VALDOSTA —
The Valdosta State football team will hold its first of two fall scrimmages today at the VSU practice fields.
The Blazers’ scrimmage will begin at 9 a.m. and will last close to two hours.
“Obviously, I am looking for intensity,” Blazer head coach David Dean said. “I want us to come out and have a good day, on both sides of the ball.”
Defensively, Dean said he is looking for better tackling from his defense, saying at times throughout fall camp the unit has struggled in wrapping up offensive players. Offensively, Dean said he is simply looking for consistency.
“We are still going through the deal where we play good for a little bit and then we lose focus or concentration,” Dean said. “And we have got to maintain consistency.”
The Blazer coaching staff, especially Dean, will have their eyes on the wide receivers in today’s scrimmage, too.
“I want a wide out to step up,” Dean said. “Every scrimmage we’ve had, I don’t think I can remember a wide receiver stepping up and making plays, and I want someone to step up and make plays.”
One wide receiver that will not participate in today’s scrimmage will be junior Griffin Roelle, who has been suffering from a hamstring injury throughout fall camp. Dean said Roelle is 80 to 85 percent healthy, but the coaching staff is being cautious with last season’s leading receiver.
Dean said no positions are secured and every position will be evaluated following today’s scrimmage.
“Obviously on our offensive line, we are pretty solid there,” Dean said. “But we have to find guys that can back up. We are looking in our secondary — safeties, corners — and different things like that. We have a lot of guys that we still have questions on.”
Even with big name guys like Lawrence Virgil and Tevin Davis on the defensive line, Dean said the coaching staff will have heavy eyes on the D-line to help determine what eight players will be the main rotating players this season.
At quarterback, Dean said starter Cayden Cochran has had a good camp, while back-up Graham Craig is the most improved.
“(Graham) has done an outstanding job,” Dean said. “He manages the game well, he makes good decisions. He is a very smart player. I think of all the quarterbacks, he has improved the most. And then Kaleb Nobles, is one of those guys that is a very good player. We are fortunate where we have, really, five quarterbacks that can go into the game and play for us. That is a luxury that you may need.”
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