By: Josh Stowers
For the first time in the 102 years that both Marshall University Football and The Greenbrier have existed, the Thundering Herd held practice on the grounds of "America's Resort."
On an absolutely gorgeous April afternoon, Coach Doc Holliday and his football team took the field at the AdvoCare Sports Performance Center in White Sulphur Springs, WV. "I saw some good things out of both sides of the ball. Overall, I thought they played hard and were physical which is important and we got some good looks," Holliday said.
Built in 2014, the AdvoCare Sports Performance Center serves as the pre-season home of the New Orleans Saints. "It's unbelievable. Jim Justice did such a tremendous job putting this together. Its first class and it's great for our kids to get exposure to something like this," Holliday said of the facility.
In front of an estimated crowd of around 200-300 Thundering Herd fans, Marshall took the field Saturday for their first official scrimmage of the spring.
Besides practicing at the new facility for the first time, Saturday marked the first time this spring that Marshall has practiced on a natural grass surface. I was interested to see if that would hinder their play at all, but it in fact did not.
After warming up to a very "80's" influenced playlist of music, Marshall went into their individual drills.
Before we get into everything, there were quite a few players who sat out the entire day or team portions on offense.
Clint Van Horn (rest), Devon Johnson (off-season surgery), Remi Watson (off-season surgery), Kaleb Harris (unspecified), Cole Garvin (unspecified) and Emanuel Byrd (unspecified injury-not serious) all missed time on Saturday.
As Coach Holliday stated on Thursday, Marshall has been limited to mainly practicing indoors, so they haven't been able to go through "live" punting. You couldn't tell that was the case Saturday afternoon.
Tyler Williams and Kaare Vedvik both boomed punts long and high in the air.
Williams, who is obviously a lock to be the starting punter, showed his normal power and accuracy. Vedvik, who is has a world of natural talent, just needs to be more consistent with his kicks. Coach Todd Goebbel was working with Vedvik on his drop points early on and it looked like it paid off. Vedvik hit the longest punt of day, booming one 70 yards in the air.
As has always been a trend with Doc Holliday led football teams, you can usually get a feel for the depth chart when watching Marshall's three official scrimmages of the spring.
Michael Birdsong took the field first at quarterback with Stew Butler at running-back, Ryan Yurachek at tight-end, Deon-Tay McManus, Hyleck Foster, and Davonte Allen at wide receivers. Sandley Jean-Felix, Sebastian Johansson, Michael Selby, Cody Collins, and Tom Collins all took the field with the first-team offensive line.
The second-team snaps were taken by Gunnar Holcombe. Behind Holcombe, Tony Pittman was at running-back, Joe Woodrum at tight-end, Emanuel Beal, Angelo Jean-Louis, and Justin Hunt played wide receivers. The second-team offensive line consisted of Eric Ansley, Fred Binot, Cody Collins, Jordan Dowrey, and Tyler Combs. Nate Devers filtered in at center and guard throughout the day, mainly on the second-team.
Quarterbacks
Everyone is well aware of the battle to replace all-everything Rakeem Cato and Saturday only fueled the questions even more. Birdsong took the first snaps, Holcombe had the most yardage, completions, and attempts, and Chase Litton made the right plays time after time. "I thought all three quarterbacks that played today did some good things. We have two weeks left so the scrimmage reps have to go to the right people so we'll evaluate film this week and make sure that happens," Holliday said of the signal-callers.
Each of the three quarterbacks had their moments throughout the day making plays. Birdsong accounted for two touchdowns on the day, first scoring a "fourth and one" quarterback option keeper from 26 yards out. He later found Yurachek in the corner of the end-zone from eight yards out.
Holcombe accounted for three touchdowns, all on the ground from less than three yards out. His biggest plays were deep passes down the sidelines to Josh Knight and Hunt who both beat the defensive-backs by elevating over top of them.
Litton's best plays didn't result in big plays, but when he made the right audible calls at the line after reading the defense. I overhead Coach Alex Mirabal compliment Litton a couple times telling him, "That's good s--- Chase."
It's tough to get a read on the quarterback situation right now. Birdsong seems to have the better skill set to fit Marshall's offense, but is still learning the playbook. Holcombe has a tremendous grasp of the offense, but doesn't show much "fire." Litton is just young. Honestly, he probably has the best combination of skills among the three, but I don't see Holliday and his staff playing a freshman ever again. The next two weeks will be interesting for Herd fans to watch.
Runningbacks
First off, I came away most impressed by this position after today's scrimmage.
Butler, Pittman, and David Gaydosz all showed toughness while running the ball. Stew's added weight has made a difference in him, Pittman is finally starting to make one cut and get up field, and Gaydosz surprised everybody having the biggest day of the backs.
Even though Stew is running tougher, he still has the speed we're all used to. He broke loose on a 40-plus yard run that would've been a touchdown had it not been whistled dead.
Pittman impressed me the most, showing a physical presence that only Devon Johnson could match. I count tell you how many times Pittman was part of a massive collision with Raheim Huskey, Stefan Houston, or Shawn Petty that he initiated.
Gaydosz surprised everyone showing toughness on the inside and a burst on the outside. He had the longest run of the day after he reversed field and broke a Cody Carter tackle before racing down the sidelines.
Wide Receivers
This is Marshall's deepest and most talented position, plain and simple.
Coach Mike Furrey has been blessed with some of the best talent we've seen at the receiver position since the late 90's. The combination of Allen, McManus, Beal, and Hunt's size on the outside paired with Foster and Jean-Louis's speed on the inside is an absolute nightmare for opposing defenses.
The scariest part about the wide-receiver rotation is that the two-deep doesn't include Josh Knight, who made the biggest plays yesterday. Marshall displayed the four-wide set of Allen, McManus, Foster, and Jean-Louis, which I think will be their most dangerous formation.
Tight End
With Byrd and Harris being held out yesterday, Marshall was limited to Yurachek and Woodrum getting snaps. Neither disappointed as they both touched paint after securing passes in the red-zone.
Marshall fans shouldn't worry about only returning one player with significant playing time. When healthy, Byrd and Harris will provide solid depth behind Yurachek. All three possess the athletic, hybrid skill set that has flourished in Coach Bill Legg's system.
Offensive Line
This position is my biggest concern on the offense, but shows a tremendous amount of potential.
Van Horn hasn't participated in hardly any team portions of spring practice which has allowed the younger tackles to get more snaps. This move should pay dividends by the time the season rolls around.
This offensive line will go as far as Selby, Johansson, and Van Horn take them. The biggest asset I've seen from this group is the ridiculous amount of toughness they play with. I saw Selby and Johansson both pick each other up off the turf after they were banged up and encourage them to "suck it up" for the next play. Of course, this toughness and the "edge" they play with all stems from Coach Mirabal.
After standing within 15 feet of Coach Mirabal for most of the scrimmage yesterday, I can honestly say we're blessed as a fan base and football team to have this man as one of our coaches. You could write a book listening to him speak about the technical aspect of being an offensive lineman.
Three players to watch going forward in this group are Jean-Felix, Dowrey, and Combs.
Overall, we need a handful of players to step up and show the leadership and production that are expected of upper-classmen. If that happens and a few of the younger players can grow into their positions, the 2015 version of Coach Legg's offense could have more potential than last season's.
Marshall will return to the field Tuesday afternoon at 3:30pm. It'll be interesting to see if Coach Holliday and his staff shake up the rotation at all after viewing film of Saturday's scrimmage.
This post was edited on 4/13 8:54 AM by Mike Gwinn
For the first time in the 102 years that both Marshall University Football and The Greenbrier have existed, the Thundering Herd held practice on the grounds of "America's Resort."
On an absolutely gorgeous April afternoon, Coach Doc Holliday and his football team took the field at the AdvoCare Sports Performance Center in White Sulphur Springs, WV. "I saw some good things out of both sides of the ball. Overall, I thought they played hard and were physical which is important and we got some good looks," Holliday said.
Built in 2014, the AdvoCare Sports Performance Center serves as the pre-season home of the New Orleans Saints. "It's unbelievable. Jim Justice did such a tremendous job putting this together. Its first class and it's great for our kids to get exposure to something like this," Holliday said of the facility.
In front of an estimated crowd of around 200-300 Thundering Herd fans, Marshall took the field Saturday for their first official scrimmage of the spring.
Besides practicing at the new facility for the first time, Saturday marked the first time this spring that Marshall has practiced on a natural grass surface. I was interested to see if that would hinder their play at all, but it in fact did not.
After warming up to a very "80's" influenced playlist of music, Marshall went into their individual drills.
Before we get into everything, there were quite a few players who sat out the entire day or team portions on offense.
Clint Van Horn (rest), Devon Johnson (off-season surgery), Remi Watson (off-season surgery), Kaleb Harris (unspecified), Cole Garvin (unspecified) and Emanuel Byrd (unspecified injury-not serious) all missed time on Saturday.
As Coach Holliday stated on Thursday, Marshall has been limited to mainly practicing indoors, so they haven't been able to go through "live" punting. You couldn't tell that was the case Saturday afternoon.
Tyler Williams and Kaare Vedvik both boomed punts long and high in the air.
Williams, who is obviously a lock to be the starting punter, showed his normal power and accuracy. Vedvik, who is has a world of natural talent, just needs to be more consistent with his kicks. Coach Todd Goebbel was working with Vedvik on his drop points early on and it looked like it paid off. Vedvik hit the longest punt of day, booming one 70 yards in the air.
As has always been a trend with Doc Holliday led football teams, you can usually get a feel for the depth chart when watching Marshall's three official scrimmages of the spring.
Michael Birdsong took the field first at quarterback with Stew Butler at running-back, Ryan Yurachek at tight-end, Deon-Tay McManus, Hyleck Foster, and Davonte Allen at wide receivers. Sandley Jean-Felix, Sebastian Johansson, Michael Selby, Cody Collins, and Tom Collins all took the field with the first-team offensive line.
The second-team snaps were taken by Gunnar Holcombe. Behind Holcombe, Tony Pittman was at running-back, Joe Woodrum at tight-end, Emanuel Beal, Angelo Jean-Louis, and Justin Hunt played wide receivers. The second-team offensive line consisted of Eric Ansley, Fred Binot, Cody Collins, Jordan Dowrey, and Tyler Combs. Nate Devers filtered in at center and guard throughout the day, mainly on the second-team.
Quarterbacks
Everyone is well aware of the battle to replace all-everything Rakeem Cato and Saturday only fueled the questions even more. Birdsong took the first snaps, Holcombe had the most yardage, completions, and attempts, and Chase Litton made the right plays time after time. "I thought all three quarterbacks that played today did some good things. We have two weeks left so the scrimmage reps have to go to the right people so we'll evaluate film this week and make sure that happens," Holliday said of the signal-callers.
Each of the three quarterbacks had their moments throughout the day making plays. Birdsong accounted for two touchdowns on the day, first scoring a "fourth and one" quarterback option keeper from 26 yards out. He later found Yurachek in the corner of the end-zone from eight yards out.
Holcombe accounted for three touchdowns, all on the ground from less than three yards out. His biggest plays were deep passes down the sidelines to Josh Knight and Hunt who both beat the defensive-backs by elevating over top of them.
Litton's best plays didn't result in big plays, but when he made the right audible calls at the line after reading the defense. I overhead Coach Alex Mirabal compliment Litton a couple times telling him, "That's good s--- Chase."
It's tough to get a read on the quarterback situation right now. Birdsong seems to have the better skill set to fit Marshall's offense, but is still learning the playbook. Holcombe has a tremendous grasp of the offense, but doesn't show much "fire." Litton is just young. Honestly, he probably has the best combination of skills among the three, but I don't see Holliday and his staff playing a freshman ever again. The next two weeks will be interesting for Herd fans to watch.
Runningbacks
First off, I came away most impressed by this position after today's scrimmage.
Butler, Pittman, and David Gaydosz all showed toughness while running the ball. Stew's added weight has made a difference in him, Pittman is finally starting to make one cut and get up field, and Gaydosz surprised everybody having the biggest day of the backs.
Even though Stew is running tougher, he still has the speed we're all used to. He broke loose on a 40-plus yard run that would've been a touchdown had it not been whistled dead.
Pittman impressed me the most, showing a physical presence that only Devon Johnson could match. I count tell you how many times Pittman was part of a massive collision with Raheim Huskey, Stefan Houston, or Shawn Petty that he initiated.
Gaydosz surprised everyone showing toughness on the inside and a burst on the outside. He had the longest run of the day after he reversed field and broke a Cody Carter tackle before racing down the sidelines.
Wide Receivers
This is Marshall's deepest and most talented position, plain and simple.
Coach Mike Furrey has been blessed with some of the best talent we've seen at the receiver position since the late 90's. The combination of Allen, McManus, Beal, and Hunt's size on the outside paired with Foster and Jean-Louis's speed on the inside is an absolute nightmare for opposing defenses.
The scariest part about the wide-receiver rotation is that the two-deep doesn't include Josh Knight, who made the biggest plays yesterday. Marshall displayed the four-wide set of Allen, McManus, Foster, and Jean-Louis, which I think will be their most dangerous formation.
Tight End
With Byrd and Harris being held out yesterday, Marshall was limited to Yurachek and Woodrum getting snaps. Neither disappointed as they both touched paint after securing passes in the red-zone.
Marshall fans shouldn't worry about only returning one player with significant playing time. When healthy, Byrd and Harris will provide solid depth behind Yurachek. All three possess the athletic, hybrid skill set that has flourished in Coach Bill Legg's system.
Offensive Line
This position is my biggest concern on the offense, but shows a tremendous amount of potential.
Van Horn hasn't participated in hardly any team portions of spring practice which has allowed the younger tackles to get more snaps. This move should pay dividends by the time the season rolls around.
This offensive line will go as far as Selby, Johansson, and Van Horn take them. The biggest asset I've seen from this group is the ridiculous amount of toughness they play with. I saw Selby and Johansson both pick each other up off the turf after they were banged up and encourage them to "suck it up" for the next play. Of course, this toughness and the "edge" they play with all stems from Coach Mirabal.
After standing within 15 feet of Coach Mirabal for most of the scrimmage yesterday, I can honestly say we're blessed as a fan base and football team to have this man as one of our coaches. You could write a book listening to him speak about the technical aspect of being an offensive lineman.
Three players to watch going forward in this group are Jean-Felix, Dowrey, and Combs.
Overall, we need a handful of players to step up and show the leadership and production that are expected of upper-classmen. If that happens and a few of the younger players can grow into their positions, the 2015 version of Coach Legg's offense could have more potential than last season's.
Marshall will return to the field Tuesday afternoon at 3:30pm. It'll be interesting to see if Coach Holliday and his staff shake up the rotation at all after viewing film of Saturday's scrimmage.
This post was edited on 4/13 8:54 AM by Mike Gwinn
