University of North Texas Athletics
Green Gang: Scrimmage Report Card
8/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Return to Play
By Steven Bartolotta, August 15, 2009, 2:31 p.m.
Inside The Iron - Scrimmage 1 Recap
The first scrimmage of the fall camp is in the books so let's take a look at the positions and how they stacked up this morning. Some did better than others, some didn't have a full arsenal, and some just didn't get worked on.
Quarterbacks - A....Riley Dodge was a perfect as you could ask for without the assistance of more than likely two of his starting receivers. The other dimension that Dodge adds to the offense is his running ability. He could be flat out the best running QB North Texas has had in 20 years. Nathan Tune was strong in his role and has a very grasp of the offense. Chase Baine was okay in the throwing department but better in the running area today. His arm isn't nearly what Dodge or Tune has but he does bring a different element to the table. Freshman Derek Thompson is a big boy who has a lot of talent. His best strike of the day came on a perfectly thrown deep ball that resulted in a TD. I want to see him redshirt though and get adjusted to D-I.
Running Backs - A-....With no Cam Montgomery you would think this spot might have suffered. No sir. Lance Dunbar had two really big runs today and at 100 percent is lighting fast. Micah Mosley was effective and Jeremi Mathis saw his first live action in a long time. He popped a big catch and run but put it on the floor at the one-yard line. That can't happen in games. James Hamilton to me continues to be the conundrum of the group. He's so athletic that you are looking for ways to get him the ball. He had a big run up the gut and is a smaller version of Dunbar.
Wide Receivers A-....Raise your hand if you loved what Darius Carey did today. He's a playmaker, period. B.J. Lewis really had a good morning in the battle for the No. 1 spot. He was consistent, made some tough catches, and made no mistakes. The ball distribution was the other part that I wanted to see today and I did. While I noticed Carey more than others, everyone was involved. Forrest Rucker is slowly playing himself back into football shape and the last two days have been a marked improvement for him. Remember this group was good without Michael Outlaw, Jamaal Jackson or Bennie Jones.
Offensive Line - A- I'm not sure if the first-team broke a sweat out there because they kept Riley nice and safe but for a few plays. The second-team was just as impressive. The starting line-up is probably getting close to being cemented. Kelvin Drake being back and at 100 percent gives an already experienced line another anchor to lean on. Right now North Texas just wants to get through camp without any hiccups or injuries because this group is ready to roll.
Defensive Line - C+....Still a work in progress and I didn't see as much pressure on the QB's as I wanted. Some of that is a by-product of the offensive line, but some of it isn't. AK got the Riley a few times and Sam Owusu-Hemeng made a few impressions, but those were about it. The interior line was rotated heavily and it's going to take Coach Mike Nelson a while to figure out what combinations work best. Atkinson got the first crack along with DeSoto at the tackle spots but Gilmore, Weber, White, Ross, and a whole lot more saw action. Kelvin Jackson returning to practice and action on Monday will be a needed boost.
Linebackers- C...Freshman Jeremy Phillips probably had the best day of this group. Coach Dodge singled him out after the scrimmage but this unit as a whole missed way, and I mean way too many tackles. If this unit is going to be successful, it has to wrap up on the first time otherwise it's going to be a re-run of last year. The stalwarts, Nwigwe, Penson, Robertson and others made some plays, but it's the missed tackles that stood out this morning.
Secondary - C....I was a little disappointed in this group because I had really high expectations going in. Royce Hill was effective and Adryan Adams had a few deflections, but Dodge was on the money and the secondary did too much chasing today. They also had their problems tackling in the open field. Robby Gordon has turned into a new man this year. Hardly noticed until this week, Gordon make some plays early on and turned some heads. This area has been good in camp, but not today.
Special Teams - Incomplete....Short of extra points and a few field goals, not much work to evaluate on. Jeremy Knott did miss a 30-yard chip shot that made me cringe, but I'm honestly not too worried. On a side note, I think walk-on Jose Serrano might be a diamond in the rough. He has looked very good in practice and his leg is impressive. Might be the heir to Knott come next year.
Those are my grades for the scrimmage. A lot of areas have made some significant progress in just over a week. Some still need work, but don't make snap judgments off of just one scrimmage.
