Ags run through two-a-day practices
Utah State’s football team went through its first session of two-a-day practices this fall on Monday and after a solid morning workout, came out a little sluggish in the afternoon.
“This morning we came out and had a good, crisp practice,” said USU head coach Brent Guy. “Of course it was a little bit cooler in the morning. In the afternoon, practice dragged a little bit. We need to have a better tempo early on. It was a little bit hotter and especially during the individual and team periods, we need to get a better effort out of the guys and get guys to move around a little faster.”
Linebacker Jake Hutton agreed with the head coaches’ assessment.
“The first day of two-a-days is pretty tough because you don’t have much down time and you have to hustle to everything,” Hutton said about lunch and meetings, etcÅ “It went pretty well in the morning, but we were a little sluggish at the beginning of the second practice. When we got to team and seven on seven, we picked it up. Overall, I thought it was pretty good for the first two-a-day.”
Guy said the team’s intensity level increased when the offense met the defense in various situations.
“The tempo always picks up a little bit when we go against each other, offense and defense, and that is what has been happening,” Guy said. “Inside drills or seven on seven or team, anytime we go against each other, we get a lot better pace. We have to get better effort and speed in special teams and the early part of practice.”
Four players caught the head coach’s eye during Monday’s workouts, including junior quarterback Leon Jackson III, the 2005 starter.
Leon continues to do good things for us,” Guy said. “He still makes mistakes and is going to make mistakes.”
Two newcomers also received accolades, including Xavier Bowman, a 6-3, 190-pound freshman from Houston, Texas and 6-1, 210-pound linebacker Derrick Cumbee from Georgia Military College.
“Xavier Bowman has been doing a good job at wide receiver and we have noticed him,” Guy said. “Derrick Cumbee is going to help us at linebacker once he understands what to do. He runs around really well, but doesn’t understand the defense yet.”
Another player who stood out on Monday, included returning defensive tackle E.J. Reid. The 6-1, 297-pound junior is USU’s only returning starting defensive lineman.
“E.J. Reid is very hard to block on all of those inside drills,” Guy said. “He does a good job at the tackle. We need to find another tackle that can make plays like him.”
USU will practice once on Tuesday morning before returning to two-a-days on Wednesday.