March 6, 2008

JEFFERSON CITY - The Carson-Newman football team concluded three weeks of spring workouts Wednesday evening with the annual "Orange and Blue" intra-squad scrimmage at Burke-Tarr Stadium.

In a turnover-marred contest, it was the passing of Maryland transfer Joel Statham that proved to be the difference as the Orange team cruised to a 23-7 victory.

"We saw some good things, and if we can get everybody healthy and on the field, everything's going to be OK," Carson-Newman head coach Ken Sparks told reporters after the game. "It will carry on throughout the off-season.

Statham hooked up with receiver Charles Dobson on two touchdown completions and finished with 151 yards passing. Alex Rouse started at quarterback for the Orange team but suffered a knee injury on the first series. Alex Good, last year's co-first team All-South Atlantic Conference quarterback, led the Blue team.

"He (Statham) really threw the ball well," Sparks noted. "He's still learning, but he put the ball in the right place. That's what he does best. He can make plays after two weeks of practice, even though he's not very comfortable with the offense."

Missing from the scrimmage was the combination of go-to receivers Otis Miller and Reggie Hubbard, who both have been slowed by lingering injuries this spring.

The offensive play of both teams was plagued by a total of five fumbles and two interceptions.

Dwayne Mims got the Orange team on the board in the first half with an 11-yard touchdown run, and the score remained 7-0 at halftime. The margin grew to 20-0 in the second half, before Buck Wakefield broke loose for a 74-yard kick-off return in the fourth quarter.

Joey Scribbner-Howard added a 46-yard field goal from the Orange team to make the final score.

The Eagles are coming off a 10-1 season, in which they were left out of the NCAA Division II Playoffs, despite being ranked in the top six in the region, 11th in the country, and finishing the regular season with the top scoring offense in the nation.

"Our theme this off-season has been 'Believe and leave no doubts'," Sparks added. "You hear (the players) say that every time we break down. That's a pretty good reminder for us. I've seen some great determination in these kids to not let anything like that happen again."