Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh holds first scrimmage of preseason camp
8/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh football team is now officially one week away from wrapping up its 2009 preseason camp following Sunday’s practice on the John C. Whitehead practice fields. The Mountain Hawks conducted their first scrimmage of camp on Sunday and afterwards head coach Andy Coen said he was pleased with what he saw on a hot, humid afternoon. “Another great effort given by the kids on a hot day,” Coen explained. “I thought the quarterbacks looked pretty good early on and the defense rallied and came back towards the end.”
Coen continued, “I thought we tackled well today and during our short-yardage situations, the defense did very well. On special teams our punt units looked crisp; they did some good things getting the one block down there that led to a touchdown (by Craig Zurn), so that was nice to see.”
The Lehigh offense had its moments on Sunday, highlighted by a long touchdown pass from freshman signal caller Michael Colvin to sophomore Jimmy Jefferson, who showed some toughness in dragging a defensive back with him into the end zone. Freshman Zach Barket churned out tough yards during the third-down situations, including a strong rush that led to a first down for the Lehigh “O.”
Coen offered his thoughts on the younger Lehigh offensive players. “(Wide receivers) James Flynn and Ryan Spadola both had a few nice catches for us today, and (tight end) Jamel Haggins caught a touchdown down there as well; he’s got a lot of potential with his size and athleticism.”
He went onto add, “We had a lot of our young linemen in there and overall they did a nice job; they battled all afternoon. The young running backs looked good in there, too. Overall the offense looked sharp in the beginning and they looked to have the upper hand, but the defense came back towards the end, particularly our front. (Freshman) Bryan Andrews returned the one interception for a touchdown, so there were a lot of good things going on out here on both sides of the ball”
After seeing the Mountain Hawks in game conditions for the first time, Coen was asked if the team was on schedule. “If you had asked me that prior to (today’s scrimmage), I would have said no; but I was happy with what happened here today and so I’d say we’re about where we thought we would be at this point in time. Still a lot of work to do though,” Coen said as he glanced at the calendar and noted Lehigh’s opener is only three weeks away.
The Mountain Hawks begin the 2009 season on Saturday, September 5 when they play host to the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils at Goodman Stadium. Kick-off is set for 12:30 and tickets can be purchased in one of three ways: by calling 610-7LU-GAME, by visiting the Lehigh Athletics Ticket Office, located in Grace Hall, or by logging onto Lehighsports.com.
NOTES FROM CAMP … Lehigh will conduct its second double practice session on Monday. The first double session was on Saturday, August 15 … the Mountain Hawks’ freshmen will be sent through University orientation later this week … classes for the 2009 fall semester begin on Monday, August 24 … the annual Alumni Steak Fry is set for Sunday, August 23 – the same day Lehigh’s preseason camp comes to a close.
