Preseason camp winding down
8/22/2010 8:00:00 AM | Football
By Cody Stark
Huntsville Item Assistant Sports Editor
With only a handful of practice sessions remaining before Bearkat preseason football camp closes and preparation for the season opener Sept. 4 with Baylor begins, a much clearer picture of what to expect from the 2010 Sam Houston team has emerged.
The way things are shaping up, Sam Houston should be in good hands on the defensive side of the ball this season.
With six starters back plus several other reserve players returning from last year's squad, the defense has had an edge throughout spring ball and fall practice.
The Bearkats defense once again stole the show during the third full-contact scrimmage at Bowers Stadium last Friday.
Safety Kenneth Jenkins had an interception and came up with back-to-back tackles for losses to end another drive. Cornerback Robert Shaw blocked a 56-yard field goal attempt, which was returned for a touchdown by freshman cornerback Chuks Orabuchi.
"The defense did a good job Friday," SHSU head coach Willie Fritz said. "That field goal block, Robert Shaw did a good job of laying out and blocking that field goal. We picked it up and scored a touchdown. We feel like we have a really good chance to have a good defense."
While the defense toned things down in the first scrimmage of the preseason, not giving the young offense a lot of different looks, defensive coordinator Scott Stoker has been blitzing from all over the field during the second and third scrimmages.
Last Friday sophomore linebacker Eric Fieilo and junior defensive ends E.J. Kduka and Edward Decambre all recorded sacks Friday.
"It all starts with the front line," Fieilo said. "I couldn't have gotten to the backfield and pressured them if it hadn't been for the d-line getting up there. I give a lot of props to the d-line for getting pressure up there and making plays."
The head coach also has seen progress on the offensive side of the line of scrimmage.
The most promising drive early in Friday's scrimmage came when junior quarterback Greg Sprowls led the second-team offense to a 33-yard field goal by Miguel Antonio. Sprowls completed a 25-yard pass to redshirt freshman Jace Jackson and hit freshman Ricky Smith for 5 and sophomore Kevin Matthews for 8 before the drive stalled.
Senior quarterback Bryan Randolph and redshirt freshman Tyrik Rollison each split time with the first team.
Freshman quarterback Brian Bell has gotten the offense into the end zone playing against the third team in all three scrimmages. Friday, Bell found Jackson for 7 yards and hit junior tight end T.J. Jones, who was lined up at fullback, for 13.
Bell capped the drive with 29-yard touchdown pass over the middle to sophomore wide receiver Trey Diller, who has to sit out this season.
Bell also displayed some patience when the pocket collapsed toward the end of the scrimmage and he stepped up and delivered a 33-yard strike down the middle to wide receiver Traveon Kelly.
"The offense continues to improve," Fritz said. "We just have to shore up our protection right now. We are getting some game experience. We have to pick it up and work on some things that are just the basics of football."
A big question mark for the offense when camp started was running back where the Kats do not return a single back who carried the ball from last year. The offense has gotten some hard running from sophomore D.J. Morrow and freshman Cameron Brown.
Brown, a power back at 6-foot, 225 pounds, helped set up the only other touchdown in Friday's scrimmage with a bruising 38-yard scamper that showed a burst of speed once he got past the line of scrimmage. He later broke free for 20 more yards before Rollison found Diller for a 35-yard touchdown.
Rollison also had a nice run early Friday. He darted out of the backfield and could have scored from 65 yards out with an open lane straight for the end zone. But because the quarterbacks are not live, the whistle was blown early.
"It's good that we have some good running backs. We push each other every day because we know nobody has a starting spot," Brown said. "We try to push each other to our limits even though we are tired or fatigued. We just have to be more consistent, but we are pushing each other."
The Kats will scrimmage one more time - Thursday night at Bowers Stadium, getting going at 7 p.m. Then the focus becomes preparing for the Bears.
Sam Houston opens the 2010 season Saturday, Sept. 4 against the Baylor Bears at Waco. The first home game will be Saturday, Sept. 25 when Gardner-Webb visits Bowers Stadium for Bearkat "Family Weekend."
The game Sept. 25 will feature a guest appearance by the Houston Texans Cheerleaders, a fireworks display and special halftime activities.
Other home games will be Oct. 16 (Homecoming) vs. Southeastern Louisiana, Nov. 6 vs. McNeese State and Nov. 20 vs. Texas State. The final three home games will kickoff at 2 p.m.
Season tickets for Bearkat football at Bowers Stadium are available through the new exciting "2-2-2" offer, order your tickets now by going to the Bearkat tickets page on www.gobearkats.com or call (936) 294-1729.
The "2-2-2" offer also includes two corner tickets to the "Battle of the Piney Woods" game with Stephen F. Austin at Reliant Stadium in Houston on October 23.
Fans also may visit the Sam Houston athletic ticket office located in the Ron Mafrige Field House located in the south end zone of Bowers Stadium. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
