Spring
Preview
2008
SEC Spring Game Reviews
Spring Game Reviews
- ACC |
Big East |
Big Ten |
Big 12 |
C-USA |
Ind.
- MAC |
M-West |
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SEC |
Sun Belt |
WAC
By
John
Harris
East
Florida
Although Tim Tebow got
Erin Andrews attention, it was the jitterbug from Lakeland who had
everyone else’s. Running back Chris Rainey made his presence known in
front of a national television audience and helped lead the Blue to a
28-14 win over the Orange in the annual Orange and Blue Debut. He
accounted for 76 yards rushing and one touchdown through the air, in
which he embarrassed the Orange secondary with his jock-dropping
quickness. Tebow, albeit on a day he was sick as could be, completed 13
of 21 for 200 yards and two touchdowns.
Georgia
The annual G-Day game
had some unexpected rain showers, but the rain held off long enough for
the Red to beat the Black 17-3. Quarterback Matt Stafford kicked off
the scoring, completing a 30-yard pass to receiver Michael Moore for the
Red team that had the first team offense and the second team defense.
The Black offense was led by running back Caleb King who ran for 31
yards on only six carries. UGA fans have waited an entire season to see
King, who was one of the top recruits in the class of 2006.
Kentucky
In the team’s annual
Blue-White spring game, the White eked out a victory over the Blue 23-22
on quarterback Curtis Pulley’s 17 yard touchdown run. The former
quarterback turned receiver turned quarterback left the pocket with just
over a minute left to give his team a one point win. Pulley did all he
could to prove he’s the right guy to replace Andre Woodson, completing
12 of 26 for 134 yards and a touchdown, while his main competition, Blue
quarterback Mike Hartline struggled completing only eleven of 28
attempts for 124 yards and a touchdown.
South Carolina
The annual Garnet and Black spring game appeared to be a rout early as
the Black team took a 31-7 lead. The Garnet team furiously roared back
in the second half, only to lose to the Black 37-34. Not surprisingly,
the Gamecock quarterbacks threw the ball 65 times, led by Garnet signal
caller Chris Smelley. He led the Garnet to a 34-31 lead late in the
modified fourth quarter, only to have quarterback Zac Brindise drive the
Black 83 yards on ten plays for the game winning score.
Tennessee
After losing
quarterback Erik Ainge to the NFL, the pressure of moving the Vol
offense falls on quarterback Jonathan Crompton. If the Orange and White
game is any indication, the Vols won’t miss Ainge in the slightest.
Crompton completed 13 of 20 passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns on
the day. His post-game surgery will set him back a few weeks, but he
should be back for summer workouts. Crompton led the offense to five
touchdowns as the White roared to a 38-16 win.
Vanderbilt
Even without Jonathan
Goff. and Curtis Gatewood the D was fine. Graduation may have hit the
Vandy defense hard, but this unit put on a show in the Black and Gold
spring game/scrimmage. The Black defense held the White offense out of
the end zone on the game’s first ten possessions. Broderick Stewart led
the defense with two tackles for a loss and a sack, while Chris Johnson
led the team with five stops. Running back Jared Hawkins led the
offense rushing for 44 yards on seven carries.
East
Alabama
Okay, so maybe Alabama
fans are getting a little complacent, with only 78,200 fans showing up
this year for the team’s annual A-Day football game (last year 92,000
found the time to show up on campus). The Crimson squad defeated the
White squad 24-14 as quarterback John Parker Wilson led the Crimson to
the win. JPW finished the day completing 17 of 34 passes for 265 yards
and three touchdowns, but also one interception. His favorite target on
the day was Mike McCoy, who caught six balls for 101 yards, but running
back Terry Grant made him look good on a 75 yard catch and run for a
touchdown.
Arkansas
It’s hard to say how
much ice quarterback Casey Dick was going to need for his arm after the
annual Red and White spring game. Shoot, he threw the ball more times
in one spring game than he did for half of a season in 2007. And,
therein lies the distinct difference in Arkansas’ offense under Houston
Nutt and the current offense under Bobby Petrino. Dick completed 33 of
49 passes for 404 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Red to a 45-14
victory. Running back Michael Smith took advantage of a Darren
McFadden/Felix Jones-free backfield, rushing for 157 yards and a
touchdown on 13 carries.
Auburn
The battle for the
starting quarterback position was on full display during the team’s
annual A-Day game. The Blue defeated the White 30-14, but the result
took a backseat to the battle waged by quarterbacks Kodi Burns and Chris
Todd, who both spent time with each team. Burns completed 14 of his 21
passes for 142 yards and had 37 yards rushing, while Todd completed 18
of 27 for 190 yards. Although each one threw a touchdown, Burns left as
the offensive MVP. Which means, what? Absolutely nothing. This battle
will wage war again in fall camp.
LSU
The national champs
used the spring to try to fill some major holes, in particular the one
at quarterback. During the team’s annual spring game, the reviews were
mixed for Jarrett Lee and Andrew Hatch, while Ryan Perrilloux was held
out, again, for off-the-field transgressions. Although Les Miles wanted
to see much better play from his signal callers, he can take solace in
the fact that he may have the deepest corps of runners in the SEC.
Richard Murphy ran for 145 yards and had three touchdowns to lead the
White to a 38-10 win over the Purple.
Ole Miss
Houston Nutt’s first
Grove Bowl had a little bit of everything, but when it was all said and
done, the Blue team beat the Red squad 40-14. Dynamic Dexter McCluster
was all over the place and was superb, catching eight passes for 106
yards and rushing for 35 yards. He wasn’t without help as former
University of Texas recruit and soon-to-be starting quarterback Jevan
Snead completed 20 of 26 passes for 269 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Mississippi State
Touchdowns were tough to come by in Starkville for the annual Maroon and
White spring game. Shoot, it took overtime for one team to just cross
into the end zone. That one score was enough for the Maroon to register
a 6-0 win. Quarterback Chris Relf completed a 25-yard pass to receiver
Co-Eric Riley on a day when the offenses struggled mightily. The
defensive star of the game was Cortez McRaney who had five tackles for a
loss and three sacks.
