Return of Smith, Colt News

Stephen Tsai writes about the Warriors new offensive line coach, Brian Smith.

Smith kept the playbooks from his five UH years. He added to it when he tried out with the Baltimore Ravens and Green Bay Packers, when he was a UH graduate assistant (2003), and during coaching stops at Cal Lutheran, Oregon State and, last season, Portland State. He worked under Cavanaugh at OSU and under Mouse Davis, the inventor of the run-and-shoot offense, at Portland State.

"When you're a young coach, you have to be able to separate yourself from the players," he said. "You can't be their buddy. Some young coaches get into trouble because they think of themselves as still being players. I'm definitely not a player anymore."

Smtih said he will stress fundamentals and techniques. He wants his linemen to learn all facets of the offense.

"We want to have communication," Smith said. "If everyone's on the same page, there's understanding of the scheme ... and you have a better chance to succeed."

Jason Kaneshiro talks to Smith about coming back to UH.

"I'm a little more toned down from where Coach Cavanaugh was," Smith said. "I'm definitely a teacher, I have high expectations for my players and I am demanding. It's a little different personality, but I think I get good results from my players."

Here's what Greg McMackin has to say:

"He's just like Rolo, a leader," McMackin said. "I saw that in him in 1999. He's a student of the game and a scholar. In talking to Mouse and June and Dennis McKnight, they all said he knows as much about blocking schemes for the run-and-shoot as anyone. He played in it, and he learned all the finer points. ... He's a scholar of offensive line play."

Welcome back Brian Smith!

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Colt Brennan talks to Matthew Barrows of the Sacramento Bee about being tutored by Mike Martz this week.

"He's got us up at 7:15 every morning. The North ain't doing that," said Brennan, the Hawaii quarterback, with a smile. "But like I said, this is a job interview. And I came here to try to get a job. And I'm all for it.

"He keeps saying, 'I'm going to push you guys harder to make you that much more prepared.' And I appreciate that."

Brennan admitted that the first two days of practice were rough and that Martz rarely was satisfied. By Wednesday and Thursday, the 49ers' new offensive coordinator had mellowed a bit but still was poring over every detail of his quarterbacks' delivery.

John Pruett of the Huntsville Times profiles Colt Brennan.

"This is a job interview for me down here this week,'' said Brennan, one of three quarterbacks on the South roster for Saturday afternoon's 59th annual Senior Bowl all-star football game.

"If I have a good year and follow it up by doing well in the (NFL) combine, I'll answer a lot of questions. I'll just go through the process and hope to impress people with my athletic ability and character.''

"He's a very intelligent and popular player, a very likable guy with a quick release and great accuracy,'' said one NFL official who did not wish to be identified. "His arm may not be strong as some of the others, but he has a lot of great intangibles."

And Alex Marvez of Fox Sports writes about Colt and the system label.

Brennan must now adjust to taking snaps from under center in an NFL-style offense and show sufficient muscle on deep throws.

NFLdraftscout.com analyst Rob Rang believes Brennan can do both, comparing his style of play to Tampa Bay quarterback Jeff Garcia.

"The question with Colt is the arm strength, but I think he has enough of it," Rang said. "Anything within 20 yards or so, he's OK. Once you get to 25 yards, that's where his ball starts to flutter. But the vast majority of NFL passes -- at least on a rope -- are within 20 yards.

"He's very intelligent and anticipates openings in the field. He's very accurate and has poise and touch. He makes different types of throws, not just dink-and-dunk types of passes."

And there are rumblings that Colt will be starting for the South tomorrow. So be sure to watch early, if you have NFL Network.

UPDATE: Here's an article on Colt's Senior Bowl week, from John Zenor of the AP.

The high-pressure circumstances would seem likely to make Brennan jittery. Instead, he was the guy often seen in the players' hotel, chatting on a cell phone or talking with reporters.

Typically with a smile on his face.

"This is a great experience for me, because I'm kind of the big question mark as far as the quarterbacks in the draft,'' Brennan said. "Everybody's kind of waiting to see, 'Is he a good kid? Is he a good football player?'''