Johnson, Telemaque Shine in 'Canes First Open Practice

Johnson, Telemaque Shine in 'Canes First Open Practice

March 11, 2010

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – Freshman running back Storm Johnson ran for 104 yards and a touchdown and sophomore safety Vaughn Telemaque intercepted two passes as the University of Miami football team completed its second scrimmage of the spring Thursday night at Lockhart Stadium. An estimated 3,000 fans were in attendance for the open practice.

Johnson carried 10 times and scored on a 6-yard touchdown run. Redshirt freshman running back Lamar Miller carried seven times for 63 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 44-yard TD run and 5-yard touchdown run in a goal-line situation to end the scrimmage. Telemaque and junior defensive end Andrew Smith led the defense. Telemaque’s first interception came on the second offensive possession of the game. He added another one right before halftime.

Sophomore quarterback A.J. Highsmith completed 7-of-11 passes for 94 yards and one touchdown, but was intercepted three times. Junior Spencer Whipple went 7-for-9 for 75 yards. Sophomore Mike James had 12 carries for 18 yards and one touchdown.

The defense held the offense on the first two possessions. Telemaque intercepted his first pass on the second possession. Highsmith then led the offense on a drive that resulted in an 8-yard touchdown catch by Travis Benjamin.

Johnson ripped off his first big run on the offense’s fifth possession. He rambled 52 yards for a first down to set up the offense in the red zone. A sack by Tyrone Cornelius ended that drive.

The defense stood strong on the next couple of possessions before halftime as walk-on Nathan Gholston had an interception, Micanor Regis had a tackle for a loss and Telemaque intercepted his second pass.

Whipple led the offense on its second scoring drive which was capped by Miller’s 44-yard TD run right before halftime.

Johnson had a 29-yard run on the first possession on the second half. One possession later, Wieclaw connected on a 33-yard field goal. Miami’s next touchdown came on a 13-yard touchdown run by A.J. Highsmith.

Whipple led the offense on its second scoring drive which was capped by Miller’s 44-yard TD run right before halftime.

Johnson had a 29-yard run on the first possession on the second half. One possession later, Wieclaw connected on a 33-yard field goal. Miami’s next touchdown came on a 13-yard touchdown run by A.J. Highsmith.

Miami then moved to red zone situations. After Whipple made a nice pass to Kendal Thompkins for a first down, Johnson ran six yards for a score. James and Miller each had touchdown runs to cap off the scoring as the offense started from the 3-yard line. James ran in from one yard out and Miller had the 5-yard run to end the scoring.

Aldarius Johnson led all receivers with three catches for 45 yards. He made a 26-yard grab on a pass from Highsmith which ended up leading to Highsmith’s 13-yard run. Defensively, MicanorRegis, Cornelius, Adewale Ojomo and Allen Bailey each had one sack to add to Smith’s three sacks.

Miami will take next week off for spring break. The Hurricanes will return to the practice field on Tuesday, March 23 at 3:30 p.m.

Some Scrimmage Stats
Rushing
Storm Johnson 10 carries, 104 yards, 1 TD
Lamar Miller 7 carries, 63 yards, 2 TD
Mike James 12 carries, 18 yards 1TD

Passing
A.J. Highsmith 7-for-11 94 yards, 1TD, 3 INTSpencer Whipple 7-for-9 75 yardsStephen Morris 0-for-3

Receiving
Aldarius Johnson 3 catches, 45 yards
Leonard Hankerson 2 catches, 35 yards
Storm Johnson 2 catches, 14 yards
Travis Benjamin 2 catches, 8 yards, TD
Billy Sanders 1 catch, 17 yards
Kendal Thompkins 1 catch, 16 yards
Davon Johnson 1 catch, 14 yard
Tommy Streeter 1 catch, 14 yards
Lamar Miller 1 catch, 6 yards

Jake Wieclaw 2-for-2 Field Goals (33 yards, 27 yards)

Scoring
A.J. Highsmith 8 yd TD pass to BenjaminLamar Miller 44 yd TD runA.J. Highsmith 13 yd TD runStorm Johnson 6 yd TD runMike James 1 yd TD RunLamar Miller 5 yd TD run

Defense
Andrew Smith 3 Sacks
Vaughn Telemaque 2 INT
Nathan Gholston 1 INT
Micanor Regis 1 Sack
Tyrone Cornelius 1 Sack
Adewale Ojomo 1 Sack
Allen Bailey 1 Sack
Ray Ray Armstrong Fumble Recovered

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 the Scrimmage: It was a pretty good day today. We got a lot of physical work in, a lot of runs. Overall, it was a good scrimmage. It was physical. We got close to 100 plays in, which was good.

On the running backs performance: I was kind of pleased with the running backs – they keep improving every week. The way they ran the football – early they were stuffing them, but the running backs were patient and kept going, kept fighting and had some big runs.

On the defense: Up front defensively – we have some offensive linemen out – but the defense really showed up, especially the tackles. Allen Bailey really showed up. They did a great job up front with the defensive line.

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.