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Singletary Praises Snyder’s Play

Head coach Mike Singletary just concluded a conference call with the Bay Area beat writers. He was asked what stood out to him from Friday night’s 17-16 victory over the Denver Broncos and he immediately said the play of Adam Snyder caught his attention.

“The thing that has jumped out at me so far is Adam Snyder,” Singletary said. “I think he did a nice job. I think he did everything we asked him to do.”

Singletary said that Snyder hasn’t won the starting right tackle job just yet, but he’s excited about what he saw in Snyder. Singletary also said that free agent acquisition Marvel Smith is getting better and growing his strength and confidence in his back.

Other notes from Singletary’s conference call included:

-Running back Thomas Clayton will have an MRI later today on the knee injury he suffered in the second half.

-The team will wait on more information on the injury to fullback Zak Keasey’s forearm before looking for a possible replacement in free agency. “We’re in discussions, it depends on how things work out,” Singletary said

-Singletary thought both Shaun Hill and Alex Smith “did a decent job.” He said there wasn’t any separation between the two. “I think we’re going to evalutate the film and go from there.”

-Glen Coffee was a player that Singletary was pleased with. “Very excited about what I saw out of him. Tough runner, I thought he did a decent job in his pass protection. Glen is going  to be a great addition to our football team.”

-Singletary said there wasn’t any separation in the starting wide receiver competition either.

-The 49ers play-calling was approved by Singletary. “I thought Jimmy (Raye) did a nice job. He kept a good rhythm. The play selection was good. For the first preseason game, the offense executed fairly well. I really thought Jimmy did a nice job in mixing it up a bit, I thought he was good overall.”

-Singletary also said he would have to watch more film to evaluate backup players and the team’s pass rush.

Shaun Hill Named Starter for Friday Night

Head coach Mike Singletary announced that Shaun Hill will be his starting quarterback this Friday night when the 49ers host the Denver Broncos at Candlestick Park.

“Shaun Hill will start the game,” Singletary said on Thursday after the team held a “mock game” practice. “I do not know who will start next week.  Really it could have been Shaun Hill or Alex Smith.  We chose Shaun Hill.  Don’t read anything into it.”

Hill didn’t hear the news until he walked off the practice field, but no matter the timing of the announcement, he was pleased with the outcome.

“I’m just excited to get out there and play again,” Hill said. “I agree there’s no reason to read into this in any way, but obviously, my goal is to start every regular season game and go from there. I’m just excited for the opportunity.”

Other news from Singletary’s press conference included Frank Gore and Isaac Bruce’s playing time on Friday. Both players will not play against Denver. Rookie Glen Coffee will get the nod in the backfield, but Singletary said a replacement for Bruce has yet to be determined.

Singletary also said Hill’s playing time also hasn’t been finalized.

“Right now we’re just going to get into the flow of the game,” Singletary said. “I think the flow will dictate more or less, how much they (quarterbacks) will get to play.”

Although Hill’s getting the first crack with the first-team offense, Singletary said he’s more concerned with the end of the quarterback competition than the day-to-day details.

“I don’t care about today,” he said. “What I care about is at the end of it.  One can go a little bit ahead and a little bit behind.  In all fairness to them, that’s the only thing that I want to comment on is when we know what it is.  But in terms of who it is, who’s ahead, who’s not, it really doesn’t matter right now for us.” 

Fifth-round draft pick Nate Davis isn’t guaranteed playing time, but Singletary said he’d like to get the Ball State product into the game at some point.

Now that the first preseason game is one day away, the entire 49ers locker room is itching to compete against a different colored jersey.

“Everybody is very excited,” Hill said. “When you’ve been facing each other and going as hard as we’ve been at each other for a couple of weeks, you’re very excited to see a different uniform across from you. There’s a lot of excitement and optimism in that locker room heading into this season, without a doubt.” 

Singletary canceled the team’s afternoon practice to let the players rest up for Friday.

You can purchase tickets for Friday’s game by clicking here!

It’s Game Week

The 49ers have officially begun preparation for the first preseason game of the 2009 season against the Denver Broncos on Friday night at Candlestick Park.  While the team will focus more on what they need to accomplish rather than matching up against the opposition, there is still a good amount of game planning taking place in the film room.

“Where not going to overdo it, because all of these games are in preparation for the game at the beginning of the season,” head coach Mike Singletary said, following the team’s morning practice.  “It’s just making sure you don’t focus on the minor [things] and lose the big picture.  We certainly want to go out and do the things that we need to do. All of the fundamentals we’ve worked on here can carry over into the game.  And, we’ll get what we want out of that game.”

Singletary said he has not yet made a decision on who will start at quarterback against Denver, but no matter who takes the first snap, the coaching staff will keep a close eye on both Shaun Hill and Alex Smith, with hopes of naming a starter sometime in the coming weeks.

“Hopefully, as we’ve said before, by the third preseason game, we’ll have a pretty decent idea,” Singletary said of who will start the regular season opener.  “There is no guarantee that we will name someone then.  But, hopefully at that time, we will.  I think the preseason games; they play a big role.  We’re going against somebody totally different, and we have to see how they respond, how the team responds to them, how they respond to the pass rush, all of those little things.”

One person who will not be receiving much playing time is running back Frank Gore.  Singletary hopes to keep him fresh heading into the season and give increased reps to some of the younger running backs.

“I would think that [Glen] Coffee is certainly going to have some time,” Singletary said.  “Before game time, we will know; we’ll play it by ear.  All I know right now as far as the running backs are concerned is that Frank will not be going a whole lot.”

The matchup with the Broncos will also bring a familiar face to Candlestick as former 49ers head coach Mike Nolan returns as Denver’s defensive coordinator.  Singletary still maintains a close relationship with Nolan, who he learned a great deal from during their time with the 49ers as well as with the Baltimore Ravens.

“The most important thing that I learned from Coach Nolan is the work ethic,” Singletary said.  “I saw Mike come in and roll up his sleeves and go to work, trying to bring a structure to this organization and trying to bring about a mental toughness and trying to bring about character and all of those things.  Mike will always be a great friend.”

Morning Practice Notes:

The 49ers completed the longest pass so far of training camp so far, as Alex Smith found Arnaz Battle deep down the right sideline.  The play began from the offense’s own 30-yard line and Smith’s pass hit Battle in stride around the opposite 30-yard line.  Battle raced in for the long score.

Fellow receivers Josh Morgan and Dominique Zeigler also made spectacular catches during one-on-one drills.  Overall, the receiving corps has continued to impress during camp.

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