Recapping the weekend scrimmages

April, 9, 2012
4/09/12
1:25
PM ET
Looking back at some of the scrimmages last weekend:

MISSOURI

The Tigers' defense stole the show Saturday morning in their last major scrimmage before the Black & Gold spring game this Saturday.

Storms forced the Tigers into the Dan Devine Indoor Pavilion, and the defense won the scrimmage with a 20-8 score.

Still, Missouri threw the ball as well as it has this spring since first-team quarterback James Franklin was sidelined with a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder last month.

Quarterback Corbin Berkstresser was 18-of-31 for 255 yards. He was intercepted in the red zone by safety Ian Simon, but also threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Gahn McGaffie. Berkstresser's coaches and teammates were impressed with his presence in the pocket, and how he hung in there and looked for open receivers instead of trying to scramble all the time.

T.J Moe was the Tigers' leading receiver with eight catches for 151 yards.

For more on Missouri's scrimmage, go here.

ALABAMA

Coach Nick Saban was pleased with the performance of his first units in Friday's scrimmage, but he's still looking for more depth.

"The message to the players was 'are you going to be able to go out there and play better than you did in the last opportunity you had in the last scrimmage? Are you going to be able to play with more consistent effort, toughness and focus to be able to do your job'?" Saban said. "The first units were probably pretty good at that. I would say we made some improvement, but I'm not sure we have enough guys where they need to be, and that is why we have spring practice, and that is why we teach.

"We certainly have some work to do, especially with the depth on our team. We have a lot of young players, and they have a very enthusiastic attitude and they are trying hard, but I think they need a little more knowledge and experience to get them where we need them to go."

Jalston Fowler led all rushers with 151 yards on 22 carries and three touchdowns, with one of those going for 68 yards in a situational drill. Quarterback AJ McCarron was 14-of-29 for 160 yards, with four touchdowns and one interception. Receiver DeAndrew White, who missed last week's scrimmage with a hamstring problem, led all receivers with five receptions for 112 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Here's a report on the Tide's second scrimmage of the spring.

ARKANSAS

Even with all the controversy concerning coach Bobby Petrino's future, the Hogs' offense was red-hot in Friday's scrimmage, in particular quarterback Tyler Wilson.

Wilson finished 22-of-27 for 368 yards and six touchdowns. Marquel Wade and Cobi Hamilton each caught a pair of touchdown passes from Wilson, and Chris Gragg and Dennis Johnson each caught one.

In two scrimmages, Wilson has completed 41-of-55 passes for 678 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Wade had a huge scrimmage with 203 receiving yards and four touchdowns.

Running back Knile Davis was again held out of the scrimmage.

Here's a full report on the Hogs' scrimmage.

AUBURN

Quarterback Clint Moseley threw a touchdown pass in his first scrimmage work of the spring, but a sore rotator cuff is still causing him problems in practice.

Kiehl Frazier said he had an up-and-down scrimmage, but Auburn coach Gene Chizik liked the way Frazier was able to move around in the pocket and avoid the pressure. Safety Robenson Therezie intercepted a pass for the second straight scrimmage.

Here's a report on the Tigers' scrimmage.

GEORGIA

The Bulldogs held their second scrimmage of the spring on Saturday, and there was a little bit of an awakening for the offense.

It's been tough sledding all spring against the Bulldogs' defense, which should again be one of the better ones in the SEC in 2012, but quarterbacks Aaron Murray and Hutson Mason had some success throwing the ball. Split end Marlon Brown caught five passes for 90 yards and a touchdown. While there was some improvement in the passing game, the Bulldogs again struggled to run the ball consistently, which says something about a Georgia defensive front that should be plenty stout next season.

Coach Mark Richt said freshman running back Keith Marshall (hamstring) would probably miss this coming weekend's G-Day spring game. Marshall has been very impressive this spring, but has been slowed since hurting his hamstring last week.

Here's a report on the Bulldogs' scrimmage.

KENTUCKY

Sophomore quarterback Maxwell Smith highlighted Kentucky's first scrimmage of the spring with 228 passing yards, including a 51-yard scoring toss to E.J. Fields.

The first-team units faced the third-team units, and the second-team units went up against each other in the scrimmage.

The defense finished with 14 sacks, including six by the first-team defense.

Coach Joker Phillips said several new faces showed up on defense. Among them: Josh Forrest, Farrington Huguenin, Miles Simpson, TraVaughn Paschal and Marcus Caffey.

For a report on the scrimmage, go here.

MISSISSIPPI STATE

The offense had its moments, but the defense won the day Friday for the Bulldogs in their first scrimmage of the spring.

"We were sloppy at times and need to be more consistent on both sides of the ball, but it was a good day. Got some solid work in," Coach Dan Mullen said. "The offense moved the ball some, but had too many three-and-outs. The defense gave up some long drives. Just need to get it all working together, but it was a good start."

Quarterback Tyler Wilson started on a roll, but cooled off later in the scrimmage. The first- and second-team offenses combined to score seven touchdowns on 25 possessions.

Here's a report on the Bulldogs' scrimmage.

VANDERBILT

Other than Zac Stacy's 23-yard touchdown run -- his only carry of the day -- the offense didn't so much of anything in Saturday's scrimmage against the defense.

"I thought the defense played very well today. They were consistent, they were aggressive, and they made plays," Coach James Franklin said. "They got the momentum, and the offense couldn't get it back."

Senior linebacker Archibald Barnes was the leader of the Commodores' defense. He scored a touchdown on a 35-yard fumble recovery and also had a hand in two other turnovers. Defensive end Walker May forced a fumble that Barnes recovered. Barnes also ended a drive by intercepting a pass that was tipped by redshirt freshman defensive tackle Conor Hart.

Here's a report on Vanderbilt's scrimmage.

Chris Low | email

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