After final scrimmage, position battles remain at defensive end, cornerback
While the quarterback slot has been filled for Central Michigan, position battles have continued at defensive end and in the secondary.
This week, the team should have some sort of idea as to who’s leading the pack and will start in the season opener Saturday at No. 17 Michigan.
“Nothing’s set in stone yet,” head coach Dan Enos said after Saturday’s intrasquad scrimmage, the team’s third of preseason camp. “We’ll look at this tape and probably go through Monday and make our final decisions.”
Defensive end is one of CMU’s deepest spots, with five players Enos can rotate in to try to generate a pass rush in the secondary-heavy 4-2-5 defense. The team was eighth in the Mid-American Conference last season in rush defense, giving up nearly 192 yards per game, and ninth in sacks (18 for 127 yards).
Alex Smith and Jeremy Gainer, a transfer from Michigan State, both have something to prove in their senior seasons. Smith (6-foot-3, 250 pounds), who moved from linebacker to defensive end prior to last season, played in four games before he was sidelined for the remainder of the season with an injury.
Gainer meanwhile, fell low on the depth chart at MSU, playing mostly on special teams. Listed at 6-foot-2, he has gotten his weight up to 235 pounds.
And then there’s senior Kenny McClendon and sophomores Blake Serpa and Louis Palmer.
“It’s just been a rotation during camp,” Smith said of the battle. “We won’t even know until this week. But the whole camp has been us five all getting reps. Each practice has been like a battle. We have no clue who’s starting.”
True freshman Donny Kyre is expected to be redshirted.
Cornerback spot still open
In the secondary, a cornerback spot is up for grabs among three players.
Enos said at the team’s media day earlier this month that senior Avery Cunningham, junior Jarret Chapman and sophomore Kavon Frazier will start at safety, while junior Jason Wilson will fill one cornerback role.
The other corner spot will come down to junior Dennis Nalor, sophomore Stefon Armstead and redshirt freshman Jordan Fields. Nalor brings the experience factor, having played in all 13 games last season, in various roles.
“At times, they’ve all been very good,” Enos said earlier this month, even citing Armstead as having a strong spring and early preseason camp.
Through the first two weeks of preseason camp, Armstead had five interceptions.
Other notes
- Cody Kater, named starting quarterback earlier this week, took sole reps with the first team during the intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday. He looked crisp at times, throwing a 30-yard touchdown to sophomore receiver Andrew Flory.
- Prior to Saturday’s scrimmage, senior running back Zurlon Tipton, senior guard Andy Phillips, senior linebacker Shamari Benton and senior safety Avery Cunningham were named team captains.
Contact Aaron McMann: aaron.mcmann@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @AaronMcMann. Follow @CMLIFE_football, too.
