Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Saturday notebook; second scrimmage update
8/17/2019 12:45:00 PM | Football
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Fall camp is halfway complete for Middle Tennessee, and so far, there has been plenty to like for head coach Rick Stockstill.
"I think we're in good, football shape," he said. "I'm pleased where we're at from a conditioning standpoint, and guys are flying around and playing with a lot of energy."
Here are some tidbits from practice:
Second scrimmage in the books:
The Blue Raiders' second scrimmage on Saturday wasn't made any easier by scorching temperatures, but Stockstill said he saw improvements from the first scrimmage.
"I thought, overall, it was a little better than the first one," he said. "We cut our penalties down a lot, and that was one of the objectives coming in.
"I thought their effort was good … and we flew around pretty good. It was clean, and the execution of everything was a little better than the first one, but we still have such a long way to go."
Here are some stats leaders from Saturday:
Passing
Asher O'Hara: 12-17, 78 yards
Chase Cunningham: 15-22, 97 yards, 1 TD
Randall Johnson: 8-16, 120 yards, 3 TDs
Rushing
Jayy McDonald: 4 carries, 19 yards
Terelle West: 3 carries, 9 yards
Receiving
Jocquez Bruce: 6 receptions, 73 yards, 1 TD
Devon Jackson: 5 receptions, 46 yards, 1 TD
C.J. Windham: 3 receptions, 14 yards
Jarrin Pierce: 2 receptions, 22 yards
Zeke Cobb: 2 receptions, 11 yards
Defense
Decorian Patterson: 6 tackles, 2 TFLs,
Jalen Jackson: 6 tackles, 2 pass breakups
Kendricks Gladney: 5 tackles
Chris Stamps: 4 tackles, 1 INT, 1 pass breakups
Darius McClendon: 4 tackles
Jordan Ferguson: 3 tackles, 3 TFLs, 1 sack
Field Goals
Crews Holt: 7-9 (including makes from 55 and 52)
Starter at quarterback still unnamed:
In the last week of camp, the quarterback position is still one of the most hotly contested. All three are competing and all three are trying to prove they can get the job done on Week 1 at Michigan.
There's still plenty of camp left before O'Hara, Chase Cunningham or Randall Johnson — whoever the starting quarterback ends up being — has to start focusing on Michigan in Week 1. Stockstill said with the time remaining, there's growth to be had from all three.
"We have competition still at several positions," Stockstill said. "You have to compete at every single snap you have out there."
Gilstrap teaching meaning behind "D-Boys":
Middle Tennessee's defense has been impressive throughout camp so far, and the play of the defensive backs is big reason why.
The backs have picked off multiple balls daily, it seems, including interceptions by Justin Brown and Marcus LaFrance in the first scrimmage and Chris Stamps and Jovante Moffatt on Saturday.
New cornerbacks coach Kenneth Gilstrap deserves some of the praise for the play of the defensive backs. The former Blue Raider, along with current Tennessee Titans safety Kevin Byard, coined the term "D-Boys" in 2012 while at MT, and that mantra has carried over to this year's team.
"It's a beautiful experience, and I'm grateful to be back," Gilstrap, who was also a graduate assistant at Middle Tennessee from 2015-16, said. "I think there's a sense of knowing what it means to be an MTSU DB. Me and Kevin Byard started 'D-Boys' in 2012 … and I've tried to instill that into our guys."
Who's punting?
One of the position battles that may not get as much publicity is at punter. With Matt Bonadies exhausting his eligibility last season, the Blue Raiders are breaking in a new boot this year.
Redshirt junior Matthew Stephenson, last year's holder and backup punter, figures to have a leg up in the competition, but he's being pushed by preferred walk-on freshman Matthew Rigney.
Fan Day is Aug. 24:
The Blue Raiders' annual Fan Day will be from 7:15-9 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 24 inside Floyd Stadium. It's free to attend, and the football, volleyball, soccer and cross country teams will sign autographs and talk with fans. There will also be live music from the popular band The Respectables, as well as countless family-friendly amenities, such as inflatables, giveaways, photo booths, autograph/ photo sessions and free food and drinks.
This year's Fan Day is combining with the University Event Convocation/President's Picnic, an annual event that welcomes students and family members to the university and marks the beginning of a new academic year. The President's Picnic is a time to eat and mingle with fellow students and administrators while hearing from President Dr. Sidney McPhee.
Free parking will be available at the Livestock Lot on campus, and a free shuttle will get fans to the stadium.
Fun stat of the day:
The Blue Raiders return two defensive backs who took interceptions more than 90 yards for a touchdown in 2018: sophomore Gregory Grate Jr. and junior Reed Blankenship.
First, Grate returned a pick-six 97 yards in Week 2 against UT Martin, then, on Oct. 27, Blankenship returned one 100 yards to end the first half against ODU to tie the school record.
Not to be lost in the shuffle, Wesley Bush had a pick-six of 75 yards on Nov. 10 against UTEP, the ninth-longest in program history, but he exhausted his eligibility last season.
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman
and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
"I think we're in good, football shape," he said. "I'm pleased where we're at from a conditioning standpoint, and guys are flying around and playing with a lot of energy."
Here are some tidbits from practice:
Second scrimmage in the books:
The Blue Raiders' second scrimmage on Saturday wasn't made any easier by scorching temperatures, but Stockstill said he saw improvements from the first scrimmage.
"I thought, overall, it was a little better than the first one," he said. "We cut our penalties down a lot, and that was one of the objectives coming in.
"I thought their effort was good … and we flew around pretty good. It was clean, and the execution of everything was a little better than the first one, but we still have such a long way to go."
Here are some stats leaders from Saturday:
Passing
Asher O'Hara: 12-17, 78 yards
Chase Cunningham: 15-22, 97 yards, 1 TD
Randall Johnson: 8-16, 120 yards, 3 TDs
Rushing
Jayy McDonald: 4 carries, 19 yards
Terelle West: 3 carries, 9 yards
Receiving
Jocquez Bruce: 6 receptions, 73 yards, 1 TD
Devon Jackson: 5 receptions, 46 yards, 1 TD
C.J. Windham: 3 receptions, 14 yards
Jarrin Pierce: 2 receptions, 22 yards
Zeke Cobb: 2 receptions, 11 yards
Defense
Decorian Patterson: 6 tackles, 2 TFLs,
Jalen Jackson: 6 tackles, 2 pass breakups
Kendricks Gladney: 5 tackles
Chris Stamps: 4 tackles, 1 INT, 1 pass breakups
Darius McClendon: 4 tackles
Jordan Ferguson: 3 tackles, 3 TFLs, 1 sack
Field Goals
Crews Holt: 7-9 (including makes from 55 and 52)
Starter at quarterback still unnamed:
In the last week of camp, the quarterback position is still one of the most hotly contested. All three are competing and all three are trying to prove they can get the job done on Week 1 at Michigan.
There's still plenty of camp left before O'Hara, Chase Cunningham or Randall Johnson — whoever the starting quarterback ends up being — has to start focusing on Michigan in Week 1. Stockstill said with the time remaining, there's growth to be had from all three.
"We have competition still at several positions," Stockstill said. "You have to compete at every single snap you have out there."
Gilstrap teaching meaning behind "D-Boys":
Middle Tennessee's defense has been impressive throughout camp so far, and the play of the defensive backs is big reason why.
The backs have picked off multiple balls daily, it seems, including interceptions by Justin Brown and Marcus LaFrance in the first scrimmage and Chris Stamps and Jovante Moffatt on Saturday.
New cornerbacks coach Kenneth Gilstrap deserves some of the praise for the play of the defensive backs. The former Blue Raider, along with current Tennessee Titans safety Kevin Byard, coined the term "D-Boys" in 2012 while at MT, and that mantra has carried over to this year's team.
"It's a beautiful experience, and I'm grateful to be back," Gilstrap, who was also a graduate assistant at Middle Tennessee from 2015-16, said. "I think there's a sense of knowing what it means to be an MTSU DB. Me and Kevin Byard started 'D-Boys' in 2012 … and I've tried to instill that into our guys."
Who's punting?
One of the position battles that may not get as much publicity is at punter. With Matt Bonadies exhausting his eligibility last season, the Blue Raiders are breaking in a new boot this year.
Redshirt junior Matthew Stephenson, last year's holder and backup punter, figures to have a leg up in the competition, but he's being pushed by preferred walk-on freshman Matthew Rigney.
Fan Day is Aug. 24:
The Blue Raiders' annual Fan Day will be from 7:15-9 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 24 inside Floyd Stadium. It's free to attend, and the football, volleyball, soccer and cross country teams will sign autographs and talk with fans. There will also be live music from the popular band The Respectables, as well as countless family-friendly amenities, such as inflatables, giveaways, photo booths, autograph/ photo sessions and free food and drinks.
This year's Fan Day is combining with the University Event Convocation/President's Picnic, an annual event that welcomes students and family members to the university and marks the beginning of a new academic year. The President's Picnic is a time to eat and mingle with fellow students and administrators while hearing from President Dr. Sidney McPhee.
Free parking will be available at the Livestock Lot on campus, and a free shuttle will get fans to the stadium.
Fun stat of the day:
The Blue Raiders return two defensive backs who took interceptions more than 90 yards for a touchdown in 2018: sophomore Gregory Grate Jr. and junior Reed Blankenship.
First, Grate returned a pick-six 97 yards in Week 2 against UT Martin, then, on Oct. 27, Blankenship returned one 100 yards to end the first half against ODU to tie the school record.
Not to be lost in the shuffle, Wesley Bush had a pick-six of 75 yards on Nov. 10 against UTEP, the ninth-longest in program history, but he exhausted his eligibility last season.
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman
and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
Players Mentioned
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