Michigan State University Athletics
Defense Claims First Spring Jersey Scrimmage, 38-27
4/9/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio sent his team through a 151-play "controlled" scrimmage on Friday, April 8 in the Duffy Daugherty Football Building indoor facility, as the Spartans completed the eighth of 15 allotted spring practices. The defense claimed the first jersey scrimmage of the spring, 38-27.
"It was a competitive scrimmage," Dantonio said. "The energy was good, and there was a lot of hitting. We went about 150 plays, so we were able to get meaningful reps for a lot of different guys. There were positives on both sides of the football, and all of the mistakes are correctable.
"All four (scholarship) quarterbacks got a lot of work. Tyler O'Connor was crisp, especially on the opening drive.
"LJ Scott ran hard and broke a couple of long runs.
"All of the young wide outs continue to make strides. Donnie Corley has consistently made plays this spring.
"Defensively, we swarmed to the football and forced a couple of turnovers, and the interception return for a touchdown proved to be the difference in the scoring," Dantonio continued. "Andrew Dowell appeared to make plays all over the field. Riley Bullough and Chris Frey were solid, and Tyriq Thompson is a guy who stood out today."
The Spartans have four practices scheduled for next week: Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and the second jersey scrimmage of the spring on Saturday.
"With four practices, next week is an important one," Dantonio said. "Over these next two weeks, we'll continue to focus on cleaning up the execution, especially the penalties and unforced errors."
Michigan State concludes its 15 spring practices with the Green-White intrasquad game on Saturday, April 23 at 3 p.m. in Spartan Stadium. The spring game will be televised live nationally by BTN (broadcast team: Kevin Kugler, Jim Miller and Lisa Byington).
