University of Minnesota Athletics
Golden Gophers Finish Tuesday Practice with a Bang
8/15/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
While Saturday marks the Golden Gopher football team's first full scrimmage, head coach Tim Brewster gave his team a preview with a short scrimmage to finish Tuesday's practice. The team went full contact for the final 20 minutes of the practice.
The scrimmage began with the first and second team offenses receiving the ball at their own two-yard line. After the defense collected a couple three-and-outs, the offense got rolling thanks in part to a couple of first downs by redshirt freshman running back Damola Ogundipe and back-to-back catches by sophomore tight end Nick Tow-Arnett. True freshman Tray Herndon also got into the action with a short reception from Tony Mortensen which was turned into a gain of 20 with a couple of nifty moves.
The biggest play of the abbreviated scrimmage was turned in by redshirt freshman R.J. Buckner. The Keller, Texas, native took the inside handoff from Mortensen and raced up the sideline for a 65-yard touchdown. True freshman Duane Bennett closed out the scoring with a 10 yard touchdown run during the red zone drills.
The beginning of practice featured a number of highlights, including the receiving corps' best day of training camp. During one-on-one drills against the defensive backs, several receivers showed off their hands, including junior Marc Cheatham and freshmen Ralph Spry and Damien White. Senior Ernie Wheelwright added a pair of big gains in traffic during 7-on-7 drills.
Not to be outdone during the team's first 11-on-11 session, Lee Campbell recorded back-to-back tackles for loss against Gopher running backs which drew the cheers of his teammates and the praise of Brewster. A sophomore from Naples, Fla., Campbell appeared in 10 games at linebacker as a true freshman in 2006. With an additional 30-plus pounds on his frame, Campbell continues to push for playing time at defensive end.
With 17 days to go before the home opener on Sept. 1 against Bowling Green, the Golden Gophers continue training camp with a pair of practices on Wednesday. Saturday's scrimmage begins at 1 p.m. and is open to the public.
