beginning of practice standing next to punter Andy Lee. As I walked over, I saw Harbaugh pantomiming a punting motion, and for a second I thought he was trying to teach Andy Lee, one of…
Here’s the transcript of the post-practice interview with Jim Harbaugh I promised you, courtesy of the 49ers. Today was a heck of a lot of fun. I hope you’re having as much fun as I am. On how Gore looked during practice: “Good. He looked good/ There is quite a difference in communication when he’s in the huddle. [RB] Frank [Gore] does a great job communicating at the line, in…
SANTA CLARA – Frank Gore was suited up and active for the beginning practice today, making cuts and catching passes, but he wasn’t the center of attention. Why? Because general manager Trent Baalke was on the field. For the first fifteen minutes he stood ten feet away from the offensive line and stared at them work with his arms crossed. He looked like a coach. It seemed like he was…
Andrew Luck spoke about former coach Jim Harbaugh at today’s college football media day. Obviously he’s crazy about the guy. Here’s what he had to say. Luck compares David Shaw and Harbaugh: Anybody who knew or covered or came across coach Harbaugh knows he’s full of energy, a lot of attention on himself, not by him but he walked into the room and he sort of commanded the room, exuberant,…
This is about Jim Harbaugh’s football pedigree, how he became who he is. Specifically, it’s about his father Jack, a legendary football coach who instilled Harbaugh-tude into his kids Jim and John, both groomed to be coaches. To pursue this theme I phoned former NFL and college coach Fred von Appen. Fred coached 49ers special teams under Bill Walsh from 1983-88 and was Walsh’s defensive coordinator at Stanford from 1992-94,…
According to reports, Frank Gore ended his holdout and showed up at 49ers headquarters in Santa Clara this morning. How important is his return? He’s 28 years old, he’s got mileage, and he’s coming off a hip fracture. Those are the down sides to Gore. On the other hand, he’s the best player on Jim Harbaugh’s offense. Vernon Davis may be younger and bigger and faster, but Gore is more…
Here’s the full transcript for Jim Harbaugh’s post-practice group interview provided by the 49ers. Some of the salient points he makes regard the fast pace of practice, the reason players wear their uniforms in practice, and how the team has improved in these three days. For some reason he failed to reveal in the group interview that Frank Gore will end his holdout and will appear in Santa Clara on…
SANTA CLARA – David Akers spoke to the media after practice today. Akers played under Jim’s brother John for nine seasons in Philadelphia when John was a special teams coach. The 49ers’ new kicker had glowing praise for the Harbaughs. Specifically, Akers explained why he signed here and why he believes Jim can turn the 49ers into a winning franchise once again. Enjoy. Q: Why not be patient and see…
SANTA CLARA – The third practice of training camp started nearly an hour ago. Now that I’ve seen three, I’d like to share some trends I’ve noticed. The big activity to begin practice is special teams, and Ted Ginn has returned most of the kickoffs so far. Coach Jim Tomsula works with the defensive line in the back-left corner of the property, not technically on a playing field, just beyond…
I want to take you back to a scene from practice yesterday. Second-year tight end Nate Byham landed wrong on his left knee and he was writhing in pain on the ground. Two trainers ran over to him immediately, and Vernon Davis ran over too. Jim Harbaugh did not run over. He blew his whistle and ordered the team to run to the other end of the field to complete…
My dad wrote a short blog today from training camp and I’m linking to it here. In it he describes how Jim Harbaugh coaches the quarterbacks, meaning mostly Colin Kaepernick. I gave a little description yesterday, but I thought you’d like to read my dad’s take on Harbaugh. He also raises this question: Is it possible for Harbaugh to be too quarterback-oriented? Something to think about.
