FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (April 19, 2019) – The NAU football team held its third scrimmage of the spring on Friday afternoon at the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome, which marked the 12
th practice of 15 for the Lumberjacks.
The 'Jacks warmed up in individual position groups before getting primed for the scrimmage with some full-contact one-on-one drills pitting offensive vs. defensive players.
The scrimmage followed and saw both sides of the ball as well as the special teams have big moments. The 'Jacks scrimmaged for approximately 90 minutes and displayed energy and physicality throughout.
NAU returns to practice on Tuesday, April 23 beginning at 4 p.m. MST at the Skydome outdoor fields.
All spring practices and scrimmages are open to the public and free to attend.
Highlights
- Senior running back Joe Logan busted loose for a 20-yard gain up the middle on one of the early plays of the opening sequence.
- Freshman quarterback Heath Beemiller hit Logan with a swing pass a play later for a 15-yard gain.
- Seniors Brandon Lawless and Jalen Goss combined for a tackle for loss and sophomore Anthony Sweeney tipped away a pass for the defense to force a 49-yard field goal attempt by the offense which was made by junior place kicker Luis Aguilar.
- Senior Sherrod Paige batted down a pass at the line and Nate Perkins followed a few plays later with an interception to turn back the offense.
- Beemiller connected with junior Chancellor Brewington for a 40-yard touchdown completion down the left sideline.
- Sophomore Cejai Parrish keyed a defensive stop on the following drive with a nice open field tackle on a running attempt.
- Lawless posted a sack on the next sequence which was won by the defense. Parrish made a nice breakup on a deep ball, while Lawless made another nice play on a run stop and freshman linebacker Jason Pisano registered a sack.
- Aguilar made a 45-yard field goal attempt to close out the next drive for the offense.
- Following a stop by the defense, freshman running back Jacob Mpungi picked up 15 yards on a screen pass and Tommie Dorsey followed with a 30-yard gain on the ground to set up a 27-yard field goal by Cameron Horsting.
- Lawless added another sack on the ensuing sequence to force another stop for the defense.
- Beemiller hit a second big-play score with a 40-yard toss to senior Stacy Chukwumezie for a touchdown.
Quotable
NAU Head Coach Chris Ball
"I thought that we came out here tonight and the energy and intensity were strong. If there is one thing I want to see is some energy and they (team) came out tonight and got after it. I was really impressed. I need to look at it (the film) and see what happened and who played well and who didn't. We have a lot of work to do, but I thought it was a good scrimmage and we got a lot done. We played some guys and took some guys out. We wanted to put some guys in some specific situations so we can put it on tape and evaluate it."
"We need to finish what we started out to do and that is continue to get better every day. We need to finish next week and go out on Friday night and have a great scrimmage and a good time and stay healthy. If we do that it is a successful spring."
Up Next
The Lumberjacks will return to practice on Tuesday, April 23 beginning at 4 p.m. MST at the Skydome outdoor fields.
All of NAU's spring practice sessions are free and open to the public, including the NAU Football Spring Showcase, which is slated for Friday, April 26 at 6 p.m. MST.
