By Chadd Cripe
ccripe@idahostatesman.com

Boise State senior safety Jason Robinson has been suspended from the team indefinitely for an undisclosed violation of team rules, the school announced Monday.

The Broncos open spring practice Monday. Robinson will not be practicing.

Robinson has been a key special-teamer for the Broncos and a role player on defense. He made a big play on defense against San Jose State last year and helped coaches tweak the fake punt that worked against TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.

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Some quick notes from the first day of practice:

-- The first-team offensive linemen for Monday had a combined total of one career start at the position they were playing. The alignment was Brenel Myers at right tackle (started the Fiesta Bowl there), Will Lawrence at right guard (started at left guard last year), Bronson Durrant at center (returning starter Thomas Byrd is injured), Nate Potter at left guard (he was an All-WAC left tackle last year) and Faraji Wright at left tackle. Coaches talked last season about the possibility of moving Potter to guard because the team has strong depth at tackle, but there will probably be many experiments with the front five between now and Labor Day.

-- Senior wide receiver Titus Young has taken over the No. 1 jersey. Kyle Wilson wore it last year. Young was No. 4.

-- Junior offensive lineman Garett Pendergast has a new — sort of — spelling of his name. His name had been misspelled "Garrett" by Boise State since he arrived. The correct spelling surfaced this offseason.

-- Three walk-ons have joined the roster — wide receiver Derek Hill of Carson, Calif.; defensive lineman David Cushing of Vallivue High; and kicker/punter Nick Vlad of Australia.

-- Raphiel Lambert, who missed last season with a knee injury, has moved from cornerback to tailback. He was a star running back in high school.

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The offensive priorities for the Broncos this spring are improving their red-zone and third-down efficiency. That also was the focus of the coaches' professional development meetings during the offseason.

Boise State scored touchdowns on 62.8 percent of its red-zone possessions after a terrible start last year, ranking fifth in the WAC. The Broncos converted 37.9 percent of their third downs, ranking sixth.

Of particular concern are third-and-7-type situations, which happened frequently in the red zone.

"We're in that situation, so we're going to practice that," offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin said, "... and get better at being in a tight area and being able to make some plays in that area."

The defensive priorities include limiting big plays (better tackling, better attention to detail), which were a problem for the Broncos last year, and continuing to force turnovers at an elite rate.

"If you look at the teams that got a lot of yards against us, it was big plays," new defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski said.

Said defensive end Ryan Winterswyk: "Especially with our offense, which likes the big play, it will be fun to try to slow that down."

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The Broncos always start from scratch in spring ball and fall camp for two major reasons — to emphasize the fundamentals and to make sure the young players don't get left behind.

With 22 returning starters this year, though, coaches may tweak that plan a bit. The freshmen may learn the base version of a play while the veterans add a wrinkle to it, Harsin said.

But that's about as far as it will go.

"You can't just skip ahead," Harsin said. "All these guys who haven't done it (would) be behind and not be able to go through the process of how to install the offense."

The veterans benefit from that approach, too, Winterswyk said.

"When you're teaching the younger guys, you almost remind yourself of the importance of the little, simple things that seem so hard when you're young," he said.

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The Broncos held player-run practices twice a week in February to prepare for spring ball.