The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

The start of Lamar’s football scrimmage Saturday night started the way most fans would have expected with the No. 1 offense dominating. Lamar’s first team-offense scored on two of its first three possessions, and the first big highlight came on the fourth play. Sophomore running back Kade Harrington carried the ball 71 yards for the touchdown on his second rush of the night.

The next big highlight came from special teams as kicker Josh Davis belted a 46-yard field goal and it appeared the rout was on, but the defense quickly put a stop to that. The impressive thing about Davis’ 46-yard field goal was it came just moments after missing one from the same distance.

Senior quarterback Caleb Berry connected on three of his first five attempts before the No. 1 defense stiffened. The Needville, Texas product closed out the scrimmage completing only four of his last 13 attempts, including one interception. He ended the night with 99 yards passing.

It was quite the opposite for junior Rex Dausin who struggled out of the gate misfiring on four of his first five attempts before completing six of his last seven. Dausin ended the night 7-of-13 for 66 yards and one interception. The one interception was a costly mistake as redshirt freshman Judge Wolfe returned the ball 60 yards for the score.

The defense ended the night with four tackles for losses, including three sacks and broke up six passes in addition to the two interceptions. Sophomore Eddie McGill led the defense with six tackles, including five solo stops. Senior Joe Okafor added four tackles with one sack.

For a second consecutive scrimmage the Lamar running backs flexed their muscle carrying the ball 36 times for 200 yards. Harrington led the way with four rushes for 81 yards and the score, while sophomore Emmitt Raleigh also looked strong in the backfield. The Houston native added 41 yards on eight carries. Transfer Devonn Brown led all LU receivers with two receptions for 55 yards.

“We got nearly 75 plays in tonight and I saw some good things on both sides of the ball,” said head coach Ray Woodard. “I’m happy with where we are, but we still have a lot of work to do. If we can keep improving like we have we will be ready to play, but we’re not quite there yet.

“I’m really impressed with our conditioning. There was a time where I was concerned that we might be getting a little tired but the defense really kept up the pressure and continued to make plays. I think we did enough on both sides of ball to be encouraged but we have a lot of work still to do,” added Woodard.

The Cardinals will have one more scrimmage remaining before they open the season against Grambling State. Lamar’s final scrimmage will take place Saturday, Aug. 23, at 10:00 a.m. from Provost Umphrey Stadium.