What to watch in La. Tech spring football practice
Bulldogs open camp on Friday.
What to watch in La. Tech spring football practice Bulldogs open camp on Friday. Check out this story on shreveporttimes.com: https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/sports/college/la-tech/2018/03/08/what-watch-la-tech-spring-football-practice/408546002/
Cory Diaz, USA Today Network Published 3:33 p.m. CT March 8, 2018 | Updated 3:33 p.m. CT March 8, 2018
Louisiana Tech head football coach Skip Holtz shares which 2018 signees he thinks could make an impact on next season's football team. Cory Diaz/The News-Star
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs quarterback J'Mar Smith (8) throws a pass in the first quarter against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the 2017 Frisco Bowl at Toyota Stadium.(Photo: Tim Heitman/USA TODAY Sports)
Come 3 p.m. Friday afternoon, Louisiana Tech fans' personal ticker counting up days without any on-field football activity from their favorite team will roll back to 0.
The Bulldogs kick off spring drills on their practice fields for the first of 14 team practices over the next 37 days. The team will close out drills with its annual spring game at Joe Aillet Stadium April 14 at noon.
Tech and its returning players likely will carry an invigorated energy into spring after securing its fourth straight bowl victory and fourth straight winning season, decimating SMU, 51-10, back in December in the inaugural Frisco Bowl at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
With Louisiana Tech opening its first stretch of preparation for the 2018 season, that begins Sept. 1 at South Alabama, here's what to watch for during spring practice:
Depth at running back
Entering spring, Tech's returning leader rusher is redshirt junior quarterback J'Mar Smith after losing 3,983 career rushing yards and 31 career rushing touchdowns with the graduation of the two-headed run punch Jarred Craft and Boston Scott.
More: Ex-LSU signee Willie Allen highlights La. Tech class
Their backup Jaqwis Dancy, who made his return to the field last year after beating Stage 3 Hodgkin's lymphoma the previous February, carried the ball just 39 times for 262 yards and two scores.
One of the top priorities for Louisiana Tech head coach Skip Holtz and offensive coordinator Todd Fitch before the 2018 season arrives will be finding the No. 1 guy in the backfield. Rising redshirt sophomore Israel Tucker received nine rush attempts in 2017 while juniors Dee Fleming and Bobby Holly failed to record a carry, so it's easy to assume Dancy is at the top of the depth chart for these 14 practices.
The running back position will be even more interesting to watch come summer workouts and fall camp when signees Elijah Hines and DeAndre Marcus join the fold and will compete among a thin group for playing time as freshmen.
Lookin' at Left Tackle
There were two reasons Holtz and offensive line coach Robert McFarland needed to stockpile talented offensive linemen this past recruiting cycle. The mound of injuries, illnesses and off-the-field predicaments the line suffered sounded one alarm. And two, the lone mainstay during what seemed like weekly switch-a-roo up front last season, left tackle Josh Outlaw, who started all 13 games, was graduating.
Louisiana Tech reeled in its big fish, former LSU signee and junior college transfer Willie Allen, who's immediately eligible and has three years left as a redshirt sophomore. But he won't be on campus until the summer.
It's possible Michael Rodriguez, who won the starting job at right tackle last year, or redshirt junior Ethan Reed, who has played just about every position on the line, could get looks at left tackle in the spring. DeVante Lovett backed up Outlaw last season and will certainly be in the mix to protect the quarterback's blind side.
More: La. Tech assistant coach heads to SMU
New coaches, new energy
Spring marks the first on-field instruction Tech cornerbacks and linebackers will receive from Jeff Burris and Brian Gamble, respectively. Burris, who's coached in the NFL and most recently at Northern Iowa, replaces former corners coach Kevin Curtis who left for the same position at SMU at the end of January and Gamble, previously FCS Incarnate Word defensive coordinator, takes over for Lanier Goethie, who joined his college coach David Cutcliffe's staff at Duke last month.
Gamble will oversee a thin linebacking corps, which lost its top performer in Russell Farris, but gets back the defense's leading tackler Dae'Von Washington and rising senior Brandon Durman, who missed the last six games due to injury. Early enrollee and junior college transfer Brandon Floyd will participate in spring drills and will provide depth with Randy Hogan and Collin Scott.
Everyone knows Amik Robertson and the sensational freshman season he had. The other corner spot was handled by committee in 2017 by Trey Spencer, Aaron Roberson and L'Jarius Sneed, who looks to be in line to start opposite Robertson in 2018 after starting the final five games last year and was solid.
The new coaches' approach and energy, and how they connect with their position players will be something to watch.
What's all the fuss a-boot
One of Louisiana Tech's historically best kickers, Jonathan Barnes, is gone.
Obviously, this position battle will not be settled this spring with Eastern New Mexico graduate transfer Bailey Hale not coming onboard until summer workouts, but junior Brady Farlow could begin to construct his case that the job should be his come fall. Redshirt freshman Carson Wyld will stand to get some kicks, too.
What's important is the departure of Barnes means the absence of his accuracy and just shear amount of points he's accrued over the years, he scored 118 points in 2017. Being able to foot that level of production will be one key for Tech heading into the 2018 season.
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Louisiana Tech's full spring football practice schedule
March 9 - 3 to 6 p.m.
March 10 - 9 a.m. to noon
March 12 - 3 to 6 p.m.
*April 14 - Spring Game, kickoff at noon at Joe Aillet Stadium
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