UTPB’s football program has been hard at work the past two weeks.
The Falcons showcased how things are going during a scrimmage Saturday at Falcon Field.
Offense versus defense and for most of the spirited, nearly two-hour session, the defense was in control.
The offense was able to find the end zone twice, but time and again the Falcons’ defensive effort snuffed out short-yardage plays to end drives and start celebrations.
“We have to be more consistent on offense,” head coach Justin Carrigan said. “The defense was doing some good things.”
Quarterbacks Dylan Graham and Jordan Barton each directed a scoring drive.
Both transferred into the Falcons’ program after strong junior college seasons in 2021.
Graham was at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Calif., while Barton played at Riverside (Calif.) City College.
Graham is in the driver’s seat to start against Southwest Baptist on Sept. 3.
“Dylan brings some great leadership to him,” Carrigan said. “He did a tremendous job through the spring, he does a great job just in some 1-on-1 stuff, grabbing guys, picking guys up, kind of being another coach between the lines.
“Jordan is a really good athlete that can throw the ball well, so he has a little bit extra to him in his tool box. He’s more of a dual-threat guy.”
The biggest threat to Graham, Barton and the other UTPB quarterbacks on this day was the pressure the defensive line was applying on each snap.
Not even stepping up into the pocket gave the signal callers much extra time.
“You get to fly around and hit somebody, so the guys are always fired up about that,” said co-defensive coordinator Jacob Martin. “It’s good to see, from top to bottom, all the guys making plays and doing what they were supposed to do for the most part.
“The D line’s done a great job of getting off the football and most of that (stopping short yardage) goes to them and creating a new line of scrimmage. I think they had nine sacks.”
The Falcons played 16 games in 2021 after its 2020 schedule was pushed to the spring because of the pandemic.
They were 5-0 in the spring and 5-5 in the fall before earning the program’s first invitation to a postseason game.
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