USF Athletics

Relentless USF Defense Delivers in Second Scrimmage of Spring

March 31, 2018

By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, MARCH 31, 2018 – One week after USF's up-tempo offense stole the show, the Bulls on the other side of the ball stepped up with a huge performance in the second scrimmage of the spring on Saturday.

Fueled by coordinator Brian Jean-Mary's demand for excellence, USF's relentless defense delivered with constant pressure, several sacks and acrobatic interceptions by defensive backs Bentlee Sanders and Mazzi Wilkins before a crowd of nearly 300 recruits at the Morsani Complex.

"We were challenged earlier in the week," said senior linebacker Khalid McGee, who had a sack after delivering the hit of the day to stall a drive. "We were mad and played the best we could."

Playing angry helped USF's defense rack up double-digit sacks among nine different Bulls and junior end Kirk Livingstone (Fort Lauderdale) continued his strong spring with two trips to the quarterback.

Standout linebacker Nico Sawtelle (Jensen Beach) posted 1.5 sacks and numerous tackles for loss, including one that saw the junior bust through the middle of the line to stop a rusher for a loss. In his first season as a starter in 2017, Sawtelle helped the much improved USF defense rank in the top 25 of six national stat categories, including tackles for loss (5^th, 8.4 per game).

Tampa's own Vincent Jackson, Juwuan Brown and Josh Black, along with Kevin Bronson (Delray Beach) and Marquies Price (Fort Valley, Ga.) also helped power the sack attack. Overall, it was an encouraging sign from a new-look defensive line that kept the heat on throughout Saturday's scrimmage.

"We brought a lot of pressure," head coach Charlie Strong said. "It wasn't so many beaten one-on-one blocks. We blitzed a lot."

And while the Bulls produced up front, USF's swarming secondary earned the most cheers from the large group of recruits gathered at the Morsani Complex.

Sanders, a redshirt freshman defensive back from Tampa, got the pick party started by leaping above two receivers to snag a jump ball interception in the corner of the end zone.

Wilkins, a senior cornerback from Tampa, drew exclamations once again by hauling in an interception on a 30-yard pass to the front, left corner of the end zone just before the short halftime break.

Earlier in the action, Jacksonville, Fla., natives Nick Roberts and Chris Barr, a converted cornerback, got the secondary going with back-to-back pass breakups.

"Defensively, we were able to fly around," Strong said.

Ground Game Gets Going
USF has seen its stable of running backs step up throughout the spring and it was junior Jordan Cronkrite's turn to shine on Saturday.

The former Florida Gator from Miami put the biggest run of the spring on tape by making a quick cut on the edge and taking it to the house from 51 yards out.

"That's just one glimpse," tight end Mitchell Wilcox said. "There's many more to come like that for him."

After Cronkrite's sprint to the end zone, Trevon Sands (Miami) stepped up with numerous tough first-down runs that saw the junior break several tackles. Sophomore Elijah Mack (Punta Gorda, Fla.) continued to be the go-to guy near the goal line, capping off a gritty day for the backs with a 3-yard touchdown run through traffic.

Kean Hits His Red-Zone Targets
Both quarterbacks competing for the starting jobs have had impressive springs, but it was Brett Kean who led the passing attack to touchdowns on Saturday.

The junior from Lakewood, Ohio capitalized on two red-zone opportunities and on the first, he threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to trusty slot receiver Deangelo Antoine (Orlando).

Two drives later, Kean found emerging freshman receiver Zion Roland (St. Petersburg) for an 8-yard score. Earlier in the action, the Kean-Roland connection produced a 40-yard play on a drive that started with the Bulls backed up to their own 5-yard line.

What a Week for Wilcox
Brett Kean's prettiest pass of the day came early in the first half of action, when he threw a perfect ball near midfield to Mitchell Wilcox, who rumbled downfield for a 45-yard gain.

"He's going to be in the right place and he's got really good hands," Charlie Strong said. "He's going to be able to make those catches for us."

Wilcox definitely did throughout this whole week of practices, starting with a five-catch performance on Tuesday before hauling in four touchdown passes on Thursday.

"It's a lot of fun," he said. "I love getting the ball in my hands, getting downfield and scoring touchdowns."

To date, the junior from Tarpon Springs, Fla., has four touchdown catches in the past two seasons but many more could be on the horizon for USF's most productive pass-catcher so far this spring.

"There's a lot of growth and a lot of progression in what we're trying to accomplish," Wilcox said. "The quarterbacks are getting all their reads right and working through their progressions."

Up Next
USF will get its fourth week of spring practice going with a morning session at the Morsani Complex on Tuesday.

Including Tuesday's action, Strong's Bulls will practice five more times before taking the field for the annual spring game at Corbett Stadium on Saturday, April 14. Learn more about the spring game and its fun-filled pre-game festivities HERE.
 
ABOUT USF FOOTBALL
USF posted its second straight 10-win season in 2017 (10-2) by winning its second straight Birmingham Bowl with a 38-34 victory over Texas Tech. USF is one of just 14 teams nationally to win 20-plus games in the last two seasons (21-4) and has spent a program-record 20 straight weeks ranked in the top 25, reaching as high as No. 13 in Week 8 of the 2017 season. The Bulls have won five of their last six bowl appearances and made nine (6-3) total bowl appearances in 21 seasons, including a current run of three straight bowls. USF won a program-record 11 games in 2016 (11-2) and has posted 14 winning seasons. The USF program, which first took the field in 1997, reached No. 2 in the rankings in 2007 and has seen 28 players selected in the NFL Draft, 14 named All-American and had 32 first-team all-conference selections.
 
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