Oklahoma State Football Practice Report – April 9

STILLWATER, Okla. – The Oklahoma State football team held an approximately 100-play scrimmage – its first of the spring – on Monday in Boone Pickens Stadium, with the defense getting the upper hand for most of the session. Coach Mike Gundy talked about what he saw from his team. Read his thoughts below, or scroll down to listen to the audio.

Oklahoma State Coach Mike Gundy

On Monday’s scrimmage:

“The defense really played well. We’ve got a number of guys that can run to the football and they show up fast. Offensively, we could never get into a rhythm. Really, none of the three quarterbacks did much, but I kind of expected that with a more mature defense. I expected them to play well and the offense to be a little slow at times – that happens in the spring. As a team, some things that we’ve got to correct are that offensively, we’ve got to get into a rhythm better and guys who can make big plays have to step up and make big plays. Defensively, we’ve got to find a way to force more turnovers and get the ball on the ground.”

On if any position group stood out during Monday’s scrimmage:

“Defensively as a group, they all ran to the ball well. One thing I noticed is that our linebackers run sideways real well and they show up fast. Shaun Lewis, Lyndell Johnson and Joe Mitchell and those guys really run well side to side and show up. I think that’s going to pay great dividends for us during the season.”

On if the team’s intensity is where he wants it to be at this point:

“Not really. One thing that happens during the spring is they’ve now gone against each other enough that you lose a little bit of that, but they certainly need to be self-starters and do a better job of getting out here and playing at a high level and trying to put themselves into a situation that they’d be in on gameday. It takes a little time, but I wasn’t as happy as I was with last Friday, when we had a little bit of a scrimmage situation.”

Among the offensive highlights of the scrimmage was a J.W. Walsh-to-Blake Jackson touchdown pass. An inside receiver/tight end, Jackson chose to enroll at Oklahoma State after an outstanding 2011 season at Scottsdale CC that led to him earning scholarship offers from schools such as Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Arkansas, among others. His position coach, Doug Meacham, talked about Jackson and the Cowboy inside receivers:

Inside Receivers Coach Doug Meacham

On if Josh Stewart can replace the productivity of Josh Cooper:

“Yes, I would say so. Stewart has an innate ability to be in the right spot. He’s got really good body twitch and ball skills. Some guys are naturals at getting in the right spots. He’s a guy that naturally has a great feel for the void areas and the holes and where to bounce. He’s super-twitchy. It’s hard to get a glove on him. It’s hard to wall him or collision him or re-route him because he’s got such good twitch. He can get in and out on you, he can stem you and get in spots.

“His ball skills are off the charts and his hand-eye coordination is unbelievable. He’s not quite as big as Josh Cooper, but I think in a year or so – maybe a couple years – he’ll get close to that. In terms of body twitch and control, he may have more than anybody else that I have. As time goes on, he’s only going to get better with the feel of the game and what we do offensively. I’m really high on him right now.”