Football Fall Camp Report: August 5
Fall camp continued for Appalachian State University football on Monday with a two-hour practice at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Monday’s practice was Appalachian State’s fourth of the year. For the second-straight day, the Mountaineers worked out in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts with limited contact.
The two-hour session followed a similar script to Sunday’s practice, which was the first of the season in shoulder pads for the Apps. Like Sunday, Monday’s practice included several periods of 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work.
As has been the case for much of the first four practices of the season, Appalachian State’s offense was highlighted by the play of its top two quarterbacks, senior starter Jamal Londry-Jackson (Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta) and sophomore backup Kameron Bryant (Cary, N.C./Panther Creek). The duo was especially effective during the final 11-on-11 period of the afternoon, particularly Londry-Jackson, who threw long touchdown passes to sophomore Malachi Jones (Roswell, Ga./Central Gwinnett) and senior Tony Washington (High Point, N.C./T.W. Andrews).
The scoring strike to Washington was perhaps the offensive play of the day. Washington broke free off the line of scrimmage and down the left sideline when Londry-Jackson launched a pass in his direction. Sophomore safety Kevin Walton (Greensboro, N.C./Grimsley), who is having an impressive camp and was near the hash mark when the pass went in the air, showed terrific speed to close in on the pass and appeared to have a chance to make an outstanding play on the ball. However, the pass went just over Walton’s fingertips and into the hands of Washington, who displayed great concentration to make the catch and easily waltz into the end zone for a 70-yard touchdown.
True freshman linebacker George Vinson (Damascus, Md./Damascus) turned in the most exciting play of the afternoon on the defensive side of the ball when he made an acrobatic interception in traffic during 7-on-7 drills and returned it for a long gain.
During the closing 11-on-11 period, another true freshman linebacker, Tucker Bell (Raleigh, N.C./Leesville Road), made noise on back-to-back plays. The walk-on drew the praise of coaches when he tracked junior quarterback Logan Hallock (Ferguson, N.C./West Wilkes) as Hallock rolled to his right then batted down Hallock’s pass attempt with a perfectly timed jump. On the very next snap, Bell came untouched off the left edge to “sack” the quarterback with a two-hand touch.
Junior defensive end Ronald Blair (Greensboro, Ga./Greene County), who has been a force throughout the first four days of camp, also turned in an impressive play during 11-on-11 drills when he snuffed out a screen pass and batted down the ball to prevent what could have been a big gain.
Things get really fun on Tuesday when Appalachian State straps on full pads for its only practice of the day. Practices are closed to the general public but full reports will be available throughout fall camp at appstatesports.com.
Football Fall Camp Report: August 4
The pop of shoulder pads returned to Kidd Brewer Stadium on Sunday when Appalachian State University football held its third practice of the season on a gorgeous afternoon in the High Country. Per NCAA rules, Sunday’s practice was the first this season conducted in shoulder pads.
With the addition of shoulder pads on Sunday, limited contact was also introduced to the drills, which allowed for the most extensive 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work of fall camp to date. Highlights included:
• an impressive afternoon by sophomore quarterback Kameron Bryant (Cary, N.C./Panther Creek). Bryant made perhaps the best play of the afternoon during 7-on-7 drills when, while running to the left, the right-hander threw against his body for a 40-yard touchdown strike to true freshman Dante Jones (Raleigh, N.C./Southeast Raleigh). Bryant, who was practicing in pads for the first time since sustaining a season-ending knee injury during his collegiate debut versus Coastal Carolina last September, was also sharp during 11-on-11 work, including a first-down pass to Simms McElfresh (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Christian).
• a strong showing from starting quarterback Jamal Londry-Jackson (Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta). In the opening 11-on-11 period, Londry-Jackson threaded the needle for two completions to fellow senior Andrew Peacock (Durham, N.C./Northern Durham). After a shaky start to the next period, which included being picked off by outside linebacker Patrick Blalock(Asheville, N.C./A.C. Reynolds), Londry-Jackson rebounded to complete his final four passes of the afternoon, including first-down gains to Malachi Jones (Roswell, Ga./Central Gwinnett) and Bobo Beathard (Haymarket, Va./Battlefield).
• the defensive play of the day by redshirt freshman safety Alex Gray (Suwanee, Ga./Peachtree Ridge), who leaped high to intercept a pass and return it for what likely would have been a touchdown.
• redshirt freshman defensive end Olawale Dada (Columbus, Ga./Shaw) recording “sacks” (touching the quarterback) on back-to-back plays.
• Dante Jones just missing out on his second acrobatic catch for a long gain of the day. After adjusting to catch the 40-yard touchdown pass from Bryant while falling to the ground earlier in the day, Jones got behind the secondary and laid out to nearly haul in a long pass from Logan Hallock (Ferguson, N.C./West Wilkes). Jones got both hands on the ball with the diving effort but was barely unable to hold on as he crashed to the turf.
The Mountaineers will work out in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts again on Monday before strapping on full pads for the first time on Tuesday. Practices are closed to the general public but regular updates will be available throughout fall camp at appstatesports.com.
Football Fall Camp Report: August 2
Appalachian State University football held its first practice of the 2013 season on Friday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium. The Mountaineers practiced for two hours on a relatively cool, clear day in the High Country. The session was conducted in helmets and shorts, per NCAA regulations.
As expected, Friday’s season-opening practice was dedicated largely to fundamentals and establishing tempo. First-year head coach Scott Satterfield was pleased with what he saw in those areas, particularly the pace of the workout.
“It was a great day,” Satterfield said. “Our assistant coaches did a great job of organizing practice and the tempo was outstanding, especially when considering we added 35 newcomers to the mix who were going through their first practice at Appalachian State.”
One new wrinkle to Appalachian State’s practice routine was the addition of music blaring from the Kidd Brewer Stadium speakers during selected periods throughout the afternoon. The music debuted during spring practice but is expected to be a permanent fixture going forward.
“It’s something to keep the juices flowing, which helps with the tempo that we want to maintain throughout practice,” Satterfield explained. “Also, it cuts down on communication between coaches and players. When we get to Missoula, (Mont., site of Appalachian’s Aug. 31 season opener versus Montana), we won’t be able to hear anything. The music during practice helps our players learn to rely on signals rather than being able to hear the coaches’ instructions.”
Nearly all of the 105 student-athletes that reported for camp on Thursday participated in Friday’s practice with only a small handful of Mountaineers sitting out due to lingering offseason injuries. Only one player on Appalachian State’s preseason two-deep was among those who did not take part in Friday’s practice — junior offensive lineman Brandon Hunter (Chapel Hill, N.C./Hargrave Military Acad.), who is expected to miss all of fall camp after offseason shoulder surgery. Hunter came out of the spring listed as a backup at right tackle behind returning starter Will Corbin (Dunn, N.C./Triton).
Conversely, several players who sat out of spring drills due to various ailments returned to the field on Friday, headlined by senior quarterback Jamal Londry-Jackson (Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta). The Southern Conference’s preseason Player of the Year and Walter Payton Award candidate showed no ill effects from the knee injury that plagued him for the final three games of the 2012 campaign as he participated fully in his first practice since last November.
On Saturday, Appalachian State holds its annual Media Day at Kidd Brewer Stadium. Media Day is closed to the general public but fans can tune into App State TV for a live two-hour broadcast from The Rock, beginning at 10 a.m. The Media Day broadcast can be seen by App State TV premium subscribers exclusively at appstatesports.com.
- Photos by Debbie Carter and Ken Ketchie
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