On another day that saw basically cool temperatures and cloudy skies in the Starkville area, Mississippi State’s football Bulldogs went through the paces of their fourth practice of 2003 spring drills, a two-hour session held at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. The day was the second in full pads for MSU this spring.
Head coach Jackie Sherrill continued to be impressed by the passing game Saturday, again noting the play of senior quarterback Kevin Fant (Moss Point, Miss.) and sophomore Kyle York (Spring, Texas).
Fant, a starter of 13 games, has completed 53.4 percent of his passes and thrown for 3,480 yards and 19 touchdowns during his Bulldog career. York has seen action in 10 games, starting two.
“The good thing about the first four days is that we have had improvement, improvement in a lot of areas,” Sherrill said. “Probably the area we have had the most improvement is throwing and catching the football. We really looked good today there. I was impressed with Kevin and Kyle again.”
Sherrill was also very pleased with the general progress of the team in relation to learning new schemes on both sides of the ball and adjusting to the new assistant coaches which joined the staff recently.
“As much as we have thrown at them in four days, I am very impressed that they haven’t had that many busted plays and that they were able to execute as well as they have,” Sherrill said. “We have some depth. Now, the next three weeks will be zeroing in and making sure we get better every day and improve as far as techniques and get the best players at the end of spring practice.
“We still have a long way to go to get the first 11 on both sides of the ball, but the attitude and confidence that the players have after four days is good. They aren’t tired, and they are enjoying it. That’s a big plus.”
On the injury front, tailback Fred Reid (Tampa, Fla.), who bruised his right shoulder Friday, did not participate in full-contact drills Saturday but could return as early as Monday. Junior offensive guard Will Rogers (Fairburn, Ga.) missed Saturday’s action as well, suffering from an ankle sprain he sustained Friday.
He could possibly miss a couple of more sessions before returning. Ray Ray Bivines (Gautier, Miss.) sprained his left thumb Saturday, but that injury is not expected to sideline the junior split end.
Approximately 125 high school recruits, along with some parents and coaches, were on hand for Saturday’s drills. MSU will begin its second week of 2003 spring drills Monday.
The Bulldogs will also hold practices in full gear Wednesday and Thursday before staging the first of three spring scrimmages this coming Saturday, March 29.
State’s spring schedule will culminate with the Spring Game at Noon on Saturday, April 12, during Super Bulldog Weekend activities.