Photo by: SFA Athletics
2017 SFA Football Fall Camp Report: Offensive Line
8/9/2017 9:01:00 PM | Football
After having their first day off from fall camp Tuesday, the ‘Jacks returned to practice Wednesday for day six of preseason camp
The 2017 Stephen F. Austin football season is just around the corner and the Lumberjacks have begun fall camp, beginning the countdown to the 91st season of Lumberjack football in Nacogdoches. Throughout camp, SFAJacks.com will break down each position, today highlighting the offensive line.
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Forced to move practice once again into Homer Bryce Stadium due to the recent heavy rains in the Nacogdoches area, the Stephen F. Austin football team took on day six of fall camp Wednesday afternoon in shoulder pads and helmets. After their first day off from preseason camp Tuesday, the Lumberjacks returned to the turf for a two-hour practice session.
Behind cloudy and humid conditions, SFA's defense shone as they forced six turnovers during the 11-on-11 drives, while the offense struggled to protect the ball. Wednesday's action got started with the usual positional drills before moving into the cave drill as players were called out to line up against one another. More 11-on-11 plays were run as both sides of the ball worked on handling situations and learning the Lumberjack playbook.
With 11-on-11 drives and positional drills dominating the practice, SFA wrapped up the sixth day of fall camp with running sprints for conditioning. Head coach Clint Conque addressed the six turnovers and highlighted the quality of defense in the post-practice team huddle.
"It was a good day today", assistant coach Bill Best said, "We had some misassignments, typical of after a day off, but it was good yesterday, we were able to get a walk-thru in and get our roles and assignments down." He continued, "I thought the energy today wasn't as good as its been at times and we had a couple guys out with injuries but overall a good day."
Offensive Line
An offensive lives or dies on the strength of the unit's offensive line, and for SFA, the men up front were the ones hardest hit by the mass of injuries in 2016. The 'Jacks were forced to use five different starting combinations as nine different players saw at least one start up front in an attempt to offset the growing injury list. The bright side of last year's adversity is that a number of different players saw significant playing time as the 'Jacks will need to replace just one senior starter in Anthony Pullins, a four-year contributor at the center position.
Fourth-year offensive line coach and run game coordinator Bill Best has a total of 18 offensive linemen this fall with nine returning letter winners, including four starters from a year ago and nine total newcomers. The O-line will feature a trio of seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and eight freshmen, six of those true freshmen.
Senior Josh Keith (Katy, Texas), an All-Southland Conference Second Team performer and preseason All-Southland First Team selection, emerged as the anchor of the offensive line last season, starting for the 'Jacks at both the right and left tackle positions. He will be joined by fellow senior Shane Roberson (Little Elm, Texas), who started all 11 games at either the right guard or right tackle position, as well as senior Jaxon Salinas (Irving, Texas) who was called upon to play a number of different positions in his first season at SFA.
Junior Hayden Scott (Spring, Texas) was also called upon to fill a number of positions in 2016, playing in seven games and earning the start at left guard in the season finale against Northwestern State in the Battle for Chief Caddo. Sophomores A.J. Brown (Arlington, Texas) and Travis Lock (Temple, Texas) each proved they were up for the challenge as the duo combined to play in 20 games with 17 starts, holding down the left and right guard positions, respectively.
"Josh Keith came in last year from junior college and kind of had a slow spring but about mid-season really came on", commented Coach Best. "He's (Keith) just getting better every day learning that he's the biggest guy on the field and really starting to play like it. A.J. Brown, another good kid from a great high school program knows how to win and has kind of waited his turn. He (Brown) started last year and has got a grip on that left guard spot, he is really playing at a high level. Travis Lock is a really tough guy too and hard-nosed, he's taken over at center from Anthony Pullins and has really provided a lot of leadership and toughness. Roberson would have been a really good guard last year but we had to move him over to tackle with all the injuries and he did a good job out there, very unselfish. He's (Roberson) got a chance to be a dominate player for us in this conference."
Knowing depth is crucial up front, SFA looks to have a significant number of youngsters ready to step up to the challenge. Redshirt sophomore Devonte Jones (Houston, Texas) was granted a redshirt season after suffering an injury in the season opener against Texas Tech, along with redshirt freshman Cooper Williams (Spring, Texas) as the two combined to start the first four games at right tackle. Fellow returners sophomore Matthew Mora (Manor, Texas) and redshirt freshman Zach Mack (Gatesville, Texas) each had strong spring campaigns and look to carry that momentum into the fall. Mora played in four games as a true freshman in 2016, while Mack utilized his redshirt season.
"Devonte Jones came in a couple years ago after transferring in from Baylor and is a great kid and great young man", Coach Best remarked. "Unfortunately, he started the first game at Texas Tech last year and looked really good against the Red Raiders and then had back problems and had to miss the rest. He has worked really hard to get back to where he's at and honestly, I can't tell, he's not missing a beat. He's doing a really good job embracing his roll and pushing those guys for a starting job. I'm really proud of him."
"Cooper Williams is a really tough minded kid from a great high school program and had the ACL injury last year", added Coach Best. "He was a backup as a true freshman, got thrown into the starting job and tore his ACL. He's worked extremely hard to get back to where he's at and he's doing really well at right tackle right now."
Attempting to add some veteran experience, Coach Conque signed junior college transfers Josiah Hunter (Fontana, Calif.) from Chaffey College and William Youngberg (Payson, Ariz.) from Glendale Community College. The 'Jacks have also brought in six out of high school including Marcos Herrera (Magnolia, Texas), Hayden Young (Spring, Texas), Jimmy Price (Houston, Texas), Nick Langlois (Cedar Park, Texas), Brent Maldonado (Georgetown, Texas) and Hunter Jistel (Rockwall, Texas), giving SFA much needed depth up front.
SFA will put on full pads tomorrow for the first time this fall camp as the 'Jacks prepare for their first scrimmage of the preseason held in Homer Bryce this Saturday. Thursday's practice will get underway at the usual time of 3:45 p.m. and will take place on the grass behind the SFA Fieldhouse.
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).
Season tickets for 2017 SFA Football are on sale through the SFA athletics ticket office and can be purchased here. Available season ticket packages include reserved chair back and reserved bench seats. SFA football season tickets start at only $63 for the general public and $38 for faculty and staff. For more information, call 936-468-5225 (JACK).
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
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
-SFA-
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Forced to move practice once again into Homer Bryce Stadium due to the recent heavy rains in the Nacogdoches area, the Stephen F. Austin football team took on day six of fall camp Wednesday afternoon in shoulder pads and helmets. After their first day off from preseason camp Tuesday, the Lumberjacks returned to the turf for a two-hour practice session.
Behind cloudy and humid conditions, SFA's defense shone as they forced six turnovers during the 11-on-11 drives, while the offense struggled to protect the ball. Wednesday's action got started with the usual positional drills before moving into the cave drill as players were called out to line up against one another. More 11-on-11 plays were run as both sides of the ball worked on handling situations and learning the Lumberjack playbook.
With 11-on-11 drives and positional drills dominating the practice, SFA wrapped up the sixth day of fall camp with running sprints for conditioning. Head coach Clint Conque addressed the six turnovers and highlighted the quality of defense in the post-practice team huddle.
"It was a good day today", assistant coach Bill Best said, "We had some misassignments, typical of after a day off, but it was good yesterday, we were able to get a walk-thru in and get our roles and assignments down." He continued, "I thought the energy today wasn't as good as its been at times and we had a couple guys out with injuries but overall a good day."
Offensive Line
An offensive lives or dies on the strength of the unit's offensive line, and for SFA, the men up front were the ones hardest hit by the mass of injuries in 2016. The 'Jacks were forced to use five different starting combinations as nine different players saw at least one start up front in an attempt to offset the growing injury list. The bright side of last year's adversity is that a number of different players saw significant playing time as the 'Jacks will need to replace just one senior starter in Anthony Pullins, a four-year contributor at the center position.
Fourth-year offensive line coach and run game coordinator Bill Best has a total of 18 offensive linemen this fall with nine returning letter winners, including four starters from a year ago and nine total newcomers. The O-line will feature a trio of seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and eight freshmen, six of those true freshmen.
Senior Josh Keith (Katy, Texas), an All-Southland Conference Second Team performer and preseason All-Southland First Team selection, emerged as the anchor of the offensive line last season, starting for the 'Jacks at both the right and left tackle positions. He will be joined by fellow senior Shane Roberson (Little Elm, Texas), who started all 11 games at either the right guard or right tackle position, as well as senior Jaxon Salinas (Irving, Texas) who was called upon to play a number of different positions in his first season at SFA.
Junior Hayden Scott (Spring, Texas) was also called upon to fill a number of positions in 2016, playing in seven games and earning the start at left guard in the season finale against Northwestern State in the Battle for Chief Caddo. Sophomores A.J. Brown (Arlington, Texas) and Travis Lock (Temple, Texas) each proved they were up for the challenge as the duo combined to play in 20 games with 17 starts, holding down the left and right guard positions, respectively.
"Josh Keith came in last year from junior college and kind of had a slow spring but about mid-season really came on", commented Coach Best. "He's (Keith) just getting better every day learning that he's the biggest guy on the field and really starting to play like it. A.J. Brown, another good kid from a great high school program knows how to win and has kind of waited his turn. He (Brown) started last year and has got a grip on that left guard spot, he is really playing at a high level. Travis Lock is a really tough guy too and hard-nosed, he's taken over at center from Anthony Pullins and has really provided a lot of leadership and toughness. Roberson would have been a really good guard last year but we had to move him over to tackle with all the injuries and he did a good job out there, very unselfish. He's (Roberson) got a chance to be a dominate player for us in this conference."
Knowing depth is crucial up front, SFA looks to have a significant number of youngsters ready to step up to the challenge. Redshirt sophomore Devonte Jones (Houston, Texas) was granted a redshirt season after suffering an injury in the season opener against Texas Tech, along with redshirt freshman Cooper Williams (Spring, Texas) as the two combined to start the first four games at right tackle. Fellow returners sophomore Matthew Mora (Manor, Texas) and redshirt freshman Zach Mack (Gatesville, Texas) each had strong spring campaigns and look to carry that momentum into the fall. Mora played in four games as a true freshman in 2016, while Mack utilized his redshirt season.
"Devonte Jones came in a couple years ago after transferring in from Baylor and is a great kid and great young man", Coach Best remarked. "Unfortunately, he started the first game at Texas Tech last year and looked really good against the Red Raiders and then had back problems and had to miss the rest. He has worked really hard to get back to where he's at and honestly, I can't tell, he's not missing a beat. He's doing a really good job embracing his roll and pushing those guys for a starting job. I'm really proud of him."
"Cooper Williams is a really tough minded kid from a great high school program and had the ACL injury last year", added Coach Best. "He was a backup as a true freshman, got thrown into the starting job and tore his ACL. He's worked extremely hard to get back to where he's at and he's doing really well at right tackle right now."
Attempting to add some veteran experience, Coach Conque signed junior college transfers Josiah Hunter (Fontana, Calif.) from Chaffey College and William Youngberg (Payson, Ariz.) from Glendale Community College. The 'Jacks have also brought in six out of high school including Marcos Herrera (Magnolia, Texas), Hayden Young (Spring, Texas), Jimmy Price (Houston, Texas), Nick Langlois (Cedar Park, Texas), Brent Maldonado (Georgetown, Texas) and Hunter Jistel (Rockwall, Texas), giving SFA much needed depth up front.
SFA will put on full pads tomorrow for the first time this fall camp as the 'Jacks prepare for their first scrimmage of the preseason held in Homer Bryce this Saturday. Thursday's practice will get underway at the usual time of 3:45 p.m. and will take place on the grass behind the SFA Fieldhouse.
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).
Season tickets for 2017 SFA Football are on sale through the SFA athletics ticket office and can be purchased here. Available season ticket packages include reserved chair back and reserved bench seats. SFA football season tickets start at only $63 for the general public and $38 for faculty and staff. For more information, call 936-468-5225 (JACK).
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
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
-SFA-
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