Mountain Hawks hold first scrimmage of preseason camp
8/17/2016 6:52:00 PM | Football
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – On the 10th day of preseason camp, the Lehigh football team held its first scrimmage of camp on a hot afternoon Wednesday in Goodman Stadium. The workout, which clocked in at around 90 minutes in the August heat, featured just over an hour of live scrimmaging. Lehigh's first team offense generated several big plays while the defense held its own defending the run as the Mountain Hawks held what is expected to be the most physical of their 23 scheduled camp practices.
"The offense played really well and generated a couple big plays," Lehigh head coach Andy Coen said. "It was really give-and-take except we had a couple big plays offensively. I'm sure the defense is going to sure some things up. I thought they controlled the run game pretty well up front, which is something we struggled with at times last year. We made some strides on the run defense. We just need to keep working on the pass defense there."
(8/17/2016) Football Scrimmage, 8/17/16
The opening drive of the scrimmage saw senior quarterback Nick Shafnisky maneuver the first team offense down the field, picking up four first downs along the way before connecting with junior tight end Drew Paulsen, who made a good adjustment on a tipped ball in the back of the end zone, for a touchdown.
The defense stepped up on the first drive for the second offense, generating good pressure up front for a three-and-out. After a reset, sophomore Brad Mayes connected with senior Trevor Socarras for a big gainer down the seam to set up the offense in the red zone. The defense tightened up after that, forcing a field goal attempt where sophomore Ed Mish split the uprights.
Shafnisky's second drive leading the first team offense also resulted in a touchdown. After methodically moving the ball down the field, sophomore Micco Brisker powered off the right side for a four yard scoring run. Brisker and classmate Nick Thevanayagam enjoyed bigger opportunities to showcase their skills as returning all-league performers like Dominick Bragalone and Troy Pelletier were rested after the initial offensive series.
"Our kids really competed well," Coen said. "It was good to see Nick Thevanayagam play really well for us. Really, the thought process was to get Dom a series and get him out and get Nick and Micco involved. (Micco) did a nice job. Caught the ball out of the backfield. I think he's going to be somebody that's going to be a different guy this year than he was last year."
Coen also commented on the passing game, which has appeared to be in synch throughout camp.
"The good thing is that we have some guys that can really catch the ball with him. Gatlin Casey is someone who's going to make a big impact for us. Today, Troy was one of the guys we gave a series to and didn't want him to do too much after that, but he was dynamic in making people miss on the sideline.
He continued "The offense is a little bit ahead of where I thought they would be really but I knew we were going to have an explosive offense and Nick now is a senior and has really good ownership of the football team. That's going to make a huge difference."
Lehigh's defense once again looked strong against the second team offense, this time with junior Matt Timochenko taking the reps at quarterback.
"The guys up front did a nice job," Coen said of the defense's performance in the scrimmage. "Tyler Cavenas in particular. Also, Colin Nace as a freshman did a nice job filling in there. He played for a very strong high school and was a two-year starter there. There aren't many guys there who start for two years so I think he's a good player who is just going to keep getting better for us."
Following a break for water and a kickoff return drill, freshman Tyler Monaco led the offense to a score in his only series under center. The drive was capped by a 27 yard touchdown pass to sophomore Conner Bianchini, in what would be the final score of the day for the offense.
On the very next play Shafnisky connected with senior Jarrod Howard on a deep pass play but the defense tightened up after that and kept the offense out of the end zone. The defense also stopped drives led by Mayes and Timochenko before the scrimmaged wrapped up with a demonstration of some of the new rule changes related to blocking from the officiating crew that was on hand.
Wednesday's scrimmage marked practice No. 11 for the Mountain Hawks. Coen has been impressed with what he has seen through 11 practices, especially with the head and humidity as high for many of these practices as it has been all summer.
"Our kids are inspired," he said. "They want to be here and they're working hard. "The heat's been really hard but the kids have done a nice job working through it. Working through that stuff is only going to make them more mentally tough. Which is only going to help us prepare for the season."
Lehigh will hold its third double session in the last five days on Thursday and will have a single practice on Friday before scrimmaging again on Saturday. Sunday will mark the second off day in terms of practice. The Mountain Hawks were off this past Monday after holding their first double session on Sunday.
"I told the boys this was going to be a physical scrimmage today," Coen said. "The next scrimmages will just be all thud scrimmages. We're not going to take anyone down. We'll do a lot of situational type of things but all those things are very important as well."
The camp portion of Lehigh's preseason runs through Saturday August 27 with the annual alumni Steak Fry set for the following day. Lehigh's fall semester begins on Monday August 29, with Lehigh falling into its normal game week routine beginning Tuesday August 30.
The Mountain Hawks will open the 2016 season against the Monmouth Hawks on Saturday, September 3 at 12:30 p.m. at Goodman Stadium. Tickets to that game and all Lehigh home football games can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com.
Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
"The offense played really well and generated a couple big plays," Lehigh head coach Andy Coen said. "It was really give-and-take except we had a couple big plays offensively. I'm sure the defense is going to sure some things up. I thought they controlled the run game pretty well up front, which is something we struggled with at times last year. We made some strides on the run defense. We just need to keep working on the pass defense there."
The opening drive of the scrimmage saw senior quarterback Nick Shafnisky maneuver the first team offense down the field, picking up four first downs along the way before connecting with junior tight end Drew Paulsen, who made a good adjustment on a tipped ball in the back of the end zone, for a touchdown.
The defense stepped up on the first drive for the second offense, generating good pressure up front for a three-and-out. After a reset, sophomore Brad Mayes connected with senior Trevor Socarras for a big gainer down the seam to set up the offense in the red zone. The defense tightened up after that, forcing a field goal attempt where sophomore Ed Mish split the uprights.
Shafnisky's second drive leading the first team offense also resulted in a touchdown. After methodically moving the ball down the field, sophomore Micco Brisker powered off the right side for a four yard scoring run. Brisker and classmate Nick Thevanayagam enjoyed bigger opportunities to showcase their skills as returning all-league performers like Dominick Bragalone and Troy Pelletier were rested after the initial offensive series.
"Our kids really competed well," Coen said. "It was good to see Nick Thevanayagam play really well for us. Really, the thought process was to get Dom a series and get him out and get Nick and Micco involved. (Micco) did a nice job. Caught the ball out of the backfield. I think he's going to be somebody that's going to be a different guy this year than he was last year."
Coen also commented on the passing game, which has appeared to be in synch throughout camp.
"The good thing is that we have some guys that can really catch the ball with him. Gatlin Casey is someone who's going to make a big impact for us. Today, Troy was one of the guys we gave a series to and didn't want him to do too much after that, but he was dynamic in making people miss on the sideline.
He continued "The offense is a little bit ahead of where I thought they would be really but I knew we were going to have an explosive offense and Nick now is a senior and has really good ownership of the football team. That's going to make a huge difference."
Lehigh's defense once again looked strong against the second team offense, this time with junior Matt Timochenko taking the reps at quarterback.
"The guys up front did a nice job," Coen said of the defense's performance in the scrimmage. "Tyler Cavenas in particular. Also, Colin Nace as a freshman did a nice job filling in there. He played for a very strong high school and was a two-year starter there. There aren't many guys there who start for two years so I think he's a good player who is just going to keep getting better for us."
Following a break for water and a kickoff return drill, freshman Tyler Monaco led the offense to a score in his only series under center. The drive was capped by a 27 yard touchdown pass to sophomore Conner Bianchini, in what would be the final score of the day for the offense.
On the very next play Shafnisky connected with senior Jarrod Howard on a deep pass play but the defense tightened up after that and kept the offense out of the end zone. The defense also stopped drives led by Mayes and Timochenko before the scrimmaged wrapped up with a demonstration of some of the new rule changes related to blocking from the officiating crew that was on hand.
Wednesday's scrimmage marked practice No. 11 for the Mountain Hawks. Coen has been impressed with what he has seen through 11 practices, especially with the head and humidity as high for many of these practices as it has been all summer.
"Our kids are inspired," he said. "They want to be here and they're working hard. "The heat's been really hard but the kids have done a nice job working through it. Working through that stuff is only going to make them more mentally tough. Which is only going to help us prepare for the season."
Lehigh will hold its third double session in the last five days on Thursday and will have a single practice on Friday before scrimmaging again on Saturday. Sunday will mark the second off day in terms of practice. The Mountain Hawks were off this past Monday after holding their first double session on Sunday.
"I told the boys this was going to be a physical scrimmage today," Coen said. "The next scrimmages will just be all thud scrimmages. We're not going to take anyone down. We'll do a lot of situational type of things but all those things are very important as well."
The camp portion of Lehigh's preseason runs through Saturday August 27 with the annual alumni Steak Fry set for the following day. Lehigh's fall semester begins on Monday August 29, with Lehigh falling into its normal game week routine beginning Tuesday August 30.
The Mountain Hawks will open the 2016 season against the Monmouth Hawks on Saturday, September 3 at 12:30 p.m. at Goodman Stadium. Tickets to that game and all Lehigh home football games can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com.
Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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