NORMAL, Ill. – On a gorgeous Thursday afternoon, the Illinois State football team put in another hard day of work at Hancock Stadium, as they continue to implement new plays and schemes heading into the annual Spring Showcase on April 25.
Head coach Brock Spack and the rest of the coaching staff started the day on the grass at the nearby practice field by putting the Redbirds through some brief individual work. While kick returners George Moreira, Jamal Towns and James Graham took turns fielding kicks, Jon-Marc Anderson and Christian Gibbs continued to adjust to their new roles as punt returners by handling several long punts. The quarterbacks continued to work on timing with running backs and receivers, more specifically on swing and fade routes.
The team got its juices flowing with an intense blitz session, in which Josh Burch made several outstanding defensive plays in one-on-one pass coverage, and Michael Ganzer returned an interception for a touchdown. The 'Birds subsequently got into their first team scrimmage of the afternoon, in which the offense started at its own two-yard line to test how it would handle being backed up deep in its own territory. After converting a first down on the second play from scrimmage, a sack by Brent Spack and a TFL by Paris Ratliff ended the offensive drive. Later in the session, Marshaun Coprich took the ball up the right sideline for a 25-yard gain, after bouncing off a couple would-be tacklers.
The Redbirds switched to red zone and goal line work shortly after. Although the offense was unable to get into the end zone on its three red zone trips, three-straight field goals were converted by Sean Slattery (25 yards), Zach Breen (21 yards) and Prestin Van Mieghem (25 yards), respectively. During the goal line session, the offense scored four-straight touchdowns. Coprich punched in a two-yarder off right tackle, while Graham and Towns followed with scoring runs of their own. Quarterback Blake Winkler completed a touchdown pass to Bryce Holm to end the session.
The team then split into offensive and defensive individual work. The quarterbacks and running backs continued to work on read-option running plays, and later combined with the wide receivers to work on one-on-one, bump-and-run routes. The defensive backs and linebackers worked individually on tackling drills, and later came together to focus on base coverage formations, as well as shooting gaps and pursuing the ball.
Following a 15-play drill that focused exclusively on the running game, the 'Birds worked on punt protection and punt return schemes, before conducting a short perimeter drill. During the session, which again emphasized the running game, Graham made a couple of solid runs and the defense was highlighted by a sack by Jalen Battle.
The day ended with a 31-play, 7-on-7 session which was dominated by the offense – the Redbirds completed 23-of-31 passes. Tre Roberson was outstanding, going 11-of-12 with three touchdowns, including two touchdown passes to Anderson, who finished the drill with five total grabs. Roberson also connected with Gibbs for a touchdown and also found Towns for three completions. Jake Kolbe was equally efficient, completing 8-of-10 passes with a touchdown to Michael Clements. Kolbe found Clements and Kyle Williams for two completions apiece. Blake Winkler finished 4-of-8, including a pair of connections with newly-converted receiver Mitchell Brees.
The Redbirds return to the field Saturday at 9:30 a.m., for the 11th spring workout and second team scrimmage at Hancock Stadium. To follow all of the Redbird football spring camp action and more ISU football news, log on to GoRedbirds.com and follow the program on Twitter at @RedbirdFB.
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