The Cougars were back on the gridiron Saturday, scrimmaging for the second time this season at Carl Lewis Field.
Head coach Kevin Sumlin said he is pleased with the Cougars’ development through the first two scrimmages and 10 practices.
“We ran a little over 100 plays in a little over an hour which is good for us,” Sumlin said.
“We’re working on some tight zone goal line stuff currently and some new formations.”
Defense stands out
The Cougar defense showed up Saturday and continually caused problems for the offense. They ran full speed effectively shutting down receivers and making tackles when called upon.
Their efforts did not go unnoticed as Sumlin gave some praise to the defensive corps.
“I thought the defense did some things today,” he said.
“We’re starting to get people in the right positions and we’re feeling comfortable with what we’re doing. Are we there yet? No. But we have another week and 20 days in the fall. So for me, I’m pretty happy with where we are right now.”
Sumlin was particularly impressed by the performance of junior defensive back Jeffrey Lewis.
“With our schemes and how we’re doing things, there has been improvement, and I think they are going to continue to improve.” Sumlin said.
“Jeffrey is a tremendous football player. He’s a player who can play a bunch of different positions. But we made the decision to just leave him at corner and let him play.”
A defensive resurgence is good news for a UH team that gave up an average of 32 points per game last season.
On the offensive side, the Cougars also have back-up quarterback Cotton Turner playing at full strength. Turner was under center for many of the snaps in the scrimmage Saturday, again sharing time with David Piland.
Redshirt freshman DeAndre Perry caught four passes, and running backs Michael Hayes and Justin Johnson both ran in touchdowns.
Turner said that he has been working tirelessly this offseason to get back to game shape.
“The bone has healed and I’ve been throwing for a while,” Turner said. “I just kept building it up. It got to the point in January when I was cleared to do whatever.
“I started a full offseason program and was throwing as much as I could.”
Offense looking for fresher start
Turner said that the offense has to come out with a higher level of energy in order to be effective against the focused and determined defense that showed up Saturday.
“I thought the defense played really well,” Turner said. “The offense needs to have more energy and just execute.
“If we play fast and with enthusiasm then we won’t come out flat like we did today. We all love the sport so we’re trying to have fun.”
The Cougars will have three more practices starting today, and the other two Wednesday and Thursday.
The finale to the spring season will be the spring game at 2 p.m. Saturday at Robertson Stadium.
