Defense Shines in Practice Number Four

WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Army West Point football team continued its preseason camp on Thursday at Howze Field under sunny skies.

The rookies once again took to the field practice first, while the upperclassmen came onto the practice field an hour after the first-years started. The full team worked in special teams drills and split off into field goal, kickoff and trick play groups.

After special teams, the team broke into positional drills including tackling fundamentals for the outside linemen, route work for the running backs and wide receivers as well as drop back pass coverage for the linebackers.

Play of the Day:

During 1 vs 1 drills, Casey Dionne completed an interception for the defensive side, while Christian Poe made a 62-yard touchdown catch.

Outside Linebackers in Focus:

The Black Knights return many of their contributors from a year ago with sophomores Kenneth Brinson, Alex Aukerman and Gibby Gibson. The trio may be young, but got a lot of experience throughout last season. Brinson and Aukerman played in every game, while Gibson saw action in 10 contests. Junior Bayle Wolf is back for his third season after missing portions of 2015 due to injury. He will provide depth at the SAM position and James Nachtigal will look to crack the lineup behind Brinson at the RUSH spot. Nachtigal played in 11 games as a rookie, mostly on special teams. Army welcomed new assistant coach Daryl Dixon in the spring and he will guide the outside linebackers in 2016. Dixon comes from Ball State and was a 2003 graduate of the University of Florida, where he starred as a defensive back.

Extra Points:

The quarterbacks practiced their pitching as the offense had reps from Kelvin Hopkins Jr., Malik McGue and Ahmad Bradshaw.

The defense had a standout practice and dominated in the 7 vs. 7 drills as well as the fourth quarter warrior drills to end practice. Marcus Hyatt had a pass breakup after a great throw by Bradshaw before Jordan Asberry made a 35-yard catch from McGue.

Friday's Schedule:

Army will put on the full pads for the first time on Friday. The practice will begin earlier than the normal practices this week with a 3 p.m. start at Howze Field.

Defense Shines in Practice Number Four

Players Mentioned

Jordan Asberry

Alex Aukerman

Ahmad Bradshaw

Kenneth Brinson

Casey Dionne

James Gibson

Kelvin Hopkins Jr.

Marcus Hyatt

Malik McGue

James Nachtigal

Christian Poe

Bayle Wolf

Army West Point Athletics