Spring Practice Notes: Day 5
Practice No. 5 was held in Mountaineer Field under overcast skies and some rainfall, but that did not stop the intensity on both sides of the ball.
Practicing in shells, the Mountaineers continued with the overall intensity and physicality Head Coach Bill Stewart spoke highly of at Wednesday's practice with both units flying around and making plays.
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On a hand off drill, linebacker Josh Francis hit a ball carrier forcing a fumble and a small-scuffle between the offensive and defensive units.
But that wasn't the only big hits of the day. Safety Mike Dorsey laid a big hit on a wide receiver and Darwin Cook hit Tyler Urban as he caught a ball that both drew reactions from the entire defense.
Terence Garvin also stood out, with a number of big hits on wide receivers and an interception of Geno Smith when he jumped a drag route intended for Tavon Austin.
But not to be outdone, the offense had it's moments as well.
Geno Smith continued to look poised and in command of the offense, drawing the celebration of the entire unit when he completed a streak down the sideline for a touchdown to Ivan McCartney who had beaten Broderick Jenkins on the play.
Another play that drew the reaction of the offense was a fake screen to the wide side, where Smith threw the ball back to the short side of the field where Trey Johnson was waiting on the ball and scooted up the field for around 20 yards.
Paul Millard also looked good, including a nice play-action post pattern to Bradley Starks which resulted in a touchdown and a number of other well-thrown balls into the middle of the field.
Speaking of Starks, him and the other wide receivers all continued to look comfortable in the system and all of the wide receivers had a number of nice catches.
Tyler Urban once again impressed and continues to show he will be an effective weapon in the offense catching balls over the middle and even taking the occasional screen pass.
As did fellow spring standout Daquan Hargrett, with a couple of nice runs including about a 25 yard burst off the left side aided by a nice hole created by the offensive line.
The next practice is scheduled for Saturday afternoon at Mountaineer Field.