Eagles Have Solid First Scrimmage at Paulson Stadium
8/9/2014 8:44:00 PM | Football
First practice in full pads gives coaches more to evaluate
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STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern Head Coach Willie Fritz will watch the video of today's first scrimmage, but from his spot on the field, he saw good things on both sides of the ball Saturday morning. The Eagles went about 80 plays at Paulson Stadium in their first scrimmage of preseason and first practice in full pads. Georgia Southern's "Special Forces" were on the field to start the practice before moving to scrimmage plays.
"I thought the guys competed," said the Eagles' first-year head coach Willie Fritz. "Some guys looked a little more polished than others. We have some good athletes, no question, and I saw some good speed down there. We're a little bit dead-legged. We've been going hard for the last week, week and a half, but I was very impressed, most of the guys did a very good job."
Even with today's full contact practice, the quarterbacks were not live, so Fritz still has some questions.
"I saw a lot of big plays offensively," Fritz said. "The tough part is the quarterbacks are not live, so are we really making the tackle? Maybe we were, maybe we weren't. Were we making the run? Maybe they were, maybe they weren't. I saw really good things on both sides of the ball. We have to start with refining things right now over the next couple of weeks. See what we are good at, emphasize that, what we are not good at, personnel wise, or if we're not grasping the scheme, we'll throw that in the garbage and move on."
Freshman running back Ryan Peterson scored the first touchdown of the scrimmage, fighting through for a score from two yards out and sophomore quarterback Favian Upshaw also scored, his touchdown coming on a 15-yard rush. Converted quarterback to safety Vegas Harley and Antonio Glover had big plays for the defense. Only a few miscues halted play with penalty flags thrown by the officiating crew on two or three occasions.
Fritz targeted Saturday as a big day for evaluating which will allow he and his coaching staff to set groupings as well as scout team assignments beginning Monday. Fritz
"Can I guy play with effort every down? Can he line up correctly every down? Can they make explosive plays?" Fritz asked. "If they play with great effort, and can line up without making mistakes, and they have explosive plays in them, those are the guys we need to get out on the field as much as possible."
Fritz ended the scrimmage a little early and noted that he'll have the Eagles go a little more in the next scrimmage next Saturday.
"It's hard to replicate game conditioning," Fritz said. "I think we're further along than most people are, but we still have a ways to go to play 100 plays 100 miles an hour like I want our guys to be able to do."
ERK STATUE MOVED TO LANIER DRIVE ENTRANCE
The nine-foot bronze statue of legendary Coach Erk Russell was relocated to the front entrance of the Football Operations Center Saturday early afternoon. Dedicated in December 2012, the statue was temporarily placed at the west end of Paulson Stadium until the new headquarters for the Eagle Football program was completed. Considered the "Father of Georgia Southern Football," Russell helped resurrect a program that had been dormant for 41 years. During his eight-year head coaching tenure with the Eagles, he compiled an 83-22-1 record, winning three national championships and guiding the 1989 to a perfect 15-0 record.
Russell's statue, entitled "One More Time," faces Lanier Drive as a centerpiece of the Football Operations Center plaza, which will include named bollards and pavers leading to the facility entrance. For more information on gift opportunities at the Football Operations Center, contact the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation at 912-478-5520 weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
BACK TO THE BUILDING
For the first time after a Georgia Southern practice or scrimmage, the yellow school buses did not have to transport the Eagles back to their locker room. The new Eagles' "nest," is now just a few steps away from Glenn Bryant Field.
FOOTBALL OPERATIONS CENTER RIBBON CUTTING AND TOURS
Eagle fans will be able to tour the new Football Operations Center, including seeing the the new locker room and other facility highlights on Saturday, August 16th following the official ribbon cutting. Georgia Southern University President Brooks Keel and Director of Athletics Tom Kleinlein invite Eagle Nation to the ribbon cutting at 9 a.m. and to tour the building prior to the final scrimmage of preseason camp.
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