Aug. 11, 2006
NORMAL, Ill. -
After a soggy, wet night practice on Wednesday, the Illinois State football team was greeted with cool and sunny conditions on Friday when they practiced in full pads for a 24-period practice on the turf at Hancock Stadium. The dry conditions seemed to favor the Redbirds' running game, as newcomers Geno Blow and Alan Abrams both had standout days in the eleventh practice of the fall.
Head coach Denver Johnson used the mid-afternoon practice to take a look at his newcomers, and liked what he saw.
"The guys really got after it well today and we were really able to get a look at some guys that haven't had a lot of reps yet," said Johnson. "Geno Blow showed up today and had a great day for us at running back, along with Alan Abrams. I think that's due to some improvement we saw on the offensive line today."
Sophomore Kevin Mazur stole the spotlight early, as he hit field goals from 37, 47 and 52 yards to start practice off during special teams work. Bobby Kelsey also kicked well, as he connected on 42 and 47 yard field goal attempts.
After the kicking display, the running backs stole the show as the `Birds worked on their inside rush plays in the first team drill. Abrams carried the bulk of the load, with eight rushes for 24 yards and Blow carried five times for 15 yards. Rafael Rice was not about to let the newcomers steal the show, however, as he took the ball seven time for 27 yards. Kye Stewart was the leading tackler during the three-period drill, registering four tackles.
Following the emphasis on the rushing game, the quarterbacks got their workout in the 7-on-7 period that followed, as Luke Drone completed 6-of-10 passes and Kevin Brockway finished 6-for-6 in the drill. Jake Rourke highlighted the drill with his touchdown catch down the middle of the field from Brockway during period 20.
The second team session focused on passing and Brockway showed pinpoint control once again, going 3-for-4. Drone finished 6-for-10 and finished the drill by finding Laurént Robinson on three-straight completions. Jason Tate and Leon Kittrell did not make the ISU signal callers' job easy, as the two broke up consecutive pass plays to give the defense a lift as practice ended.
ISU will return to the field tomorrow for its third two-a-day session of the fall, with the morning practice set for 8:30 a.m.
