LEXINGTON, Va. -It wasn’t long, but it was enough to get the adrenaline going as VMI football conducted its first scrimmage-type session as part of its fifth practice of spring drills held Thursday at Jordan’s Point.
The Keydets scrimmaged for approximately 40 minutes in a controlled situation to wind up Thursday’s workout.
Rising junior running back Nat Jackson (Fredericksburg, Va.) led all ground gainers with 40 yards on 11 carries and also caught three passes for 41 yards. Senior quarterback Jonathan Wilson (Natural Bridge, Va.) quarterbacked the first unit offense and completed four passes for 46 yards while red-shirt freshman Joey Robinson (Gaithersburg, Md.) handled the second unit and tossed six completions for 93 yards, including a scrimmage-long 35-yarder to sophomore end Ryan Mingus (Dayton, Ohio), who caught two passes on the day. Other receivers catching passes were senior Tommy Lloyd (Stuart’s Draft, Va.) sophomore Willie Bell (Newport News, Va.) and junior Chi-Chi Ezekwe (Vicksburg, Miss.)
The defense had highlights as well, led by the line play of senior tackle Jack Herzog (Bel Air, Md.) who graded tops among the D-linemen. Rising senior defensive end Eric Hall (Marion, Va.) had an eight-yard sack while converted QB to cornerback Terrell Allen (Wilmington, N.C.) leveled two “big hits” and senior cornerback Jamaal Walton (Va. Beach, Va.) was credited with a knockdown and played well in the scrimmage. Linebacker Patrick McKinney (Big Stone Gap, Va.) had two tackles and an assist and backer Lucas Combs (Grottoes, Va.) had a tackle for loss for -2 yards. Red-shirt freshman defensive tackle James Robertson (Fredericksburg, Va.) wrapped up two tackles-for-loss.
VMI will break for spring furlough next week and will hold its next practice Wednesday, March 22, at Jordan’s Point.
The Keydets will conduct spring practice until the week of April 8th.
Head Coach Jim Reid “I thought the players played very hard and physical, and that is one of the qualities we want to maintain in VMI football. We’re very excited with some of the younger players making some great plays, and the older guys like Jack Herzog, Jamaal Walton, Eric Hall, Jonathan Wilson, and Chris Gilliland – they really stepped up and led our young squad. We’re very excited for our first scrimmage. We need to keep taking baby steps each practice, and it’s just so much fun to be out here with these great cadets. We as a staff have been pleased with the effort from the minute we started the off-season program with agilities and the weight room. Jimmy Whitten (associate head strength and conditioning coach) is extremely excited about it. The guys have worked very hard and we are developing an attitude and we need to develop an identity as well. The scrimmage was a good time. It was a great release. Everybody could tackle and we didn’t have to worry about it, and the guys played very hard.”
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