NORMAL, Ill. – Four weeks of hard work and determination have brought the Illinois State football team to its final week of spring practice, with Tuesday's workout at Hancock Stadium beginning the fifth and final week of drills for the Redbirds.
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All of that work has been put in to prepare for Saturday's Spring Showcase, the team's annual scrimmage where family, friends, fans, students and alumni will have their first chance to get a look at the 2016 Redbirds. After Saturday's game, the team will head into its summer conditioning program in preparation for returning in August along with the freshman class to begin practice for the season opener on Sept. 3 versus Valparaiso.
A regular start to practice led to the team retreating to the grass practice field for the inside run drill and the one-on-one receiver and defensive back sessions, before the team drill began on the regular Tuesday script flip. Unlike its performance on Saturday, the offensive passing attack led by Jake Kolbe was sharp and racked up several big passing plays.
On the third play from scrimmage, Kolbe connected with Spencer Schnell who made several defenders miss over the middle of the field before being whistled down 30-plus yards down the field. Koty Thelen then connected with Nick Griffith for a pair of solid completions, before Kolbe found Anthony Fowler for a 50-yard touchdown score as he ran away from Davontae Harris down the sideline to the end zone.
Following a sack by Brannon Barry, Kolbe found Christian Gibbs for a 25-yard completion along the far sideline to keep his momentum going. The defense swung the drill back in its favor on the next play, when Mitchell Brees stepped in front of Thelen's throw to record the first interception of the day for the guys in white jerseys. However, four plays later DeMarco Corbin ripped off a 40-yard touchdown run and two plays later, Kolbe found Matt Biegalski along the sideline for 30-yard gain to end the drill on a high note.
The defense took control early in the no-huddle session, forcing three-and-outs on the first four possessions for the offensive units. On the fifth drive, Kolbe drove his squad down the field and capped off the drive with a 55-yard connection again to Fowler for a score. A pass breakup by Decxavier Kelly-Martin, a sack by Barry and a breakup by Jawill Aldridge gave the defense a win on the final series of the session.
7-on-7 work began and Kolbe was efficient once again, completing 11 of his 15 attempts during the drill, with completions to 10 different Redbirds including tight ends Michael Clements and Tylor Petkovich and receivers Bryce Jefferson and Kyle Williams. A brief blitz period followed, before the horn blew to signal the end of the day's work for the Redbirds.
ISU will return to the field Thursday at 3:30 p.m., for the ninth practice of the spring at Hancock Stadium. For live practice updates, photos and video follow the official Redbird Football Twitter account @RedbirdFB and log onto GoRedbirds.com for full coverage throughout the spring.
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