Cody Kirk and MSU's ground game take center stage Saturday
Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Gridders Scrimmage in Bobcat Stadium Saturday
3/30/2012 4:56:00 PM | Football
Ash looks to evaluate ground game in first spring scrum
The back-and-forth nature of spring football is on full display in Bobcat Stadium Saturday, when Montana State stages its first scrimmage of the spring just before 1:30 pm.
While Ash has liked the “pretty good ebb and flow” between success by the offense and defense, he said a few certainties have emerged. “Right now it's pretty obvious that the no. one defensive line is pretty tough to block,” he said of the unit featuring returning All-America Zach Minter and a pair of other returning All-Big Sky honorees in ends Brad Daly and Caleb Schreibeis.
That defensive line has butted heads with a young offensive line, featuring senior center Shaun Sampson and senior tackle Steven Foster, who started at tight end last fall. The three other spots have been occupied redshirt freshmen throughout the spring.
“I really like our young offensive linemen,” Ash said. “They're working hard and doing a good job. We got a boost this week, too, when (sophomore) Quinn Catalano started practicing, and he has done a very good job in his two practices. I'm looking forward to seeing him in the scrimmage.”
The run game stands as the central feature of Saturday's scrimmage, Ash said. “This will come as no surprise, but we're going to try to evaluate the run game. That's what we try to do in scrimmages, whether it's the spring or August. The only way to see how a running play ends, whether a guy makes a tackle or breaks a tackle, is in the scrimmage. So it's important to do that when we have scrimmages.”
With returning starter DeNarius McGhee and redshirt freshman Jake Bleskin pulling the trigger, Ash also hopes to evaluate the short passing game. “We want to do is get the hands in the receivers early in plays, swing passes and screens and so forth, to see what they can do and look at our open field tackling. It won't necessarily be the game plan you'd see from us in a game, but it will be plays we want to see run in a live situation.”
The scrimmage portion of Saturday's practice begins at 1:25 pm and is open to the public.
While Ash has liked the “pretty good ebb and flow” between success by the offense and defense, he said a few certainties have emerged. “Right now it's pretty obvious that the no. one defensive line is pretty tough to block,” he said of the unit featuring returning All-America Zach Minter and a pair of other returning All-Big Sky honorees in ends Brad Daly and Caleb Schreibeis.
That defensive line has butted heads with a young offensive line, featuring senior center Shaun Sampson and senior tackle Steven Foster, who started at tight end last fall. The three other spots have been occupied redshirt freshmen throughout the spring.
“I really like our young offensive linemen,” Ash said. “They're working hard and doing a good job. We got a boost this week, too, when (sophomore) Quinn Catalano started practicing, and he has done a very good job in his two practices. I'm looking forward to seeing him in the scrimmage.”
The run game stands as the central feature of Saturday's scrimmage, Ash said. “This will come as no surprise, but we're going to try to evaluate the run game. That's what we try to do in scrimmages, whether it's the spring or August. The only way to see how a running play ends, whether a guy makes a tackle or breaks a tackle, is in the scrimmage. So it's important to do that when we have scrimmages.”
With returning starter DeNarius McGhee and redshirt freshman Jake Bleskin pulling the trigger, Ash also hopes to evaluate the short passing game. “We want to do is get the hands in the receivers early in plays, swing passes and screens and so forth, to see what they can do and look at our open field tackling. It won't necessarily be the game plan you'd see from us in a game, but it will be plays we want to see run in a live situation.”
The scrimmage portion of Saturday's practice begins at 1:25 pm and is open to the public.
Thursday, July 31
Monday, May 19
Wednesday, May 03
Wednesday, May 03
