In a game without a score, an opponent, or a running clock, coach Pat Fitzgerald still seemed pretty confident that he won Saturday’s spring scrimmage.
“Mission accomplished,” Fitzgerald said. “Most importantly, we came out healthy.”
The story of the day was defense. The first- and second-team offenses traded turns trying to drive the ball from their own 30-yard line. The offense was able to move the ball down the full-length field only once in the 90-play scrimmage, a drive cultimating in a keeper by junior quarterback Dan Persa for a touchdown.
“Obviously you’re never fully satisfied, but I like where we’re at now,” defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz said. “We wanted to prove that pass rush and effect the quarterback.”
The quarterbacks were wearing purple “no contact” jerseys, but they still felt the pressure of NU’s front line. The officiating crew called three plays dead, ruling the pressure in the backfield as sacks.
“Those plays today were a combination of the quarterback holding on to the ball a little too long and the offensive line not playing with a good pad level and playing together,” Fitzgerald said.
The pass rush also affected the quarterbacks when they did get rid of the ball, as Persa and redshirt freshman backup Evan Watkins combined to complete 19-for-38 passes with two interceptions.
Persa, who seems to have the starting quarterback position in hand, didn’t air the ball out much, going 7-for-11 with a pick coming on a pass from the 2-yard line that fell into cornerback Mike Bolden’s arms.
“I was trying to throw it up top, high, and it just slipped out of my hand,” Persa said. “I thought I took a couple of big steps in my development but I’ve got a couple steps to go to get where I want to be.”
On paper, Watkin’s statline doesn’t look impressive-12-for-27 with a touchdown and an interception- but he was a much better passer than the numbers indicate. Watkins’ second-team receivers dropped six passes, including several that hit receivers on the chest or hands. Watkins’ final pass attempt, though, was a touchdown pass to Mike Jensen on the game’s final play, the culmination of a mock red zone drive.
Watkins nearly completed the game’s highlight play he found senior Lee Coleman streaking in the end zone on a 37-yard pass. With no defender near him, Coleman got both hands on the ball but couldn’t corral the pass.
“Lee doesn’t drop the ball, so I’m going to have to look at that on film,” senior wide receiver Sidney Stewart said.” I just heard the crowd go ‘Ohhhhhh,’ and I went, ‘Oh, shoot!'”
Watkins’ interception also came out of the hands of one of his wide receivers, fellow freshman Brendan Barber. Watkins lofted a pass down the sidelines for what would have been a 30-plus-yard gain, but Barber was hit in midair and the ball fell into the hands of safety David Arnold.
The freshman quarterback also ran for 36 yards, including a third-down scramble for 14 yards. There’s no quarterback controversy, but that doesn’t mean Watkins didn’t turn heads with his play.
“I call Watkins ‘flamethrower,'” Stewart said. “The way he throws that ball, man, he’s got a great arm.”
With sophomore running back Arby Fields playing baseball and nine players-including five projected starters, four defensive–sitting out due to injury, the scrimmage squad looked different than the Cats will when they open against Vanderbilt in early September.
But that’s why it was only a scrimmage.
“It’s practice,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s not a game, it’s a practice.”
