Delaware ends spring football with everybody happy
NEWARK — Delaware’s football players knew this was their last drive of the day.
And when receiver Santino Correa caught the pass in the flat and spun away from a defender, his …
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Delaware ends spring football with everybody happy
By Andy WalterNEWARK — Delaware’s football players knew this was their last drive of the day.
And when receiver Santino Correa caught the pass in the flat and spun away from a defender, his teammates knew he had a chance to score.
By the time Correa battled across the goal line to complete the 15-yard touchdown catch, most of the Blue Hen offensive players were sprinting down to the end zone to mob him on Friday night.
“He’s been getting some chances all night and we hadn’t connected,” said quarterback Ryan O’Connor, who watched the play from the sidelines. “We saw him catch the ball and turn the corner.
“We just had some energy. It’s good to be happy for each other. It was just fun.”
The TD, in fact, left Delaware’s Blue-White spring game in a 30-30 tie by the unique point system used in the intrasquad scrimmage. (The defense started with a 24-0 lead).
No extra point was attempted as both teams were able to leave Delaware Stadium feeling pretty good about spring practice — which, of course, was the point.
“We’re trying to get a lot of good reps, a lot of young guys some reps,” said UD coach Ryan Carty. “Make some plays and then make sure we stay healthy. I think we accomplished that today.
“I just told the guys, I think the 15 practices were all pretty darn good. Our goal was to maintain energy and effort throughout those 15 practices.”
“I like how we found our groove,” said O’Connor, who completed 9-of-12 passes for 102 yards. “And then it was clicking — which is a common theme with us I feel like. Once we start going, it’s pretty hard to stop us.
“I think we had some good energy and effort like we did all spring. We treated every practice like it was today. I really did like that.”
The Hens’ offense finished with four touchdowns in the session.
Sophomore Ronnie Heath scored on an 11-yard run, junior Jo’Nathan Silver caught an 11-yard shovel pass from O’Connor, senior Quincy Watson reached the end zone on a five-yard run before Correa finished the night with his 15-yard scoring catch from Daniel Lipovsky.
Nate Reed made all three of his PAT kicks while also hitting a 46-yard field goal.
One thing that seemed clear on Friday was that the Hens have three capable quarterbacks in O’Connor, Lipovsky and Nick Minicucci, who all saw playing time last fall. And that list doesn’t include Zach Marker, who is still recovering from knee surgery.
Carty said again that Marker’s recovery seems to be well ahead of schedule. Right now, it looks like the former junior college transfer will be ready for pre-season camp in August.
All three QBs made some plays on Friday with Minicucci and Lipovsky also running the ball well. Lipovsky completed 7-of-14 passes for 108 yards
“Coach Carty’s offense is not easy,” said veteran center Brock Gingrich. “Definitely having all those guys out there, being able to do what Coach Carty wants, I think that’s just awesome.
“You saw that last year. By the end of the season it was just a next-man-up mentality.”
“Our QB room is really talented,” said linebacker Dillon Trainer. “We’re definitely blessed to have that depth, especially at that position.
“I think what’s awesome is that all of our quarterbacks play a little differently. They all kind of have a different style to them. That helps prepare us defensively for the challenges that we’re going to see in the fall.”
These are, of course, changing times for both Delaware and all of college football.
This fall will be the Hens’ transition season from FCS to the FBS level where they’ll play an FCS schedule but won’t be eligible for the NCAA playoffs.
Like every program, Delaware’s roster is also fluctuating a lot more because of the Transfer Portal. There almost certainly will be more roster changes between now and the start of camp.
Trainer said he and his teammates will have to adjust to the changes.
“It’s all about reloading,” he said. “We’ve got guys coming in. .... It’s like a revolving door at this point. Come in, give us your all and get on out.
“I think the biggest thing we’re trying to accomplish is having everybody buy into the culture rather than having our culture change for the guys that we have coming into the locker room.”
Extra points
Dover High grad Elijah Sessoms had four catches for 28 yards at tight end in the contest. .... Starting running back Marcus Yarns had two carries for eight yards on the first drive before sitting out the rest of the scrimmage. ... Demarcus Creecy, a freshman transfer who spent some time at West Point Prep, also saw time at QB. ... Delaware has picked up receiver/punt returner Jake Thaw, who played on Michigan’s FBS national championship team in the fall. The 6-foot-1, 192-pounder returned 16 punts for 101 yards last season.
