MSU Closes Spring Ball Saturday
4/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Last week belonged to the coaches. This weekend belongs to Bobcat players.
"I'll be looking for an expansion of our playbale roster," MSU's fifth-year coach Mike Kramer says of Saturday's Sonny Holland Classic scrimmage that will bring spring football to a close. "The playable roster, the number of players that are not simply on the roster but can execute and function to the level we need, is always on the mind of the coaching staff. I hope on Saturday to see several new players establish in our minds that they should be considered on the playable roster."
Saturday's 90-play scrimmage, which will feature all live situations except goal-line offense and punting, will begin at 2 pm in Bobcat Stadium, and is free and open to the public.
Because Kramer wants to see how players function in game-like situations, offensive coordinator Don Bailey and defensive guru Pete Kwiatkowski will each scale back their schemes to a degree. "We move our playbook back into a more elemntal phase for this scrimmage because we want players to be as error-free as possible. They don't need to be thinking about concepts, they just need to play."
While the Bobcat coaching staff will be eyeing several young players Saturday, the head coach is most pleased with the progress of the team's veterans this spring. "The surprise of the spring for me has been the tremendous progress made by the returning starters, beginning with Travis Lulay. It will be a real challenge for the rest of the offense to play at Travis' level, but I like the way the returning starters have played."
Montana State should be an experienced team next fall across the board, except for three positions. Kramer has seen progress at those three positions this spring. "At running back, I believe we'll be bigger, better, faster, and deeper than we were last fall, and that's before figuring the arrival of (junior college transfer) Justin Domenick in the fall. Jason Gathing is irrepressible. I don't know of any player on this team that flat-out loves to play football more than Jason. Dan McInerney has demonstrated that he will be an outstanding football player in time. And Morris Milton can play.
"At receiver," Kramer continued, "the 14 days of spring practice has seen our group of young receivers really make strides. Mike Williams, Kellen Alley, and Brandon Roosevelt have really stepped up, with Branton Sherman closing rapidly.
"In the secondary, Ryan Force is a player that has really stepped forward," Kramer said. "The rest of the group has yet to show that they are players that will be able to perform at the level we need. The arrival of Eddie Smith and Corky Lindsay in the fall will enhance this position."
In addition to the game action on Saturday, Kramer will present MSU's 2003 seniors their championship rings at halftime. Kramer will also make the program's special awards presentations at that time.
"I'll be looking for an expansion of our playbale roster," MSU's fifth-year coach Mike Kramer says of Saturday's Sonny Holland Classic scrimmage that will bring spring football to a close. "The playable roster, the number of players that are not simply on the roster but can execute and function to the level we need, is always on the mind of the coaching staff. I hope on Saturday to see several new players establish in our minds that they should be considered on the playable roster."
Saturday's 90-play scrimmage, which will feature all live situations except goal-line offense and punting, will begin at 2 pm in Bobcat Stadium, and is free and open to the public.
Because Kramer wants to see how players function in game-like situations, offensive coordinator Don Bailey and defensive guru Pete Kwiatkowski will each scale back their schemes to a degree. "We move our playbook back into a more elemntal phase for this scrimmage because we want players to be as error-free as possible. They don't need to be thinking about concepts, they just need to play."
While the Bobcat coaching staff will be eyeing several young players Saturday, the head coach is most pleased with the progress of the team's veterans this spring. "The surprise of the spring for me has been the tremendous progress made by the returning starters, beginning with Travis Lulay. It will be a real challenge for the rest of the offense to play at Travis' level, but I like the way the returning starters have played."
Montana State should be an experienced team next fall across the board, except for three positions. Kramer has seen progress at those three positions this spring. "At running back, I believe we'll be bigger, better, faster, and deeper than we were last fall, and that's before figuring the arrival of (junior college transfer) Justin Domenick in the fall. Jason Gathing is irrepressible. I don't know of any player on this team that flat-out loves to play football more than Jason. Dan McInerney has demonstrated that he will be an outstanding football player in time. And Morris Milton can play.
"At receiver," Kramer continued, "the 14 days of spring practice has seen our group of young receivers really make strides. Mike Williams, Kellen Alley, and Brandon Roosevelt have really stepped up, with Branton Sherman closing rapidly.
"In the secondary, Ryan Force is a player that has really stepped forward," Kramer said. "The rest of the group has yet to show that they are players that will be able to perform at the level we need. The arrival of Eddie Smith and Corky Lindsay in the fall will enhance this position."
In addition to the game action on Saturday, Kramer will present MSU's 2003 seniors their championship rings at halftime. Kramer will also make the program's special awards presentations at that time.
Wednesday, June 10
Friday, March 27
Monday, March 23
Friday, March 13
