Photo by: Hardy Meredith | SFA Photography
2017 SFA Football Fall Camp Report: Cornerbacks
8/7/2017 6:40:00 PM | Football
The ‘Jacks began the second week of fall camp in shoulder pads and helmets but saw their fifth practice cut short due to thunderstorms
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Week two of fall camp for the Stephen F. Austin football team began Monday afternoon with a very short practice as thunderstorms held the Lumberjacks to just 45 minutes on the field. Impeding rain and lightning forced SFA to move up its practice to about 3 p.m. and switch over to the turf of Homer Bryce Stadium.
The 'Jacks moved quickly and were able to move into full 11-on-11 drills within the first 15 minutes of practice. Following the 11-on-11 plays, the team broke up into positional drills before heading back to the line of scrimmage for more work on the Lumberjack playbook. SFA worked as a cohesive unit to get in as many reps as possible before the thunderstorms.
The rain began to fall at around 3:30 p.m. and rapidly grew in intensity as coaches shouted out plays with more urgency. Thunder could be heard in the distance shortly before practice was called off for the day, but not before the 'Jacks got some practice with a wet ball on the first rain day of preseason camp.
Cornerbacks
The cornerback position was among the hardest hit with injuries during the 2016 season as a large percentage of players missed significant time. But with an offseason to recover, and a handful of talented reinforcements joining the ranks, SFA is looking for a strong performance from the corners. The group features a total of 10 players, including four returning letter winners and six newcomers. The 'Jacks gladly welcome back three starters from a year ago and have brought in a total of five freshmen and one transfer, not to mention junior Zack Kanipes (Pearland, Texas) making the move to corner from the safety position.
The anchor of the cornerbacks in 2016 was senior Trent Perriman (Miami, Florida), who started all 11 games at the position in his first season at SFA. Perriman led the group with 35 tackles to complement 10 pass breakups, a pair of interceptions and a forced fumble. One of two seniors back on this year's team, the Florida native will be looked upon to provide leadership among the cornerbacks.
The other senior is Aaron Foy (Kilgore, Texas), an east Texas product that showed both athleticism and speed early in 2016. Foy played in six games with five starts, generating 20 tackles and three pass breakups, before his junior season was cut short due to injury. Limited in spring practices, he is expected to be at full strength once 2017 kicks off.
Junior Tarrin Mitchell (Dallas, Texas) battled through nagging injuries for the majority of 2016, playing in 10 games with five starts and accumulating 24 tackles with a pair of interceptions and two fumble recoveries. The most experienced player among the corners, Mitchell has played in 21 games during his Lumberjack career with nine starts under his belt.
Kanipes played safety as a sophomore in 2016 and will contribute from the cornerback position this fall. Appearing in all 11 games last season on both defense and special teams, Kanipes registered 12 tackles on the year, including nine solo stops, a pair of tackles for loss and a sack.
Seeing the need for immediate experience, head coach Clint Conque brought in junior college transfer Davelle Fox (Chicago, Illinois) from Southwestern College in California. Fox was an all-conference performer for the Jaguars and will try to have an immediate impact on the team. Shoring up the future of the position, Coach Conque also added three talented freshmen from the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Nathan Giles (Royse City, Texas), Caleb Lawton (Cedar Hill, Texas) and Eli Jones (Duncanville, Texas). Each are expected to compete for quality playing time this fall along with redshirt freshman Drake Moore (Katy, Texas), who comes to SFA from Concordia University (Neb.), and freshman Jordan Murray (Houston, Texas).
SFA will take tomorrow off from practice for their first off day of fall camp. The 'Jacks will resume Wednesday with a 3:45 p.m. practice in shells on the grass, before moving to full pads Thursday.
The 'Jacks open up the 2017 season at SMU on Saturday, Sept. 2, before beginning the home portion of their schedule the following weekend against Southern Utah (Sept. 9).
Stay tuned to SFAJacks.com, as well as SFA's social media platforms, for complete 2017 fall camp coverage.
2017 SFA FOOTBALL FALL CAMP SCHEDULE
Wednesday, Aug. 9 – Practice 6 (3:45 p.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Shells
Thursday, Aug. 10 – Practice 7 (3:45 p.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Full Pads
Friday, Aug. 11 – Practice 8 (3:45 p.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Helmets
Saturday, Aug. 12 (Scrimmage One) – Practice 9 (4 p.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Full Pads
Sunday, Aug. 13 – Practice 10 (7:30 p.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Shells
Tuesday, Aug. 15 – Practice 11 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Shells
Wednesday, Aug. 16 – Practice 12 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Shells
Thursday, Aug. 17 – Practice 13 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Shells
Friday, Aug. 18 – Practice 14 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Helmets
Saturday, Aug. 19 (Scrimmage Two) – Practice 15 (4 p.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Full Pads
Monday, Aug. 21 – Practice 16 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Practice Field* | Attire: Shells
Tuesday, Aug. 22 – Practice 17 (9:15 a.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Shells
Wednesday, Aug. 23 (Scrimmage Three) – Practice 18 (7 p.m.)
Location: Homer Bryce Stadium | Attire: Full Pads
* – Practice fields located behind the athletics fieldhouse
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