Hoos Conclude Spring Practice

Prior to Saturday’s Spring Game, the fans were treated to a variety of activities, including an NFL skills challenge and a football game played by the local fire department. Once the team took the field, however, it was down to business.

Prior to the beginning of the game, the most improved players and the team captains were named. Mikell Simpson, Clint Sintim and Jeffrey Fitzgerald each received the Rock Weir Award as the most improved players, and Christian Olsen, Deyon Williams, Chris Long, and Marcus Hamilton were all named team captain.

Christian Olsen played a pretty good game as first string quarterback. His accuracy was not as good as it has been during practice, but he clearly possessed control of the offense which makes him the obvious starter at the moment. On several occasions, he displayed surprising quickness that he did not show during his rare outings last year.

The second and third string quarterbacks, Kevin McCabe and Jameel Sewell both played on the Orange Team. McCabe started off with several poorly thrown incompletions, and afterwards appeared to favor the right side of the field while throwing the ball. McCabe’s accuracy improved throughout the game, but the majority of his throws were short screens to the backs or wide receivers. Sewell looked like the better of the two, with good accuracy and excellent mobility. Sewell clearly got more time behind center during the game, and seemed a lot more natural in a game situation than he has during practices.

Once during practice, he threaded the needle and threw a strike to Andrew Pearman down the middle, only to have the ball bounce incomplete off Pearman’s pads. On two consecutive plays, Sewell scrambled from the pocket for sizable gains of over ten yards each. On his second run, Sewell jumped into the air and knocked a defender backwards. He possesses an athleticism that is definitely exciting to watch.

Overall, the run game for each team was steady but no back did anything special to solidify himself as the starter. Snelling showed surprising quickness getting to the outside and managed to score the Blue Team’s only touchdown. Cedric Peerman looked good running the ball for the Orange Team, but struggled at times catching it. He scored the Orange Team’s only touchdown on a goal line run. Mikell Simpson also saw time running the ball for the Orange and looked fast, but he does not have the strength to push the pile.

Deyon Williams and Fontel Mines both played for the Blue Team, but neither was thrown too much. Deyon was covered by Vic Hall while Fontel was covered by Hamilton. Both corners played well during the game.

Maurice Covington, Kevin Ogletree and Andrew Pearman all played for the Orange Team. Ogletree showed that he has good down field potential. Pearman once again looked fast and got good separation, and made a great catch at the goal line to set up Cedric Peerman’s rushing touchdown. Covington was not as visible throughout the game, but his size is a big plus for the position. Ogletree and Pearman had a few drops, but that can partially be explained by the rain that began halfway through the game.

The defensive line for the Blue Team was lead by team captain Chris Long, who played well and managed to break up a play in the back field. The linebackers also played well, especially Aaron Clark. Clark, who played for the Orange Team, was all over the field making tackles. Clark, as well as the rest of the defenses, also worked to bat down passes throughout the game. Jon Copper looks to be a solid player also. None of the other linebackers did anything special to stand out from the group. Overall, both defenses managed to stop the run games of both teams.

On Special Teams, Noah Greenbaum won the game for the Orange Team on a last moment field goal. Earlier in the game, he showed that he had the leg for a 52 yarder, but his kick sailed wide of the uprights. The punting game once again looked shaky.

Overall, this team has improved since the first practice. They have a lot of intensity, and if they continue to progress they will be fun to watch next year. The addition of the incoming freshman could make things interesting, as some changes may still be made before opening day. It should be exciting to follow over the coming months.