Thunderstorms Curtail Delaware Scrimmage Sunday; Event Rescheduled for Monday at 8:40 a.m.
August 21, 2011
Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell
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NEWARK, Del. -- The University of Delaware’s second football scrimmage of the pre-season had just gotten underway Sunday afternoon at Delaware Stadium before the weather won out.
The scrimmage had already been moved forward to 2:30 p.m. due to the threat of rain later in the afternoon, but a thunderstorm moved through Newark just 10 minutes into the session, halting action for the day. The Hens had gone through about 10 plays from scrimmage before the storm hit.
The Blue Hens will now hit the field on Monday morning at 8:40 a.m. in Delaware Stadium to resume action. The scrimmage is the second and final one of the pre-season as the Hens prepare for the season opener Sept. 3 at Navy.
“We feel good about where this team is going, so we are frustrated about not getting this in today because of the weather,” said Delaware head coach K.C. Keeler (at right), whose squad took part in its first scrimmage of the pre-season this past Tuesday. “We will just move forward and get our work in Monday and then starting talking about Navy on Tuesday.”
Keeler noted that strong competition for starting spots continue, especially at quarterback where Trevor Sasek, Tim Donnelly, and Justin Burns are battling to replace All-American and current Miami Dolphin Pat Devlin and at offensive tackle where Brandon Heath and Erle Ladson are vying to replace Kevin Uhll. Other battles are ongoing for key spots at tight end, wide receiver, safety, linebacker, and kicker.
“We need strong competition at all the positions so this is a good thing,” said Keeler. “We might not determine some spots until just a few days before the Navy game.”
Despite the limited action, Delaware senior wide receiver Bobby Russo was helped off the field just minutes into the scrimmage when he injured his shoulder after being hit hard after a reception across the middle. The injury will be evaluated this week.
Among those who were not slated to take part in the scrimmage due to minor injuries were defensive backs Ricky Tunstall and Derrick Coleman, defensive linemen Jamaul Christopher, Quincy Barr, Irv Titre, and Derrick Saulsberry, tight ends Nick Boyle and Sam Feleccia, wide receivers Stephen Clark and Mike Milburn, linebackers Jessel Curry and Kyle Gayle, offensive lineman Charles Gushue, and running back Sam Miller.
In addition, junior linebacker Kyle Hunte will miss the entire season due to a dislocated knee suffered in Tuesday’s scrimmage and sophomore tight end Bobby Kennedy is also expected to miss some time with a foot injury.
