Aug. 22, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University football team turned in an energized hour-and-a-half long scrimmage at Seibert Stadium on Saturday. The scrimmage was the Bulldogs' second of fall camp and a majority of the snaps were taken by the second and third string teams on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.

"We didn't want to work the guys too hard, but we wanted our younger players to get a lot of good reps," said Samford head coach Pat Sullivan. "It was great to see a lot of those guys out there getting a lot of snaps and now all we need is to get all of our starters back to 100 percent. We have quite a few guys out right now and we just need to get them back."

Samford's first-team offense only stayed on the field for the opening two drives of the scrimmage. On the Bulldogs' second possession, starting quarterback Dustin Taliaferro helped set up a one-yard touchdown run from Chris Evans with a 30-yard pass to Richie Fordham.

Taliaferro, the 2008 Freshman of the Year in the Southern Conference, finished Saturday's scrimmage 2-of-4 for 44 yards in two possessions. Evans, the Bulldogs' preseason All-American running back, finished with three carries for seven yards, including a tough one-yard touchdown run.

Samford's second-team offensive unit received a majority of Saturday's reps and added a pair of touchdowns.

Quarterback Connor Lowery turned in a 13-of-22 performance for 109 yards. The Bulldogs' redshirt freshman from Lebanon, Tenn., also tossed a pair of touchdown passes to Fordham.

"Connor (Lowery) pretty much played quarterback the entire time today and looked comfortable in there," Sullivan said. "I thought that he really made a lot of nice throws and it was good to see him get some work. I also thought that our two kickers did a really good job today. That's a big part of every team and I'm happy that we looked very solid in that area out there today."

Samford's special teams were impressive in Saturday's scrimmage. Placekickers Cameron Yaw and Ben Meadows were both perfect from the field and junior punter Bob Hooper averaged 48.1 yards per punt. Yaw, the Bulldogs' true freshman from Trussville, also sent a number of booming kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks, while Riley Hawkins turned in a kick return of 46 yards.

"I thought that Darion Sutton had a very good day at the linebacker position and Richie Fordham made some really nice plays," said Sullivan. "Durell Hill also made a very nice play at the end of the scrimmage when he forced a fumble and then recovered it as well."

Fordham, Samford's exciting sophomore receiver from right here in Birmingham via Oak Mountain High School, turned in the best overall performance of the day. The Bulldogs' lithe 6-foot-1 wide receiver finished with four catches for 59 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

The Bulldogs' scrimmage was officiated by a full crew of local referees and very few penalties were whistled throughout the workout. Samford looked sharp on both sides of the ball and there was only one turnover in the entire scrimmage.

Saturday's full scrimmage was the Bulldogs' last of fall camp. Beginning Tuesday, Samford will begin its normal game-week preparations.

"We'll go to church as a team tomorrow and then we'll give the guys Monday off on the first day of classes," Sullivan said. "On Tuesday, we'll start our normal game-week preparation and we'll start working on our game plan for Central Florida. Our guys have had a tough, hardworking camp and it will be good to get them back into a normal routine."

Samford will take both Sunday and Monday off from practice. The Bulldogs will then resume practice Tuesday afternoon in full pads.

Samford opens its 2009 season Saturday, Sept. 5, as the Bulldogs travel to Orlando, Fla., to take on the UCF Knights. The game is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. (CDT) at Bright House Networks Stadium.

SCRIMMAGE STATISTICAL LEADERS

PASSING
Connor Lowery: 13-of-22, 109 yards, 2 TDs
Dustin Taliaferro: 2-of-4, 44 yards
Spencer Wise: 2-of-4, 41 yards

RUSHING
Alex Barnett: 6 rushes, 21 yards
Mason Wald: 8 rushes, 19 yards
Alex Caldwell: 4 rushes, 17 yards
Chris Evans: 3 rushes, 7 yards, TD

RECEIVING
Richie Fordham: 4 receptions, 59 yards, 2 TDs
Marquel Franklin: 4 receptions, 59 yards
Riley Hawkins: 2 receptions, 29 yards
Jacob Kirschenbaum: 1 reception, 15 yards
David Strider: 1 reception, 10 yards
Alex Caldwell: 2 receptions, 9 yards
Jacobi Rodriguez: 1 reception, 8 yards
Geoffrey Moore: 2 receptions, 5 yards

SACKS
Alex Davis (1), Erik Peterson (1)

FIELD GOALS
Ben Meadows: 1-for-1 (made-38)
Cameron Yaw: 1-for-1 (made-25)

KICK RETURNS
Riley Hawkins: 1 return, 46 yards
Craig Chavis: 1 return, 18 yards
Marquel Franklin: 1 return, 10 yards

PUNTING
Bob Hooper: 4 punts, 48.1 yards per punt