A chance to shine
Gorillas highlight skills in Spring Game
Josh Letner
Issue date: 4/23/09 Section: Sports
The Gorilla football team got a chance to show coaches and fans a glimpse of the future last Saturday during the annual Spring Game at Carnie Smith Stadium.
Junior quarterback John McCoy led the White squad to a 21-14 victory. McCoy was 7-for-11 passing with one touchdown and a 50-yard touchdown run. McCoy saw action in 11 games last season as a backup and was 14-of-23 passing for two touchdowns and two interceptions.
In the first half, the defenses seemed to have the advantage as the offenses tried to get into a rhythm.
"The first half, I thought we performed pretty well," defensive coordinator Dave Wiemers said. "We had some occasional busts that cost us some bigger plays, but the groups are split up, so it's kind of hard to really evaluate because they're playing next to guys that they may not have played with before, so it's difficult to tell."
Both teams were held scoreless in the first quarter, but McCoy broke things open with a 50-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. The Red team answered back on the following possession when sophomore running back Eric Love scored from 15 yards out. Love finished the game with 31 yards on five carries.
The Red team took the lead on their first drive of the second half when Fort Scott Community College transfer Zac Dickey carried the ball in from 13 yards out to make the score 14-7.
The White squad answered back on their next possession as freshman running back Jason Spradling got into the action, rushing six times for 39 yards. McCoy capped the drive by hitting Spradling in the back of the end zone for a 19-yard scoring strike. The PAT attempt was no good, leaving the Red squad clinging to a 14-13 lead.
The following drive for the Red team was brought to an abrupt end when senior defensive end Brock Lohr brought down sophomore quarterback Kevin Lee, despite the fact that Lee was wearing a black jersey that was intended to shield him from contact.
"They get fired up because they think they've tagged the quarterback, and the official didn't blow the whistle, so they get irritated and they do things they shouldn't and go hit the quarterback," Wiemers said. "You just got to tell them to be smart and realize that those guys are important and ultimately, we're all going to be on the same team in August, so you've got to lay off that guy."
Junior quarterback John McCoy led the White squad to a 21-14 victory. McCoy was 7-for-11 passing with one touchdown and a 50-yard touchdown run. McCoy saw action in 11 games last season as a backup and was 14-of-23 passing for two touchdowns and two interceptions.
In the first half, the defenses seemed to have the advantage as the offenses tried to get into a rhythm.
"The first half, I thought we performed pretty well," defensive coordinator Dave Wiemers said. "We had some occasional busts that cost us some bigger plays, but the groups are split up, so it's kind of hard to really evaluate because they're playing next to guys that they may not have played with before, so it's difficult to tell."
Both teams were held scoreless in the first quarter, but McCoy broke things open with a 50-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. The Red team answered back on the following possession when sophomore running back Eric Love scored from 15 yards out. Love finished the game with 31 yards on five carries.
The Red team took the lead on their first drive of the second half when Fort Scott Community College transfer Zac Dickey carried the ball in from 13 yards out to make the score 14-7.
The White squad answered back on their next possession as freshman running back Jason Spradling got into the action, rushing six times for 39 yards. McCoy capped the drive by hitting Spradling in the back of the end zone for a 19-yard scoring strike. The PAT attempt was no good, leaving the Red squad clinging to a 14-13 lead.
The following drive for the Red team was brought to an abrupt end when senior defensive end Brock Lohr brought down sophomore quarterback Kevin Lee, despite the fact that Lee was wearing a black jersey that was intended to shield him from contact.
"They get fired up because they think they've tagged the quarterback, and the official didn't blow the whistle, so they get irritated and they do things they shouldn't and go hit the quarterback," Wiemers said. "You just got to tell them to be smart and realize that those guys are important and ultimately, we're all going to be on the same team in August, so you've got to lay off that guy."
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