Aug. 18, 2018
It was another good day for the San Jose State University defense allowing just two scores, one touchdown and one field goal, in the team's final weekend preseason scrimmage.
"We still have work to do. Guys played hard. We got more plays in than I thought we would. I was encouraged by that. We got a lot of young guys playing, a lot of guys trying to figure it out and go the right way, block the right way, cover the right guy. It's going to be a great tape for our team to grow by," said San Jose State head coach Brent Brennan about the 68-play scrimmage that included several two-minute drills.
Though the defense did not come up with any takeaways either by fumble recovery or by pass interception, there were four quarterback sacks -- all by freshmen. Nose tackles Demanuel Talauati and Jamaar Hardy and linebackers Devon Calloway and Kyle Harmon got their hands on one of the Spartans' five quarterbacks during the scrimmage that lasted just over an hour.
Defensive coordinator Derrick Odum concurred with Brennan that a number of young players saw action on the field and contributed.
"The emphasis today was keep it really simple and have these guys fly around, make tackles so we could see what they do. It was good today," said Odum.
"The best thing about was we didn't have any injuries.
"We missed a few tackles, but overall, I was pleased with the effort and the knowledge of what we were trying to do with the defense."
Running DeJon Packer scored the scrimmage's only touchdown hauling in a 24-yard reception from redshirt freshman Terrell Carter who completed 6-of-7 attempts for 64. After missing on his first two passes, junior Josh Love completed his last eight throws for 68 yards. Montel Aaron and freshman wide receiver Jermaine Braddock teamed up for the longest play from scrimmage, a 52-yard pass play that saw Braddock reverse his direction to extend the play.
San Jose State's five quarterbacks completed 25-of-43 passes to 13 different receivers and did not throw an interception compared to a week ago when the offense gave away the ball twice on interceptions. There was not much showing in the run game with only 12 rushes by running backs Brendan Manigo, Michael Harris, III, Tyler Nevens, DeJon Packer and Malike Roberson.
Kicker Bryce Crawford closed out the scoring with a 35-yard field goal, his only field goal attempt of the afternoon.
The Spartans will begin preparation for the August 30 season opener versus UC Davis on Monday, August 20. Practices are scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday mornings and will end close to noon.
Tickets for the August 30 season opener vs. UC Davis at 7:00 p.m. (PDT) are available through the San Jose State University Athletics Ticket Office, sjsuspartans.com/tickets and ticketmaster.com.
| SCRIMMAGE STATISTICS |
| RUSHING (25-69, 0 TD) |
| Montel Aaron, 5-25; Brendan Manigo, 4-23; Terrell Carter, 5-11; Michael Harris, III, 2-9; Tyler Nevens, 2-9; Isaiah Hamilton, 1-3; DeJon Packer, 3-2; Malike Roberson, 1-1; Chance LaChapelle, 1 (-7); Josh Love, 1-(-7). |
| PASSING (25-43-0-243, 1 TD) |
| Michael Carrillo, 5-10-0-22; Josh Love, 8-10-0-68; Terrell Carter, 6-7-0-64, 1 TD; Montel Aaron, 3-10-0-70; Chance LaChapelle, 3-4-0-19; Team, 0-2-0-0. |
| RECEIVING (25-243, 1 TD) |
| Jermaine Braddock, 3-63; Tre Hartley, 3-43; DeJon Packer, 3-31, 1 TD; Malike Roberson, 3-5; Steven Houston, 2-32; Jackson Parks, 2-14; JaQuan Blackwell, 2-14; Isaiah Hamilton, 2-12; Brett Foley, 1-11; Austin Liles, 1-6; Tre Walker, 1-6; Jackson Burrill, 1-4; Justin Holmes, 1-2. |
| QUARTERBACK SACKS |
| Demanuel Talauati, Jamaar Hardy, Devon Calloway, Kyle Harmon, 1, each. |