As a fan of the Golden Hurricane football team, I’m sure you’ve been keeping up to date with all the news and previews about this upcoming season. There’s a lot to like about the team this season.
Last year included a trip to the Independence Bowl, after missing out on bowl eligibility the previous two seasons, and the team looks to improve in Montgomery’s second season leading the team. During their preseason practices this summer, Montgomery talked about how impressed he was with the development of the team’s depth.
“I think we’ve made great progress. Our installation has gone through a lot quicker than anticipated because guys have been able to handle it. We have had some mental breakdowns that we have to clean up especially offensively. Most of those are just young guys who are still trying to learn and you get to the midpoint of camp and the grind is on them. Being mentally sharp as you go through the practice that we go through is tough to do, but those guys are growing and learning. We’ll continue to get better as we go,” Montgomery discussed after practice.
He then talked more about the depth that the current roster has.
“I think our depth has gotten so much better just in a year. I think we’ve done a good job of developing those guys. Some of the guys are really pushing for playing time. A bunch of our starters return, and they feel good about what they’re doing, but they feel that the young guys are biting at their heels and that’s keeping them on their toes.”
He emphasized the importance of finding the best 11 guys, whether or not they are starters or backups. The important thing for Montgomery and the Golden Hurricane is to get the best 11 players on the field.
The Golden Hurricane ended their fall camp with a scrimmage before moving into their regular in-season practice schedule. One of the concerns that hurt TU last year that was still present in the scrimmage was the explosive plays given up by the defense, both in the running and passing game. Montgomery says that will be all cleaned up before San Jose State, in addition to the number of penalties that the offense took in the second half of the scrimmage.
The Golden Hurricane open up their season against San Jose State on Saturday. San Jose State is coming off a six-win season and a win in the AutoNation Cure Bowl. Look for more coverage including press conferencea and radio show coverage as the season goes on.
Other news and notes:
Three Tulsa players were named to the fourth annual Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List. Seniors Dane Evans, Josh Atkinson and Keevan Lucas are all in the running for this award, which is given to the top offensive player in Division I who was born or played football in the state of Texas. Lucas was named a semifinalist in 2014 to this award.
Evans was also named to the watchlist for the Manning Award, along with 30 other quarterbacks across the nation. Evans had the second-best passing season in school history last year and led the American Athletic Conference in passing yards per-game (333.2) and total offense per-game (332.5). He only sits 31 TDS, 2,604 passing yards and 3,169 total yards away from tieing the school records in those three categories, and he should reach those numbers without too much of a problem this season.
