Missouri State's final intrasquad scrimmage of its 2009 training camp Saturday morning was a wild one. The Bears' offense collected 576 total yards, while the defensive unit came up with a pair of interceptions, three sacks, six pass break-ups, and two blocked kicks.
Leading the way for the offense was junior quarterback Cody Kirby who played with focus throughout the 84-play event. Kirby completed 10-of-14 passes for 183 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran three times for 42 yards to account for 225 yards of total offense.
Kirby connected with true freshman Cadarrius Dotson twice on touchdown passes of 25 and 33 yards in the early going. He also hooked up with sophomore Jermaine Saffold on a 41-yard scoring play and later hit Waylon Richardet for a five-yard touchdown pass on a goal-line series.
The running game also showed vast improvement since last week's scrimmage, gathering 4.1 yards per carry, including a game-high 56 yards by freshman Mikael Cooper-Falls. The Springfield native carried 11 times, including a big 37-yard gainer late in the scrimmage. Juco transfer Chris Douglas carried 10 times for 51 yards and tacked on a one-yard touchdown run late. Douglas also had a 37-yard run from scrimmage.
The Bears' other rushing touchdown came on a five-yard run by senior Miguel Warren from five yards out on the game's final scoring play.
After completing just one of his first five passes, freshman quarterback Trevor Wooden settled in to make some spectacular plays late, including a 51-yard touchdown strike to classmate Elliott Brown. He also connected with Saffold for a 25-yard completion.
Saffold led all receivers with five catches for 108 yards and a pair of scores.
"We executed well on offense and didn't have any serious injuries, so all in all it was a good day," said head coach Terry Allen. "We've had a good preseason. The temperament of the team is focused on the right thing. We're really looking forward to (the season)."
On the defensive side of the ball, junior Sam Block tallied a team-high six tackles and broke up a pass. Safety Derek Miller, Tevan Ferguson and Chad Jones each added four stops. Cornerback Darius Blow came up with a big interception in the first half and returned it 30 yards, and later outside linebacker Terian Washington grabbed a big interception to stall a drive by the offense.
Allen said despite the defense is making plays at key times and showing signs of improvement each time out.
"There's no question in my mind we'll be better defensively," Allen said. "How much better remains to be seen, but we're definitely better. We changed to the '30' front and have more athletic people running around to make plays, so hopefully they'll play better. That's our goal."
Allen's staff announced the team captains late Friday at a team meeting. Three underclassmen will join Clay Harbor and Cedric Alvis as the squad's leadership team with Kirby, David Arkin, and Skylar Smith also earning the team honor. Allen said the overall attitude and demeanor of this year's squad has impressed him.
"Whatever it is, we're bonding better as a team right now than we have in the past," Allen noted.
The Bears will have Sunday off from practice before starting their regular practice schedule on Monday afternoon at 3:20 p.m. with the start of the fall semester at Missouri State.
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FINAL STATS:
Rushing (49-202): Mikael Cooper-Falls 11-56; Chris Douglas 10-51; Cody Kirby 3-42; Trevor Wooden 12-17; Jonathan Davis 3-17; Miguel Warren 7-13; Tim Williams 1-5; Curtis Daley 2-1.
Passing (35-23-2, 374): Cody Kirby 14-10-0, 183; Tyler Horner 10-7-1, 81; Trevor Wooden 8-3-1, 86; Tim Williams 3-3-0, 24.
Receiving: Jermaine Saffold 5-108; Elliott Brown 2-59; Cadarrius Dotson 2-58; Adrian Williams 2-38; Adrian Taylor 3-35; Clay Harbor 3-28; Wes Miller 1-17; Miguel Warren 1-9; Garrett Wade 1-7; Chris Douglas 1-5; Justin Fuselier 1-5; Waylon Richardet 1-5.
Interceptions: (2-45): Darius Blow 1-30; Terian Washington 1-15.
Tackle Leaders: Sam Block 6, Chad Jones 4, Tevan Ferguson 4, Derek Miller 4, Byron Hightower 3, Colby Broadnax 3; Skylar Smith 3, Kolby Hurt 3, Howard Scarborough 3.
Scoring Plays
Courtesy: MSU Photo Services
