Illinois State football coach Denver Johnson put his team through another rigorous practice Tuesday morning, complete with a number of drills and a conditioning session at the end.
The Birds had very little down time between their practice Monday night and their 8:30 a.m. start this morning. Johnson however, felt his team responded well to the quick turnaround.
I was really impressed with the guys this morning, Johnson said. We had a short turnaround. We didnt get off the field last night until 10:30. We turned right around and were on the field at 8:30 this morning. The guys pushed through it, got their jazz level up, and I think they had a very spirited practice.
Johnson was very pleased with the play of the young receivers today, particularly true freshmen Kyle Hill, Jason Horton and Laurnt Robinson. Sophomore receiver Ramon Barber also played well Tuesday, making a leaping grab towards the sidelines and catching a Mike Souza touchdown pass.
Those three young receivers, Horton, Hill and Robinson showed up to camp and have been doing some great things for us, Johnson said. Ramon caught a touchdown this morning. Were doing some good things in that area.
Even with the young receivers, Johnson sees much more youth on the defensive side of the ball.
This year with so many guys coming back on offense, theyre probably a little bit ahead of the defense right now, Johnson said. Thats just a factor of having so many guys back on offense.
Defensively, cornerback Cerone Colvin enjoyed his second day back with the Birds after an ACL tear during spring camp sidelined him for three months. Colvin continues to work his way back into the line-up slowly. He intercepted a Yance Vaughan pass during 7-on-7 drills, and looks on pace to be in uniform when the Birds open their season at home on August 29 against Drake.
Im just trying to get back that little bit of quickness that I had before, Colvin said. But other than that, everything feels fine. I try not to worry about my injury. I was injured, I rehabbed, I should be fine now.
The Redbirds continue their fall practice session in full pads for the first time Wednesday morning. Practice is slated to start at 9:00 a.m.
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