2009 Spring Game Reviews - Big 12

What happened in the Big 12 spring games? Check out the reviews of the final scrimmages of the spring season.

Spring Preview 2009

Big 12 Spring Game Reviews

Spring Game Reviews
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The Spring Games So Far ...

Baylor
April 2 - As expected, Robert Griffin was Robert Griffin running for a score and completing 19-of-25 passes for 310 yards and three touchdowns and a pick, but all eyes were on the offensive line. Who was going to replace Jason Smith at left tackle? JUCO transfer Danny Watkins isn’t going to be a top five draft pick, but he showed good potential. He needs work, but he’s going to be a good one.  RB Jarred Salubi was one of the stars of spring ball, but he only ran for 40 yards on 12 carries.

Colorado
April 25 – The Black team beat the Gold 17-10 with the quarterback situation still remaining unsettled even though it was a one-sided comparison. Cody Hawkins completed 12-of-21 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns, while Tyler Hansen struggled in the rotation completing just 4-of-10 passes for 66 yards while having a hard time dealing with the pass rush. After failing to break out and live up to the prep hype last season, RB Darrell Scott provided hope going into the fall after running for 90 yards on 15 carries and catching three passes for 38 yards. He even threw a scoring pass. Last year’s leading running back, Rodney Stewart, ran for 52 yards on eight carries. LB Jeff Smart led the defenses with seven tackles.

Iowa State
April 18 – Overall, it was a sloppy game that showed there’s more work to be done on both sides of the ball, but the big question mark could be at quarterback. While the Gold team got 210 passing yards from QB Jerome Tiller on the way to a 34-16 win over the Cardinal, new head coach Paul Rhoads said that Austen Arnaud is the starting quarterback going into the fall. Arnaud was off in the scrimmage, going against the top defensive players on the other side, but even with the two early interceptions there’s still not going to be a change in his job status … for now. Tiller was clearly the better of the two in the game. WR Sedrick Johnson was one of the offensive stars catching nine passes for 100 yards.

Kansas
April 11 – Todd Reesing completed 16-of-22 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown leading the Blue team to a 20-7 win over the White team. Jonathan Wilson was the star of the show catching seven passes for 133 yards and a score showing why he’ll be a dangerous third target with Dezmon Briscoe and Kerry Meier already forming a dynamic 1-2 punch. Also suspended from spring ball was Jocques Crawford for violating team rules, but Jake Sharp ran for 63 yards and a score for the Blue. Kale Pick quarterbacked the White team and might have locked up the No. 2 job completing 14-of-21 passes for 108 yards and a score while showing off good mobility by running for 33 yards.

Missouri
April 18 – The defense was way ahead of the offense in a 68-40 win under the modified scoring system. The offense wasn’t sharp, but it was clear that sophomore Blaine Gabbert will be the starter with Ashton Glaser and Blaine Dalton, both freshmen, likely to battle it out this fall for the No. 2 job. The main difference in the offense? More downfield passing. Gabbert showed off a better arm than Chase Daniel ever did, even though he only completed 9-of-17 passes for 93 yards and an interception. The offense didn’t have all of its weapons, but Gabbert’s decision making was still an issue. It’s all about time. The skills were shown off all spring, but he simply needs more reps.

Nebraska
April 18 – It was a true scrimmage with the coaching staff moving around different players on defense to test them out, and the quarterbacks were off-limits.  QB Zac Lee took command of the starting job completing 15-of-18 passes with three touchdowns, highlighted by a 40-yard scoring pass to Wes Cammack, in the Red’s 31-17 win over the White, while RB Quentin Castille ran for 33 yards highlighted by a 17-yard dash to set up a field goal.  Latravis Washington completed 13-of-21 passes for 190 yards and two scores with a 71-yarder to Kyler Reed late in the fourth quarter. Jase Dean paced the Red team with five tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack, while Will Compton led the White with seven tackles.

Oklahoma
April 11 – Sam Bradford looked in mid-season form completing 11-of-13 passes for 97 yards and a score in his few drives of work. But it was the defense that dominated throughout with Frank Alexander coming up with three sacks and Dominique Franks picking off a pass for a touchdown. The defense won according to the scoring system 63-36, but the O didn’t exactly open up the playbook. Most of the stars didn’t play, but there still might be a bit of a concern going into the fall with the backup quarterback situation as both Landry Jones and Drew Allen struggled with their consistency.  Even with all the offensive concerns and issues there were some bright spots, most notably WR Adron Tennell, who capped off a strong spring with a 23-yard touchdown catch from Bradford.

Oklahoma State
April 18 – The Orange beat the White 20-15 thanks to a trick play. RB Keith Toston took a pitch and threw a 42-yard scoring pass to TE Justin Horton, but the White team had its moments highlighted by an interception return for a score from LB Donald Booker. The quarterback play was mediocre with backup Alex Cate completing 10-of-19 passes for 87 yards for the Orange team, while Brandon Weeden closed out a great spring by completing 15-of-25 passes for 102 yards. While star WR Dez Bryant didn’t play with an injured knee healing up, starting QB Zac Robinson was fine for his three series of action leading his team to a scoring drive capped off by a ten-yard Toston touchdown run.  

Texas
April 5 – The defense had a big day, but the real star was the wind as the Orange beat the White team 21-7. The receiving corps had problems holding on to the ball, but Colt McCoy didn’t have much of a chance to shine in the blustery conditions completing just 11-of-24 passes for 95 yards. No. 2 QB Sherrod Harris didn’t have much more luck competing just one of his six throws. With the conditions and the defense controlling the day, the running game had its moments with Vondrell McGee running for 20 yards with two short touchdowns and Fozzy Whittaker ran for 32 yards on ten carries. The battle for the No. 1 running back job will continue into the fall.

Texas A&M
April 24 – Using a modified scoring system, the offense beat the defense 117 to 107 led by Jeff Fuller, who dominated with nine catches for 147 yards and a score with the touchdown coming on a nice 30-yard play. Trying to hang on to his starting quarterback job, Jerrod Johnson completed 14-of-29 passes for 206 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and while he wasn’t consistent and misfired on too many plays, he also showed a good arm and connected on some big throws. His misses were more than forgiven considering he attended his grandmother’s funeral earlier in the day. In an attempt to replace Mike Goodson as one of the new stars of the running game, Jay Tolliver ran for 63 yards on 18 carries. Defensively, junior Von Miller closed out a strong spring as the new star of the front seven with two sacks and consistent pressure against an O line that continues to have problems in pass protection.

Texas Tech
April 18 – The defense had the highlight as Cody Davis took a Stefan Loucks pass 100 yards to lead the White team to a 19-7 win over the Red, but all eyes were on QB Taylor Potts in his first big chance since the graduation of Graham Harrell. More than solid, Potts completed 20-of-27 passes for 211 yards with a six-yard touchdown pass to Tramain Swindell for the Red squad. Steven Sheffield was strong for the White team completed 11-of-18 passes for 99 yards and a score on a four-yard pass to Detron Lewis. Overall, though, the offense sputtered and coughed, at least by Texas Tech standards, combining to convert 3-of-19 third down conversions. Daniel Howard came up with two sacks and three tackles for loss for the White team, while Tyrone Sonier led all defenders with eight tackles and a sack.