Photo by NDinsider
This past weekends Blue & Gold game will be one to remember for a while, it was Marcus Freeman’s first spring game, it was a sun burning 82°, and there were many things to be excited about. Team Gold pulled off the supposide upset through beating team Blue 13-10 in the final seconds of the game. With that being said, let’s take a look:
Blue Offense: Audric Estime’s incredible physique came into play Saturday, picking up 59 yards and 13 carries, Drew Pyne had struggled a lot more than fans expected, but with Tyler Buchner’s ankle injury; and the need to find a QB1, Drew Pyne got the majority of the playing time, passing for one touchdown and one interception that got called back by a flag.
Gold Offense: Pyne’s struggles looked more evident on the Gold sideline, throwing for 2 interceptions, however though; Steve Angeli played like QB1 on Saturday, going 11-13 for 180 yards and a passing touchdown to freshman running back Jadarian Price who had 8 catches for 104 yards and a receiving touchdown long with 9 rushes for 12 yards. Michael Mayer also went 3 for 35 and Braden Lenzy went 2 for 33.
Blue Defense: Jordan Botelho and Clarence Lewis picked off Pyne’s 2 int’s, and Rylie Mills balled out on the line, getting 3 TFL’s and 1 sack. Ryan Barnes also led the Blue team in tackles (6), followed behind Botelho with 5.
Gold Defense: Wherever the ball was, Freshman CB Jaden Mickey and All-American safety Brandon Joseph were at, absolute ballhawks who were both very close to coming down with INT’s. If you aren’t excited about the secondary, you should be. Nana Osafo-Mensah and Howard Cross III split a sack between each other, and Jack Kiser led the team in tackles (5).
Special teams (Blue + Gold): Special teams did not look good unfortunately. Punts did not go far, and field goals were not consistent whatsoever. Hopefully Brian Mason will be able to get better results out of the kickers and punters by September.
Overall; it was a solid spring game. Gold team snuck out a victory 13-10 behind Steve Angeli’s last second rushing touchdown where he dived for the pylon on the final play of the game. If there’s only one thing to get excited for, get excited for the defense, will be top 5 in my opinion. And another prominent thing was the fan turnout this year, the majority of the lower bowl was filled with the sections between the 10 yard line and the opposite 10 yard line being filled completely.
What were you most excited about during the Spring Game?
Photo by 247sports
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