Aug. 14, 2004

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford football team held a two-hour scrimmage at Seibert Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs worked on position drills prior to scrimmaging. The team then had a live scrimmage for about an hour, and then worked on goal-line situations. "We came out here with the goal to run about 120 plays, to go live, to get off the field with no injuries but to be able to make some decisions after today, and I think we will," Head Coach Bill Gray said. "We were pleased with the effort, and we have some positions that are clearing up for us. We had several guys that had good days and took steps forward. But, we were able to get a number of snaps in and stay healthy and we will be ready to go back to work on Monday. "We have a lot of work to do," Gray said. "But I am pleased with the young guys and their effort. We have a lot of veterans that have played a lot of football as well. We're just going to try to continue to take small steps and get better each time we come out." The scrimmage highlighted the backups as the coaching staff looks to solidify the backup positions. Gray said he was pleased with the work of the three candidates at the running back positions, Philip Hyde, Drew Guess and Jeff Bennett. "Philip Hyde and Drew Guess both came in as freshmen, and we were expecting to have to play them, and they will both play this season," Gray said. "They run the ball hard and we are hoping to have some durability at the tailback position. I thought Jeff Bennett, a guy that is a full back in the spread offense, but he's done a good job for us, and he had a good day today." Gray added that he was pleased with the work of quarterbacks Blake Davidson, Parker Gargis and Jefferson Adcock in the scrimmage as well. "They had excellent days," Gray said. "They threw the ball well at times. Those three guys have done everything we've asked them to do, and they are battling it out. It makes you feel good as a coach, knowing that you have two or three options if anything happens to Ray (Nelson). I'm very pleased in the way they performed today." The Bulldogs will take the day off from practice on Sunday, and will have their annual Picture Day at 2:30 p.m. at Seibert Stadium. The team will return to the practice field on Monday with two practices. The first practice will be at 7:55 a.m., and the second will be at 3:45 p.m. The Bulldogs open the 2004 season on Saturday, August 28, when they play host to the West Alabama Tigers. Kickoff for the game is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Seibert Stadium.