April 15, 2010

Golden Eagles to wrap up spring work with Purple & Gold Spring Game

The Tennessee Tech football team will finish off its 2010 spring workouts Saturday afternoon with the Purple & Gold Spring Game in Tucker Stadium. More of a controlled scrimmage than an actual game, the event is open to the public and will begin at 1 p.m.

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee Tech football team will wrap up its spring workouts Saturday afternoon in Tucker Stadium in the Purple & Gold Spring Game, starting at 1 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

With more than a dozen players expected to be on the sidelines due to injuries or continuing rehab from previous injuries, head coach Watson Brown says the event will be more of a controlled scrimmage than an actual intrasquad game.

Still, fans will have a chance to watch the Golden Eagles who wrapped up a successful campaign in 2009 with a 6-5 overall record, second place in the Ohio Valley Conference, and a 3-0 record against the league's in-state rivals to capture the Sgt. York Trophy.

With the injuries keeping some of the projected first-team players off the field, a number of young players have had the opportunity to step up and see extended playing time. They have had several shining moments during the past three weeks in their efforts to impress the coaching staff. Some of those upstarts include runningback Ronquez Beech, tight end Tyler York, and receivers Cory McDonald and Carter Crutchfield.

A handful of players will also be on display at their new positions after making a switch from last season. The most visible among those are Jamere Hogue, who moved from tight end to defensive line, Corey Watson and Taylor Hennigan, who both switched from receiver to defensive back spots, and Malcolm Jones, last year's starting center who is now lining up at right tackle.

Fans will also get to watch quarterbacks Tre Lamb, Cass Barnes and Clint Brewster as they run the offense. They provide a different dimension than last year's offense built around record-setting passer Lee Sweeney.

The Golden Eagles are scheduled to open the 2010 season with back-to-back games against Football Bowl Subdivision foes Arkansas (Sept. 3) and TCU (Sept. 10).