Here’s some news from preseason camp…

QB Morgan Roberts says the offense has a lot to work on.

“We have a ton of potential,” he said. “Grant Wallace, Will Chism, Tyler Varga, Deon Randall and everyone we lost, thing that made them great is that they focused on the details. All those little details added up and we became a really good offense. That’s just something we’re trying to preach right now. We need to focus on the details and we’ll be fine.”

Tony Reno said the issue right now is timing on offense. The effort is there, it’s just a matter of timing and technique. A banged up OL doesn’t help. But there are a lot of new faces on offense, so perhaps it’s just a matter of getting on the same page.  

As for the defense, Roberts was impressed.

“They’re working really hard,” he said. “There are new coverages and a lot of different things, which is hard for me to keep up with and identifying coverages. It’s pretty impressive.”

Reno said they are playing fast and getting to the football. For what it’s worth, the defense leads the offense 5-4 in team competition.

NC State transfer Bo Hines is showing glimpses of his big-play capability. He scored an 80-yd TD on a flat route in practice on Sunday. He’s still learning the offense, but his speed and playmaking ability has been impressive.

Freshman QB Tre Moore has quickly shown why he was such a highly touted recruit. Reno has been impressed with his intangibles, leadership skills and demeanor in the pocket.

“He’s done a great job,” Roberts said. “What’s impressed me most, even when he doesn’t know a play he makes a play out of it.”

Reno wouldn’t say who’s the No. 2 QB right now, but Moore was certainly getting a lot of reps behind Roberts and may have pulled ahead of Rafe Chapple.

Some other players that have stood out early on: OL Jon Bezney, WR Chris Williams-Lopez, OL Jake Rushin (moved from DT), Robert Clemons’ leadership, DT Nick Crowle, LB Andrew Larkin, DE Victor Egu and LB Duncan Morfitt (missed last season). Reno also added the secondary has made real strides as a unit.

Lastly, Spencer McManes will no longer play football because of a back injury. McManes, a junior, had moved from QB to LB. He will still help out with the team.

Here's a look at players, who have said they are committed to Yale if they are admitted through the admissions process. An * means a new addition from the previous update.

Alex Abelite, LB, 6-2, 222, West Roxbury, Massachusetts: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

*Tosan Agbeyegbe, DB, 6-1, 199, St. Catharines, Ontario: Also had an offer from Dartmouth. VIDEO

Jaelin Alburg, DB, 5-11, 164, Washington D.C.: Two-star recruit who also had an offer from Toledo. VIDEO

Charles Callender, DE, 6-2, 220, Beaverton, Oregon: Three-star recruit who had offers from Wisconsin, Clemson, Virginia and others. VIDEO

Steve Cepalia, OL, 6-4, 270, Ramsey, New Jersey: Stanford, Northwestern and Army among others showed interest. VIDEO

Abu Daramy, WR, 5-10, 167, Westerville, Ohio: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Dieter Eiselen, DL/OL, 6-4, 305, Wallingford: Playing at Choate. VIDEO

Julian Fraser, DL, 6-2, 250, Valdosta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Andrew Grinde, RB, 5-10, 207, Great Falls, Montana: Montana’s Gatorade POY last season. Received interest from other Ivy schools, along with Pac-12 and MWC programs. VIDEO

Michael Gordon, DB, 6-2, 170, Marietta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Michael Johnson, OL/DL, 6-4, 315, Lombard, Illinois: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Josh Keeler, DL, 6-2, 296,Orlando, Florida: Chose Bulldogs over Central Florida and Vanderbilt. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Brendan MacPhee, DB, 6-1, 195, Latham, New York: Should give the Bulldogs some depth in the secondary. VIDEO

Matt McCabe, DE, 6-4, 230, Palatine, Illinois: Had offers from other Ivy schools, along with Southern Illinois and Toledo. VIDEO

Alex Motley, OL, 6-6, 280, Morristown, New Jersey: Penn, Harvard and Fordham also showed interest. VIDEO

Kurt Rawlings, QB, 6-3, 197, Bel Air, Maryland: Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Sterling Strother, OL, 6-5, 270, Moraga, California: Had offers from Pac-12, SEC and Big 12 schools. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Garrett White, WR, 6-3, 200, Huntington Beach, California: Had offers from several Ivy schools. VIDEO

Alex Young, WR/DB, 5-11, 185, Irvine, California: Harvard was also showing interest. VIDEO

Tyler Varga rushed for 16 yards on six carries and scored on a 1-yard run in the fourth quarter of the Colts preseason game against the Rams over the weekend.

The Colts close out the preseason against the Bengals on Thursday.

Here's a video of Varga's TD run (courtesy of Yale's Jackson Stallings Twitter account).

My brother @TyVarga just scored his first NFL TD!! #RollDawgs pic.twitter.com/Y7w2if6EtU

— Jackson Stallings (@Jstall5) August 30, 2015

Both ESPN and Bleacher Report project Varga not to make the final 53-man roster.

As for Yale, I was covering the Connecticut Open tennis tournament in New Haven this past week. I will focus on Yale football this week.

Any questions you would like answered, please comment below. Thank you.

Yale took the field for the first time on Saturday. Here's a story from the first day.

Here's some more quick tidbits...

-- The team, overall, just looks bigger and stronger. Take Spencer Rymiszewski for example. He played well at CB on Saturday and must have packed on 10-15 lbs.

"Guys worked," Tony Reno said. "They're noticeably bigger."

-- Copache Tyler missed practice for undisclosed reasons on Saturday, but is expected to return. Beau Iverson (illness) will miss some time.

-- An intrasquad scrimmage is scheduled for Saturday and Yale will scrimmage at Brown on Sept. 5.

-- QB Rafe Chapple appears to have the backup QB job right now.

-- I caught up with Bo Hines, who was excited to be back on the field. He was impressed with the level of play, he said. He also spoke highly of DBs Cole Champion and Foye Oluokun. 

Said Oluokun about Hines: "He's getting it. As he gets up to speed, you can see the tools he has."

Oluokun also mentioned WR Chris Williams-Lopez as a player that stood out on Saturday. 

-- Some highlights...

Robert Clemons made the catch of the day, a diving grab down the right sideline...Chapple connected with Hines for a TD...Matt Oplinger broke up a pass...Will Bryan had an INT on a tipped pass...Conor Furey showed his athleticism making a nice catch in the air...Hayden Carlson and James Nicholas also had INTs...Duncan Morfitt looked solid.

Good read from DNAinfo.com on incoming Yale freshman Marquise Peggs. He's made it out of the South Side of Chicago and he's ready to begin his journey at Yale. Peggs, who is related to Walter Payton, will play DB for the Bulldogs and may also compete in track.

Tyler Varga made his NFL debut, rushing for 16 yards on three carries in the Indianapolis Colts first preseason game. Varga had a 10-yard run in the fourth. He also played on three special teams units. Varga is one of six RBs competing for three spots. According to ESPN's NFL Nation's AFC South blog, Varga is not projected to make the team's 53-man roster.

Jalen Williams, a 6-foot, 220-pound LB from Alabama, told TodaysU.com he will visit Yale next month.

Williams said he has offers from Yale, Navy, Army, Davidson, UC Martin and Columbia. He had 123 tackles, four sacks and three forced fumbles last season.

Rank	School	Points
1.	Harvard (11)	130
2.	Dartmouth (4)	116
3.	Yale (1)	98
4.	Princeton	82
5.	Brown (1)	80
6.	Penn	51
7.	Columbia	29
8.	Cornell	26

Here are some notes from Tuesday's media teleconference with the Ivy League coaches. Here is a link to the entire teleconference. 

And below are some additional quotes from Tony Reno...

Reno on Yale's defense: "Defensively, the strength is the group of guys that played as freshman two years ago and started a lot of games and played a lot of football for us. They have played well at times. Good, not great. Challenge for us is can we become a great defense. You look at Harvard last year. That was one heck of a defense. That’s what it takes to win championships in our league. We have a lot of work to do to get there. Goal is to develop our defense to be that level of defense."

He also spoke highly of the OL returners in Khalid Cannon, Luke Longinotti, Mason Friedline and Jon Bezney. He added, this is the first year during his tenure that Yale has returned its starting QB.

Reno on key losses: "We have to replace a lot of production. Tyler Varga is with the Colts, our all-time leading WR Deon Randall, our captain last year, is gone along with Grant Wallace who was an All-American last year. We have guys in our program that can do job, but just haven’t had chance to do it yet." 

Reno on running game: "Candler Rich is a guy that played well for us last two years. He replaced Tyler two years ago when he went down with an injury. He played well for us last year as well. Like Tyler did last year, he needs to earn carries. He’s done a great job so far and we expect a lot out of him."

Reno on an increased passing attack: "Not any more than we did last year. I think we have a good group of backs and our offense we want to run our football. It’s no secret."

Reno on Bo Hines: "He’s been here all summer training. He’ll start class with the rest of the guys. He had a very good year at NC State. I really like his makeup as a person. I love his intangibles on the field. He’s a talented athlete and we have a talented group of WRs."

Reno on Morgan Roberts: "Difference between last year at this time and this year is Morgan hadn’t been a full-time starter. Morgan played a little when Hank Furman was injured. Had a body of work last year that was good. What’s really impressed me the most over the last five months is his leadership, his intangibles, and ability to get teammates to do things and get them to a level we need them to be. He’s been here all summer. He’s led by example and his work ethic, which is tireless. Those are the things I’m most impressed with." 

Here's a look at players, who have said they are committed to Yale if they are admitted through the admissions process. An * means a new addition from the previous update.

Alex Abelite, LB, 6-2, 222, West Roxbury, Massachusetts: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Jaelin Alburg, DB, 5-11, 164, Washington D.C.: Two-star recruit who also had an offer from Toledo. VIDEO

Charles Callender, DE, 6-2, 220, Beaverton, Oregon: Three-star recruit who had offers from Wisconsin, Clemson, Virginia and others. VIDEO

Steve Cepalia, OL, 6-4, 270, Ramsey, New Jersey: Stanford, Northwestern and Army among others showed interest. VIDEO

Abu Daramy, WR, 5-10, 167, Westerville, Ohio: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Dieter Eiselen, DL/OL, 6-4, 305, Wallingford: Playing at Choate. VIDEO

Julian Fraser, DL, 6-2, 250, Valdosta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Andrew Grinde, RB, 5-10, 207, Great Falls, Montana: Montana’s Gatorade POY last season. Received interest from other Ivy schools, along with Pac-12 and MWC programs. VIDEO

Michael Gordon, DB, 6-2, 170, Marietta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Michael Johnson, OL/DL, 6-4, 315, Lombard, Illinois: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Josh Keeler, DL, 6-2, 296, Orlando Florida: Chose Bulldogs over Central Florida and Vanderbilt. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Brendan MacPhee, DB, 6-1, 195, Latham, New York: Should give the Bulldogs some depth in the secondary. VIDEO

*Matt McCabe, DE, 6-4, 230, Palatine, Illinois: Had offers from other Ivy schools, along with Southern Illinois and Toledo. VIDEO

Alex Motley, OL, 6-6, 280, Morristown, New Jersey: Penn, Harvard and Fordham also showed interest. VIDEO

Kurt Rawlings, QB, 6-3, 197, Bel Air, Maryland: Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Sterling Strother, OL, 6-5, 270, Moraga, California: Had offers from Pac-12, SEC and Big 12 schools. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Garrett White, WR, 6-3, 200, Huntington Beach, California: Had offers from several Ivy schools. VIDEO

Alex Young, WR/DB, 5-11, 185, Irvine, California: Harvard was also showing interest. VIDEO

Here's a look at players, who have said they are committed to Yale if they are admitted through the admissions process. An * means a new addition from the previous update.

Alex Abelite, LB, 6-2, 222, West Roxbury, Massachusetts: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Jaelin Alburg, DB, 5-11, 164, Washington D.C.: Two-star recruit who also had an offer from Toledo. VIDEO

Charles Callender, DE, 6-2, 220, Beaverton, Oregon: Three-star recruit who had offers from Wisconsin, Clemson, Virginia and others. VIDEO

Steve Cepalia, OL, 6-4, 270, Ramsey, New Jersey: Stanford, Northwestern and Army among others showed interest. VIDEO

Abu Daramy, WR, 5-10, 167, Westerville, Ohio: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Dieter Eiselen, DL/OL, 6-4, 305, Wallingford: Playing at Choate. VIDEO

Julian Fraser, DL, 6-2, 250, Valdosta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

*Andrew Grinde, RB, 5-10, 207, Great Falls, Montana: Montana’s Gatorade POY last season. 

Received interest from other Ivy schools, along with Pac-12 and MWC programs. VIDEO

Michael Gordon, DB, 6-2, 170, Marietta, Georgia: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Michael Johnson, OL/DL, 6-4, 315, Lombard, Illinois: Doing postgrad year at Choate. VIDEO

Josh Keeler, DL, 6-2, 296,Beaverton, Oregon: Chose Bulldogs over Central Florida and Vanderbilt. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Brendan MacPhee, DB, 6-1, 195, Latham, New York: Should give the Bulldogs some depth in the secondary. VIDEO

Alex Motley, OL, 6-6, 280, Morristown, New Jersey: Penn, Harvard and Fordham also showed interest. VIDEO

Kurt Rawlings, QB, 6-3, 197, Bel Air, Maryland: Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Sterling Strother, OL, 6-5, 270, Moraga, California: Had offers from Pac-12, SEC and Big 12 schools. Rivals ranks him as a three-star recruit. VIDEO

Garrett White, WR, 6-3, 200, Huntington Beach, California: Had offers from several Ivy schools. VIDEO

Alex Young, WR/DB, 5-11, 185, Irvine, California: Harvard was also showing interest. VIDEO

NEW HAVEN >> The Yale football team has made strides, improving in each of the three seasons under head coach Tony Reno.

The Bulldogs went 8-2 last year, flirting with their first Ivy League title since 2006. If they keep the upward trend going, an Ivy League title would be the natural next step.

On paper, this group could be as good as last season’s.

“We have the talent to fill in the production, but it just hasn’t been proven,” Reno said. “That’s the question. These guys that we think are good need to step up and do it.”

Reno also talked about Yale aiming to schedule an FBS school, specifically one of the service academies (Air Force, Army or Navy), in the near future. Tyler Varga rushed for five TDs last year in a 49-43 upset victory over Army. 

Former Yale captain Mike Pyle died on Wednesday. He was 76. Pyle, who was a center, played on the 1960 Bulldogs team that went 9-0 and he was eventually drafted by the Chicago Bears.

Here's what Register columnist Chip Malafronte wrote about Pyle in this week's "Sunday Gravy."

"It was a sad end for one of Yale football’s all-time greats. Mike Pyle, 76, died Wednesday at an Illinois facility for brain-damaged patients after a decade-long battle with dementia.

He is one of many former NFL players suing the league for neglecting dangers of head trauma, a potential $1 billion settlement being heard in federal court.

Pyle twice served as Yale captain, including the legendary 1960 squad, the Bulldogs first undefeated, untied team since 1923 and the only one in 92 seasons since. As a third-year pro with the Chicago Bears, he was elected team captain with his roommate, Mike Ditka, an honor he later held with Dick Butkus until Pyle’s tenure with the team ended in 1969.

Pyle recalled his nomination scene in the Bears locker room to Rich Marazzi for the 2014 book “A Bowl Full of Memories.”

“Big Doug Atkins stood up and said, ‘Mike Pyle will be the captain. He’s from Yale,’” Pyle said. “You had to hear him emphasize the word ‘Yale.’”

In nine seasons with the Bears, Pyle missed only five games. Upon retirement in 1969, he remained close to the team, working in broadcasting and co-hosting a show with Ditka. His condition, which family believes is chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative disease of the brain, forced him into an assisted living facility in 2013."

Hines feature

Here's a story from the News&Observer about incoming WR Bo Hines, who has transferred in from North Carolina State. Hines talks about his political aspirations.

Yale showing interest in Weir

The Bulldogs have expressed interest in 6-3, 229-pound DL Vondero Weir from Louisiana, according to Nola.com.

Weir told Nola.com, "I feel honored that an Ivy League school is giving me the opportunity to get the best education possible and play football. Two of my dreams came true when Coach (Tony) Reno gave me the offer."

CSM preseason All-Ivy picks

A total of 14 Yale players have been selected to College Sports Madness preseason All-Ivy team.

First team selections include: C Luke Longinotti and DB Foye Oluokun.

Second team: QB Morgan Roberts, OL Khalid Cannon, WR Bo Hines, DT Copache Tyler and DB Cole Champion.

Third team: DE Earl Chism, TE Leo Haenni, PR Jamal Locke, WR, Robert Clemons, RB Candler Rich, DB Dale Harris and OL Mason Friedline.

Here's a look at the complete team.