Cornerbacks, defense have big day at scrimmage
If there were any questions whether the Aggies would use a beautiful day in Logan to take it easy during Saturday’s scrimmage, then those concerns were put to rest just minutes into the competition, as Diondre Borel and the USU first-team offense came out with guns blazing en route to a 14 play, 80-yard touchdown drive.
Capped off by a two-yard option keeper that Borel took into the endzone, the drive injected an early fire into the offense, which immediately rallied around Borel in a subsequent and frenzied celebration. The celebration was to foreshadow the contested, back-and-forth nature of the nearly two-hour scrimmage, which for the second consecutive week featured the first team Aggie offensive and defensive units against their second team counterparts. According to USU head coach Gary Andersen, the emotion shown by his offense was a welcomed sign and an indicator as to just how competitive the spring season has been.
“That first drive with the No. 1 offense, I thought was a fantastic drive,” Andersen said. “‘The (offense) went down and celebrated. That’s spring ball. Tensions are a little high and kids have some emotion, but I really thought that the emotion was good today.”
The emotion was contagious for the Aggies, who were playing the scrimmage in ideal conditions and before BYU coaching legend LeVell Edwards. Not to be outdone by their offensive counterparts in the company of such a legendary figure, USU’s first and second team defense stepped up on subsequent series, with the first team defense generating a high degree of pressure for much of the afternoon while frustrating USU backup quarterback Jeff Fisher.
The Aggie defense got a shot in the arm from senior cornerback Chris Randle, who wowed all in attendance when he jumped a pass from Fisher and sprinted 40 yards into the opposite endzone. The interception was one of two picks gathered by the Aggie starter on the afternoon and sweet payback after the defense witnessed the first team offense’s apparent lack of respect on the scrimmage’s opening series.
“The offense did their little chant and the whole offense came on the field and that did something to me inside that made me so mad,” said Randle, who led the Aggies with seven pass breakups a year ago. “So I was biting on everything and cheating on everything. I was cheating the quarterback, reading his eyes in the backfield. It worked out my way on that one.”
The interception was a welcomed sign for coach Andersen and his defensive staff, who after last weekend’s scrimmage singled out the need to generate more turnovers as an area for improvement. Answering the call from their head coach, the Aggies generated five total turnovers during Saturday’s scrimmage, while also producing eight total sacks. After the event, Andersen praised Randle, saying that the often overlooked senior has quietly become one of the most vocal leaders on the defense.
“Chris has been challenged from a leadership standpoint on and off the field,” Andersen said. “The best thing I saw about Chris today was I saw him have a continued motor. He made a terrific play on the pick for the touchdown. That was a big-time football play.”
Randle was humble when talking about his two interceptions and credited the first-team defensive line in putting him and the rest of the Aggie secondary in positions to make plays.
“The defense stepped up and the D-line did their thing,” Randle said. “They’re getting all the pressure, which is helping us in the back end. When the quarterback can’t see over the D-line that gives us more time to react and get to the ball and it works out perfectly.” He added, “The D-line is doing a great job.”
The defensive success during the scrimmage comes on the heels of several personnel moves made by Andersen and defensive coordinator Bill Busch this past week. Devin Johnson, who had been playing at linebacker for the first half the spring, moved back to his more natural position at defensive end, while stud linebacker Junior Keiaho was utilized much more extensively as a rush-end specialist. The increased speed on the first-team defense was apparent to all in attendance, with the Aggie first teamers overwhelming the second-team offensive line.
“We moved a couple guys around,” Andersen explained. “Devin played D-end last year, and his grasp of the defense is much better from playing linebacker, but he gives us a whole new dimension of speed.”
Andersen continued, saying, “Junior Keiaho played some defensive end today and showed up for us. If you watch Junior at stud linebacker, he’s actually blitzing 50-60 percent of the time right now, where he is a defensive end rushing. It doesn’t make a lot of sense when he’s in your best 11 to not let him get in there as a defensive end.”
Keiaho and Johnson weren’t the only Aggie defenders to answer the call on Saturday, with linebacker Kyle Gallagher and defensive end-linebacker Maxim Dinka Mba knifing into the backfield on several occasions. Dinka led the charge with six tackles and two sacks for USU, while the athletic Gallagher also notched six tackles, including two for a loss. After moving over from safety last week, Jamaine Olsen was effective in man-coverage for the first-team offense and will likely continue to stay at the cornerback position for the remainder of the spring.
“Moving him back to corner, I think, was a big, big positive for him,” Andersen said of Olsen. “He’s a very athletic young man and that’s his true spot.”
To be sure, the defense didn’t completely dominate the action on Saturday afternoon, as the Aggie first-team offense continued to be ahead of the second-team defense. Borel guided the offense with poise and precision for the second consecutive week, finishing the day 13-17 for 150 yards and a score. Receivers Xavier Martin and Matt Austin both had solid outings, with Martin making a nifty cut across the middle on a 28-yard touchdown reception from Borel.
“It was good to see Xavier (Martin) come in and make a play,” Andersen said. “It looks like an easy play but there’s somebody lurking around there. (Xavier) continues to get better.”
Starting running back Michael Smith rested for most of the scrimmage, but backups Kerwynn Williams and Derrvin Speight both showed flashes of play-making ability. Williams scored twice during red-zone situations, while Speight added three touchdowns on the afternoon. Williams acknowledged that the offense had several missed assignments during the scrimmage, but said the unit continues to improve in its effectiveness.
“I think we had a lot of (missed assignments) today,” Williams said. “We still need to reduce that and work a little bit on the ball security. Otherwise it was a very positive day for us.”
Overall, Andersen was pleased with the team’s performance during the scrimmage, and said that even the number two units made progress, although they both are still solidly behind the number ones.
“I thought overall the two’s on both sides executed better than they did a week ago,” Andersen concluded. “Did they win on either side of the two’s? No. The one offense won and the one defense clearly won. However, I thought the two’s made progress and some young men were stepping up to make plays.”
The Aggies continue to experience a high level of competition on both sides of the ball during the spring season, which concludes next Saturday when USU hosts its annual Blue and White game. The level of competition has been exactly what coach Andersen has wanted to see following a 4-8 campaign in 2009, as he hopes that fire established in his players during the offseason will continue to burn bright come September.
“There is definite competition on this team and that’s good,” Andersen said. “That’s what you want. The emotion and the competition – you can’t put a price tag on that.”
– adam.nettina@aggiemail.usu.edu
