One of the shortest players on the field, sophomore running back Justin Hicks, had one of the biggest nights out of the backfield Friday during the annual spring game at Carl Lewis Field. Hicks rushed seven times for a game-high 39 yards.
“I made sure to take note on Justin’s performance,” said head coach Tony Levine. “He really played well for us tonight and really impressed me on what he was able to do.”
The offense and defense made big plays that had their teammates and coaches excited on the sidelines.
Junior quarterback David Piland hit four different receivers for touchdowns on 14-27 passing. Piland and the first team offense scored touchdowns on four of their five drives.
Piland found sophomore receiver Casey Martin on the left side of the end zone for a five-yard score. On the second drive, he then connected with sophomore receiver Deontay Greenberry on a two-yard fade route. The next touchdown was to senior receiver Dewayne Peace on a 19-yard ball down the right sideline, in which Peace out jumped his defender and was able to walk in for a score. Piland’s final touchdown was to senior receiver Xavier Maxwell. Piland drew the linebackers in on a play action pass that saw single coverage on the outside. Senior cornerback Thomas Bates allowed enough space for Piland to find Maxwell on an easy pitch and catch from 10 yards out.
Greenberry caught five passes for a game-high 76 yards. He said Piland and he have developed chemistry.
“We come in here every day, and we’ll be on the field before and sometimes after practice,” Greenberry said. “We all have to be on the same page if we’re going to be a dominant group.”
The defense had their moments on, too.
On Tuesday, defensive backs coach Zac Spavital said to be a great defensive back, they have to have great awareness and be fundamentally sound. He also said he feels his players are headed in that direction.
Redshirt freshman Brandon Wilson showed some of those qualities, posting six total tackles and three pass breakups, while junior corner Turon Walker, who had a returned interception in practice earlier this week, was able to snag one for the games’ only interception. The rest of the defensive backs missed a number of opportunities at interceptions.
The defensive line, including redshirt freshman defensive end Cameron Malveaux — who had the team’s only sack — often had Piland and back-up quarterbacks redshirt freshman Rex Dausin and senior Bram Kohlhausen scrambling outside of the pocket and forced them to throw the ball out of bounds.
