Defense dominates at Rogers scrimmage
Posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008
ROGERS — The Rogers offense and defense traded big blows to begin their intrasquad scrimmage Saturday morning.
And then the Mountie defense kept making big plays and big hits to finish the All Mountaineer Football Scrimmage at Mountie Stadium.
After having its way against the junior varsity defense in the period before, the Mountie offense had its hands full against the No. 1 defense.
Junior Jason Oller started the varsity scrimmage by picking off junior quarterback Andy Couture on the first play.
The offense answered as senior move-in Justin Reed rumbled for a 95-yard touchdown on the next play.
“ Justin’s a hard runner, ” Rogers coach Ronnie Peacock said. “ He obviously has enough speed to make a difference and he plays on defense also. He’s very athletic and a very tough kid. He can help us on both sides of the ball. ”
The Rogers defense took over from there.
Senior defensive end Raul Gutierrez chased down Couture in the end zone and knocked down a pass on consecutive plays and senior cornerback Brian Trotter ended the series of plays starting at the 5-yard line with another interception.
Trotter got a second interception a few plays later, this time stepping in front of a receiver in the end zone.
Gutierrez, who had three sacks against the junior varsity offense, knocked down another pass later in the scrimmage.
“ He does a good job, ” Peacock said. “ We’re counting on him. He took a step up today from a defensive standpoint. ”
Junior linebacker D. J. Smart made a diving interception on the final play of the scrimmage.
“ All of that was based on a little bit more pressure than we needed and making a bad decision, ” Peacock said. “ We have to be smarter than that and make better decisions.
“ Andy, who usually doesn’t make bad decisions, made some bad decisions. ”
Couture did throw a touchdown pass to junior Lucas Gartman during a goal-line series and looked solid running the ball.
He had four long passing touchdowns — to Casey Caton, Casey Hilton and Graham Parker — against the junior varsity defense.
But the offense never made a big march against the varsity defense.
“ I’m a little bit discouraged, a little bit … I guess discouraged is the right word, ” Peacock said.
“ Offensively, we’re not in real good sync. Our rhythm is not very good. Our execution has got to be a lot more consistent. When we went against our varsity, we weren’t hitting on all cylinders. We certainly have to have a whole lot better than that. ”
Coaches will review film of the scrimmage, which also included the Elmwood and Kirksey eighth-grade teams, the Rogers ninth-grade team and the Mountie sophomores, to find players that will execute the way they want.
“ We’ll take a look at the film, ” Peacock said. “ Obviously we’re looking for some people to step up in some situations. I reminded them the film doesn’t lie. ”
NOTES: Senior running back Michael Tibbs was not dressed for the scrimmage … Kickoff 2008 begins at the new stadium at 7 p. m. Monday and will feature a pep rally and introduction of the football teams.
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