Blue Hens, Dukes, Monarchs and Tigers Close Spring Seasons
Delaware, James Madison, Old Dominion and Towson all wrapped up spring season this weekend. Below are recaps of end-of-the-spring action from around the league.
NEWARK, Del. (April 20, 2012) -- The defense dominated the annual University of Delaware Blue-White Football Spring Game Friday night at Delaware Stadium with the unit recording seven sacks and intercepting four passes as the Blue Hens closed out their annual spring drills.
Using a modified scoring system that rewards the offense for touchdowns and first downs and the defense for turnovers and three-and-outs, the White (defense) posted a 72-55 victory over the Blue (offense).
Senior defensive end Quincy Barr, senior linebacker Mike Hirt, and junior cornerback Travis Hawkins did most of the damage for the defense, which held the Blue team to just 331 yards total while forcing six turnovers.
"I think tonight we saw a defense that came out and played with a lot of passion, which was great to see," said Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler, whose squad went 7-4 last fall and barely missed out on a second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. "They were outmanned in terms of numbers with us not playing our top five linebackers and with a few players in the secondary down. We are pretty thin. But for these guys to come out and battle like they did, it was pretty impressive."
"Offensively, we were disappointed with what we showed tonight," said Keeler. "We didn't play with any sense of urgency and it was a wake-up call for our guys. Even though they are the more talented group, if you don't come out and play with some urgency, you are going to get handled. Overall we saw some good things this spring with both the offense and defense, but we have a long way to go."
Barr collected seven tackles, including four sacks, and recovered a fumble he forced while Hirt registered a game-high eight tackles, including one sack, and recovered a fumbles. Hawkins had three tackles and intercepted two passes while senior safety Tim Breaker added four tackles, an interception, and a forced fumbles.
Offensively, three different Blue Hen quarterbacks split time with first-year Bowling Green transfer Trent Hurley completing 7 of 16 passes for 53 yards and two interceptions. Senior Tim Donnelly, who started all but two games during the 2011 campaign, hit on 5 of 9 passes for 46 yards while sophomore Justin Burns hit on 5 of 9 passes for 95 yards, including a 64-yard touchdown pass to redshirt freshman tight end Matt Rodriguez on just the fourth series of the scrimmage.
The rushing game was led by senior Leon Jackson, who picked up 51 yards on five carries and scored on a one-yard touchdown run while also intercepting a pass. David Hayes ran 8 times for 48 yards while Julian Laing picked up 39 yards on five carries and scored on a one-yard touchdown leap.
Among the players who did not see action due to injuries were All-Colonial Athletic Association standouts in wide receiver Nihja White and middle linebacker Paul Worrilow. Two-time All-American running back Andrew Pierce was in uniform but did not action.
The Blue Hens went through nearly 80 plays from scrimmage during the evening and also worked on punt protection, kickoff coverage, and field goals during the 90-minute event, which was played under clear skies.
The estimated crowd of 2,000 included nearly 200 former UD football players and coaches who took part in a golf tournament earlier in the day and met with the players in position groups prior to the start of the scrimmage.
For more on the Delaware Blue Hens' spring scrimmage logon to bluehens.com.
HARRISONBURG, Va. (April 21, 2012) - The James Madison football squad wrapped up its 2012 spring drills with a controlled scrimmage at Bridgeforth Stadium, April 21. In a modified scoring format, the offense came out with a 26-21 victory on the strength of a late touchdown and field goal before the rains hit Harrisonburg.
The only touchdown of the day was on the final carry of the day, as redshirt-freshman Deane Cheatham carried it in over the left side from four yards out. Redshirt-junior Cameron Starke hit the extra point and then hit a 49-yard field goal from the right hash for the final scoring margin.
With several starters sitting out the final scrimmage for various reasons, the defense limited the offense to just 167 yards on 55 plays in the final session. The quarterbacks combined to go 8-for-18 for 51 yards, while the offense rushed for 116 yards on 37 carries. The offense was 3-for-14 on third down conversions but converted both fourth-down opportunities.
Redshirt-senior Hykeem Brodie had a team-high 61 yards on 10 carries, while redshirt-sophomore Dejor Simmons had nine rushes for 41 yards. Redshirt-senior Justin Thorpe was 4-for-8 for 26 yards through the air, while eight different receivers had receptions in the scrimmage.Redshirt-senior David Skahn had six punts for a 44.0-yard average with a long of 54. The big hit on the day defensively came from Eric Magruder, who popped quarterback Michael Lopresti on an eight-yard run.
JMU opens the 2012 season at Bridgeforth Stadium, hosting St. Francis (Pa.) on Saturday, Sept. 1. Season and single-game tickets are currently available via JMUSports.com and by calling the JMU Athletic Ticket Office at 540-568-3853.
For more on the James Madison Dukes' end-of-the-spring scrimmage logon to jmusports.com.
NORFOLK, Va. (April 21, 2012) -- Nate Ong (Escondido, Calif.) found one of his favorite targets, Larry Pinkard (Washington, D.C.), to help the White Team, comprised of the No. 1 defense and No. 2 offense, to a 23-20 victory over the Blue Team of the No. 1 offense and No. 2 defense at Saturday's spring football game.
Ong passed for 210 yards and two touchdowns completing 17 of his 24 passes for the White Team, while Taylor Heinicke (Atlanta, Ga.) threw for 247 yards and a touchdown for Blue Team, completing 17 of his 32 throws.
Pinkard, ended the day with 121 yards receiving on seven catches for the White Team, while on the ground Colby Goodwyn collected 63 yards on 11 carries. For the Blue Team, Blair Roberts (Rochester, N.Y.) led the receivers with 82 yards on six receptions.
Defensively, Rodney Hunter (Miami, Fla.) of the White Team posted a game-high seven tackles (3 solo, 4 assisted), with Fred Credle (Chesapeake, Va.) and Xavier Duckett (Roanoke, Va.) making six tops for the Blue Team.
Paul Morant (Hampton, Va.) ran an interception back 53 yards for a touchdown to give his Blue Team squad a 10-0 lead at the close of first quarter action.
Scoring in the game started on the first drive of the afternoon as kicker Jarod Brown (Yorktown, Va.) connected on a 24-yard field goal for the Blue Team. Brown, who led the Monarchs in scoring in 2011 with 101 points, went 2-of-3 on his field goal attempts, including a 46-yard attempt that would give the Blue Team a 20-17 lead with under 30 seconds remaining in the game.
While Morant's touchdown interception gave the Blue Team a 10-0 lead after one quarter of play, the White Team lit up the scoreboard on their opening drive of the second quarter. Ong had a 33-yard pass to Jakwail Bailey (Haddonfield, N.J.) to get the White Team into the red zone and was followed by Aaron Evans (Newport News, Va.) running 12 yards into the end zone. Evans, who switched from defense to offense this spring, went on to carry the ball seven times for 25 yards.
After the Blue Team missed a 37-yard field goal, the White Team added another score on its next possession. Facing second and 18 at its own 42, Ong began to flip the field with a 21-yard pass and then a 33-yard pass to Pinkard getting his squad to within four yards of the goal line. Two players later, Marquel Thomas (Va. Beach, Va.), who registered the very first Monarch touchdown back in the inaugural 2009 campaign, caught a five-yard pass from Ong to give the White Team a 14-10 edge in the closing moments of the quarter.
The Blue Team had a chance to cut their deficit to one at the half, but a 45-yard field goal attempt went wide right.
The White Team tacked onto the lead in the opening drive of the third quarter with Dustin Burdick (Staunton, Va.) putting a 40-yard field goal attempt through the uprights.
Moments later the White Team had the ball back with co-captain Chris Burnette (Balitmore, Md.) on a fumble recovery.
Unable to convert, the Blue Team had possession for much of the final three minutes of the third stanza. Working their way downfield from their own seven, the Blue shirts made five first downs including a 23-yard pass to Tyree Lee (Hampton, Va.), 12- and 15-yard runs by Heinicke, an 11-yard reception by Chris Lovitt (Stafford, Va.), and a 23-yard pass to Roberts, who was stopped just short of the TD. Three plays later, Roberts caught the pass that tied the game at 17-17.
The White Team missed a 43-yard attempt to take back the late in the opening stages of the fourth and final quarter and the next two drives by each team resulting in no scoring.
With just :24 seconds remaining in the game, Brown's 46-yard field goal gave the Blue Team a 20-17 edge.
In the final drive of the game, starting at the Blue Team's 40, Ong hit Goodwyn for a 20-yard catch followed by a 17-yard pass to Pinkard. As time expired, Ong found Pinkard on a corner route for the 23-20 victory.
Old Dominion Spring Game Stats | Old Dominion Spring Game Photo Gallery
For more on the Old Dominion Monarchs' spring scrimmage logon to odusports.com.
TOWSON, Md. (April 21, 2012) - In front of 1,564 sun-drenched fans at Johnny Unitas® Stadium on Saturday afternoon, the Tiger football team held its annual Tiger Bowl II game on Saturday.
The Black team defeated the White team, 21-7.
"Our transfer students and our young players got a lot of kids experience in game situations," Towson Coach Rob Ambrose commented. "It got the transfer students acclimated to what it means to be Tigers and what it's like to be play in Unitas Stadium."
Senior running back Dominique Booker scored two touchdowns as a member of the Black team and impressed Ambrose, who coached the "Turnaround Tigers" to an amazing 9-3 record last season after winning a combined three games over the previous two seasons.
"Dominique is one of the first players in a long time who has the aspect of player-coach," Ambrose said. "He knows the offense so well his teammates his teammates that he is able to bring a level of confidence to the other members of the team."
Sophomore running back Terrance West added a seven-yard touchdown run for the Black team. West, who ran for 1,294 yards and scored an FCS-leading 29 touchdowns as a freshman, opened Saturday's scoring with his burst of power with 1:33 remaining in the first quarter. West had nine carries for 28 yards in the game, while Booker ran seven times for 45 yards.
The White team scored a touchdown with 13:48 remaining in the third quarter when red shirt freshman quarterback Price Litton connected with tight end Daniel Vaughan for a two-yard touchdown pass, bringing the White team to within 14-7. It was one of four passes Litton completed in the game.
Two other red shirt freshmen had solid games for the Tigers. Quarterback Connor Frazier, a product of Damascus High School, completed 14-of-25 passes for 167 yards for the Black team and wide receiver Navassa Brown had a game-high 141 yards rushing for the White team. Brown scored on an electrifying 67-yard run down the right sideline to open the third quarter before getting tackled out of bounds by junior cornerback Corey Ford.
"Navassa earned his stripes today," Ambrose said. "He's got the respect of his team. He did a great job, even though he played out of position a little."
Senior wide receiver Tom Ryan added five catches for 67 yards, while sophomore wide receiver Derrick Joseph and tight end James Oboh each had three receptions for the Black team.
Defensively, a number of new additions made significant impacts. Sophomore defensive back Jordan Love posted a game-high six tackles for the White team and fellow transfer Brendan Gannon, a defensive tackle, added three tackles.
"Red-shirt" defensive end Stefan Janik had four tackles, including two tackles for loss, and a sack in the Black team victory.
"It was great to watch our young quarterbacks develop during the Spring," said Ambrose. "They made a lot of progress. They still have a long way to go but they are getting better.
"We could have had a better Spring and our players know that," Ambrose added. "But, we didn't have to have this team ready to play now. We have to be ready to play in the Fall and we will be."
The defending CAA champions open their 2012 season at Kent State on Aug. 30.
For more on the Towson Tigers' Tiger Bowl II weekend logon to towsontigers.com.