March 26, 2011
Quotes | Stats
RUSTON, La. - Colby Cameron stood out among the quarterbacks with a 27-for-39 day, including going 11-for-11 on a 95-yard drive for a touchdown near the end, but the defense racked up five sacks and four interceptions as Louisiana Tech held its second scrimmage of the spring Saturday morning at Joe Aillet Stadium.
Tech ran approximately 100 plays in the scrimmage and allowed the offense the opportunity to drive down the field, if they could.
The defensive line is quietly building itself into a strength for the fall for Tech with the five sacks on the day. Andre Taylor led with three sacks with Matt Broha and Chip Hester adding one apiece. Terry Carter paced the secondary with two interceptions and seven tackles while Blasher Saintvil (one interception, four tackles) and Ryan Williams (one interception, one tackle) added to the quarterbacks troubles. Mike Schrang led all defenders with 10 tackles.
Cameron was 27-for-39 and started hot with drives of 6-for-7 for 41 yards and 4-for-5 for 34 yards. However he fell into a slump going 4-for-14 for a combined 32 yards on his next five possessions before ending the day with a 95-yard drive where he was 11-for-11 for 96 yards (two holding penalties on the offense set them back) and capped it off himself with a five-yard touchdown run.
Cameron's overall performance throughout the spring has allowed him to lay claim to the starting quarterback job for now. Zach Griffith was 10-for-21 for 31 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions while Taylor Burch was 4-for-10 for 22 yards and one interception.
"I think we will," said head coach Sonny Dykes on if they will name a starting quarterback by the end of spring practice. "I think it is pretty obvious to everyone that Colby is the starting quarterback right now. The battle right now is for the second spot and both of those guys (Taylor Burch and Zach Griffith) alternate. Some days Taylor is good and on other days Zach is good. We need them to be more consistent."
D.J. Banks, a transfer from Tulane and unable to play in 2011 due to NCAA transfer rules, led the offense with two catches for 40 yards and a touchdown while junior college transfer Quinton Patton recorded four catches for 36 yards and a touchdown. Chandler Spence recorded 29 yards on four catches while Scott Cathcart added three catches for 21 yards.
"We would like to have receivers that could play 70-80 percent of the game," explained Dykes. "When you do that, then you have good ones. When you rotate a lot of guys, it shows you have depth but you don't have anyone that really stands out. To me, Quinton Patton did some good things today. He is real explosive with the ball in his hands after the catch. Richie Casey made more plays today than he has made in previous scrimmages. Myles White hasn't been as sharp because he has hit a wall. That is one thing the junior college players have to learn is to up their level of conditioning."
Lennon Creer had nine carries for 28 yards and a score on the ground and caught four passes for 20 yards while Ray Holley ran seven times for 60 yards. Tyrone Duplessis added 30 yards on seven carries for the tailbacks in his first action since the 2009 season due to a knee injury.
"They both have been good this spring," Dykes said of the top two running backs, Creer and Holley. "Last scrimmage I think Ray Holley stood out but today we had some dead legs. They were not as explosive as they have been but we practice yesterday and really got after it."
Louisiana Tech has four spring sessions remaining starting Monday at 4 p.m. and will wrap up spring practice with the T-Day Spring Game set for Saturday, April 2 at 2 p.m. at Joe Aillet Stadium. Admission is free for fans and the Ruston Brick Kids Zone opening at 12:30 p.m.
For complete coverage of Bulldog Football, please visit the official home of Louisiana Tech Athletics at LATechSports.com.
