Quarterback race remains close, Hypolite ejected
The only thing not coated in a thin layer of snow and ice at Friday night’s football scrimmage was the red-hot race for the starting quarterback position between junior Nick Nelson and redshirt freshman Cody Hawkins.
Nelson, a junior-college transfer, completed seven of 14 passes for 60 yards and garnered most of the snaps on offense. Hawkins completed three passes on six attempts for 31 yards and a touchdown, but he also threw an ill-advised cross-field interception.
“Nick’s a great quarterback,” Hawkins said after the scrimmage. “He had a great day today, but we both have our days where one is sharper than the other.”
Another standout from the scrimmage was sophomore tight end Riar Geer, who led the team in both receptions and receiving yards. He caught three balls for 29 yards. Geer, after a breakout freshman season, is expected to be one of CU’s most consistent targets for next season’s starting quarterback – whoever that may be.
“They’re (both) good quarterbacks and they know where to put the ball,” Geer said of Nelson and Hawkins. “They know that tight ends are a big part of our offense. The chemistry is there.”
The practice was interrupted midway through after junior defensive tackle George Hypolite committed a late hit on an offensive lineman. That set off a brief skirmish between the offense and defense.
“Our o-linemen were getting after it,” Hawkins said. “We were really proud of those guys and one of the d-linemen wasn’t taking it so well and things escalated. We just (have) to know that there’s a place for that and it’s not on the football field.”
Hypolite was ejected after muttering something as Hawkins intensely lectured the team on discipline.
“Well, the good thing about George is he’s always got an opinion,” Hawkins said. “It just wasn’t really the right time to voice that opinion.”
After the ejection, and the ensuing team punishment, the scrimmage continued. Junior safety Joel Adams made the play of the day, dislodging a sure catch from senior wide receiver Dusty Sprague with a bone-rattling hit near the sideline.
With plays like that in mind, Coach Hawkins said he has definitely seen improvement over the past few weeks.
“We’re definitely way better than we were,” he said. “Way better.”
Both the coach and players like Geer agree.
“He’s totally turned the mindset of our team around,” Geer said. “Last year, a lot of guys had trouble buying into his system, but this year it’s totally different. Everyone has so much respect for him.”
Geer said the coaching change still had players wary of Coach Hawkins during his first year.
Only 12 of the 40-plus plays in the scrimmage were on the ground. Senior tailback Hugh Charles ran six times for 47 yards. Sophomore tailback Kevin Moyd gained 29 yards on four attempts and senior Byron Ellis ran twice for 22 yards.
The spring game, the team’s final scrimmage of the spring practice, is on Saturday, April 14 at 1 p.m. at Folsom Field.
Contact Campus Press staff writer Evan Acker at evan.acker@thecampuspress.com.
