Hurricanes Conclude Week Two with Spring Scrimmage No. 1
March 6, 2010
Coral Gables, Fla. – Sophomore A.J. Highsmith threw three touchdown passes and senior defensive lineman Steven Wesley recorded two sacks as the University of Miami football team wrapped up its eighth spring practice with a 100-play scrimmage Saturday morning at the Greentree Practice Fields. Sophomore kicker Jake Wieclaw also had a good day as he connected on 3-of-3 field goal attempts.
Highsmith completed 9-of-18 passes for 95 yards, but it was the Miami running backs that shined on offense. Senior running back Damien Berry carried eight times for 48 yards while sophomore Mike James had six carries for 46 yards. Redshirt freshman Lamar Miller scored twice – first on a 9-yard TD run and on a 3-yard TD run in a goal-line situation. True freshman Storm Johnson ran tough as he gained 34 yards on six carries.
Miami’s defense stood strong holding the offense to two first downs in the first six possessions. DeMarcus Van Dyke had two pass breakups during that stretch. Wesley picked up his first sack on the third series for the offense. Senior linebacker Colin McCarthy also led the defense with five tackles and a fumble recovery on the day.
Berry sparked the offense on its seventh possession with runs of 23 yards and 28 yards which eventually led to Highsmith hooking up with Leonard Hankerson for a 5-yard TD grab.
True freshman Stephen Morris, who completed 6-of-11 passes for 63 yards, led the offense on a nice drive for its second score which resulted in a 32-yard field goal from Wieclaw. After a 35-yard run from Mike James put the offense in business again, Wieclaw made a 25-yard field goal.
Hankerson helped jump start the offense right after halftime. He and junior quarterback Spencer Whipple hooked up for a 45-yard gain. Miller then scored on 9-yard touchdown run as he bulldozed through the middle carrying a few defenders for his first score.
After a few defensive stops, Morris and Johnson then led the offense on drive from the 50-yard line that resulted in a 22-yard Wieclaw field goal. Johnson ran three times for 21 yards on the drive and Morris completed three passes.
Highsmith struck again with his second TD toss to LaRon Byrd from 17 yards. That score was set up after a 12-yard run by Pat Hill and a 14-yard catch by Travis Benjamin.
The Hurricanes capped the scrimmage working in goal-line situations. Whipple hooked up with Benjamin for a 15-yard score. Highsmith and Thearon Collier connected for a 14-yard touchdown. McCarthy had a fumble recovery at the 3-yard line before Miller scored from three yards to end the day.
Miami will take Sunday and Monday off before returning to the practice field at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Some Scrimmage Stats
Rushing
Lamar Miller 9 carries, 32 yards, 2 TD
Damien Berry 8 carries, 48 yards
Mike James 6 carries, 46 yards
Storm Johnson 6 carries, 34 yards
Pat Hill 2 carries, 13 yards
Passing
A.J. Highsmith 9-for-18 95 yards, 3TDs
Spencer Whipple 2-for-10 60 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Stephen Morris 6-for-11 63 yards
Receiving
Travis Benjamin 4 catches, 49 yards, TD
Thearon Collier 3 catches, 19, TD
Leonard Hankerson 2 catches, 50 yards, TD
Kendal Thompkins 2 catches, 32 yards
LaRon Byrd 2 catches, 30 yards, TD
Wieclaw 3-for-3 Field Goals (32 yards, 25 yards, 22 yards)
Scoring<>
Highsmith 5-yd TD pass to Hankerson
Miller 9 yd TD run
Highsmtih 17 yard TD pass to LaRon Byrd
Spencer Whipple 15 yard pass to Travis Benjamin
A.J. Highsmith 14 yard TD pass to Thearon Collier
Miller 3 yd TD run
Defense
Colin McCarthy 5 tackles, Fumble recovery
Vaughn Telemaque 5 tackles
Shayon Green 4 tackles
Steven Wesley 3 tackles, 2 sacks
Ray Ray Armstrong 3 tackles, 1 INT
DeMarcus Van Dyke 3 tackles, 4 pass breakups
Shannon Post-Practice
After practice, head coach Randy Shannon met with members of the media, here’s some of what he had to say …
On how the scrimmage went: The guys we’re depending on at receiver had too many drops and the tight end position had too many drops. Just as a total offense, we had too many dropped passes. Now, the best thing about it was the running backs really performed well.
On the running backs: Damien Berry performed unbelievable today. Lamar Miller did some great things. Storm Johnson did some great things and Mike James. Each one of them had an opportunity to carry the football and make somebody miss in space, which was a positive thing. We went about 100 plays. Every play wasn’t electrifying. They might get tackled for a two, three yard loss, but they came back and would have a 40-yard run or 20-yard run. They were patient.
On the defense as a whole: We had too many missed tackles. We had opportunities to make tackles. Yeah, we’ve got running backs that can make people miss, but we have defensive players that should make those tackles. I’m very disappointed by the way we tackled. I thought we chased the football hard on defense, but that’s the first scrimmage. You’re going to miss tackles. We have a long ways to go, but a lot of positive things happened. We had some sacks and things like that, but you can’t ever tell till you watch film. They chased well, just the missed tackles stood out. We had a couple of tackles for loss, had some gang tackling, some hard hits collectively as a group. But you always want more. We had balls hit defensive backs’ hands, dropped about five of those. Those can change the momentum of the game. We have to capitalize on things like that.
On how the quarterbacks looked: Don’t know. We had too many drops from the receivers, tight ends and running backs. They throw the ball, hit guys in the hands. A guy drops a pass and that kills a drive. There were too many of those to give the guys a full assessment. All of them are poised. When you’re recruiting quarterbacks, you have to have quarterbacks with confidence in themselves. All four quarterbacks have those qualities. If a receiver dropped a pass they didn’t get down, just kept going. And then they moved the ball.
On the change he’s seen in quarterback AJ Highsmith from last year: He’s a whole lot different person than last year, totally different. When you’re a different person you get a lot of confidence and the players look up to you that way.
On linebacker Kylan Robinson: His body has totally changed (from last year). The structure of his body has changed. He has more confidence. He just looks more toned. He takes things seriously. He looks better, is feeling better, playing a lot better, he’s making tackles. We’re excited about the way his progress is going, and he has to keep progressing. Is he where needs to be? No. But we put him in those situations now to make it tough on him and he’s accepting it.
On former `Canes at practice: When [Ken] Dorsey was here I was a coach here, so it was great to see him. You had Ed Reed, Dorsey, Jon Beason out here today. It’s always good to see those guys come back and watch practice. They continue to be part of this program.
Post-practice notes
More former `Canes were in attendance at Saturday’s scrimmage as Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed took in his second practice as did Carolina Panthers linebacker Jon Beason. Former `Canes quarterback Ken Dorsey also was in attendance Saturday.
The Hurricanes will take Sunday and Monday off. UM will practice three times next week going Tuesday and Wednesday on campus before traveling to Lockhart Stadium for an open practice Thursday. All practices on campus are closed to the public this spring. Miami have an open scrimmage on Mar. 11 and the spring game on March 27.
The Hurricanes’ are hosting a coaching clinic this weekend and several high school coaches were in attendance at practice Saturday morning. Former UM wide receiver coach and current New Orleans Saints wide receiver coach Curtis Johnson was a guest speaker Friday and a guest for the weekend.
Details for Open Practice and Spring Game Announced
The University of Miami football team has announced two dates for fans to get a glimpse of the 2010 Hurricanes. Miami will hold an open scrimmage on Thurs. Mar. 11 and its annual spring game on Sat. Mar. 27. Both events are free and open to the public. The Hurricanes will hold an intrasquad scrimmage, open to the public, at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale (5201 NW 12th Avenue) on Thurs., Mar. 11, at 7 p.m. Gates will open at 6 p.m. and players will take part in an autograph session from 6-6:45 p.m. Spring Practice will conclude at Traz Powell Stadium located on the north campus of Miami Dade College (11380 NW 27th Avenue) on Saturday, March 27. UM’s annual spring game which is slated to start at 4:30 p.m. Gates will open at 3 p.m. Players will take part in an autograph session from 3:30-4 p.m.
Spring Game to be Aired Tape Delay on CSS
Miami’s spring game on Mar. 27 will be aired on a tape delay basis on Sunday Mar. 28 at noon CSS has announced.
For `Canes Tickets
To purchase tickets for Miami’s upcoming 2010 season at Sun Life Stadium, contact the Hurricanes ticket office by calling 1-800-GO-CANES. Lower level season tickets start at just $199.
