JMU Football opened Wednesday’s first fully padded practice of the season with the Oklahoma drill, which matches 3 defensive lineman trying to hold up 3 offensive lineman and then stop a running back that is trying to score. This drill set the tone for what would be a physical day for The Dukes. In the words of  Coach Mike Houston, “This team will hit you”.  

Here are some of the things I saw on Wednesday:

• The defense won a few rounds in the Oklahoma drill- Darrious Carter, Paris Black, and Issac Ukwu made resounding statements with big hits that left the defense cheering.
• Trai Sharpe broke through the line a few times, behind a powerful push from the guys up front. Trai showed his ability by bursting through the hole and into the end zone
• Eric Kirlew brought the session to an end by stretching into the end zone, around the extreme effort of the defense to stop him
• Matt Terrell and Robert Carter proved to be a good tandem near the end of practice when the offense and defense squared off. The pair blew up a run play in the back field. Terrell led the way with a thunderous hit on the running back and Carter was there to help polish the play up
• Landon Word delivered the truth a few plays later when he dealt a BIG POP on a running back for a tackle for loss
• Young linebacker Diamonte Tucker-Dorsey made a nice play during a coverage drill against a running back in the flat when he sped to the spot and knocked the ball away
• The Offense had its share of big plays as well, Clayton Cheatham had a few strong catches that were topped off with a one handed grab in the back of the end zone.
• David Eldridge, Jake Brown and Jamir Hudson each had at least one catch in tight coverage when the tempo of practice was at its highest
• Ben DiNucci connected with EJ Morgan on a bullet pass, and Josh Sims caught a pass that was thrown on a rope along the sideline
• Cardon Johnson displayed what East Carolina fans still have nightmares about when he broke off a long run where he reached the second level of the defense before most defenders had a chance to react
• I caught a terrific coaching moment when linebackers Coach Warren Belin took a player to the side after the player missed an assignment during a coverage drill. Belin put his arm around the player’s neck, like a father would do to a son, and explained pursuit angles. I couldn’t hear what he said, but the motions of his hands, and the head nods of the player let me know that the Coach had gotten the message across and the player had understood it. #coachedup