SPRING CAMP REPORT 1: The ‘Birds Are Back

Oct 06, 2023

Football 8/3/2023 6:18:00 PM Mike Williams

NORMAL, Ill. – After a long summer of lifting weights and conditioning nearly every day, the Illinois State football team got back together for the first time since the spring on Thursday when the Redbirds returned to the turf at Hancock Stadium to kick off Fall Camp '23.

For the first time in this fall, over 100 student-athletes, coaches and staff took the field together to begin their preparations for the upcoming 2023 campaign. ISU head coach Brock Spack, who is beginning his 15th season at the helm of the Redbird Football program, set the tone early and the team went to work in helmets only as part of the NCAA's mandated acclimation period.

Practice Highlights:• After a pep talk from Spack, practice opened with a team stretch and a special teams circuit, before the team broke off into position groups to run through individual drills.• After the individual period, the focus shifted to the passing game as the team went through the first of two 7-on-7 periods during the two-hour workout.• Redshirt senior quarterback Zack Annexstad went 5-for-6, with two completions each to Daniel Sobkowicz and Rylan Crawford … backup Tommy Rittenhouse was also solid, going 4-for-6 with completions to David Connors Jr. and freshman Tommy Donovan.• It was then time to put the quarterbacks under pressure during the blitz drill, with Annexstad and Rittenhouse taking the snaps … a pair of strong runs from Cole Mueller got the offense off to a good start, before the defense came up with a couple stops on a pass breakup by CJ Hodgdon and tipped ball at the line of scrimmage by Darius Walker … the offense got the momentum back however, as Annexstad connected with Sobkowicz on a 35-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the endzone and then Joshua Ficklin ripped off a 20-plus yard run that could have gone for six … the defense got the final big play of the session, as a TFL by Jake Anderson ended things as the horn blew to signal the next period.• Following the blitz drill and the perimeter run period, the second 7-on-7 session began with the quarterbacks taking their chances as airing it out down the field … Annexstad was efficient, completing seven of his eight passes with two finding Eddie Kasper over the middle and his last going for a 35-yard score to Camo Nelson … Rittenhouse was 5-for-8, with big completions to Jalen Carr and Scotty Presson Jr. … the defense made sure to have its presence felt as well, as Hodgdon, Mark Cannon Jr. and Christian Kirenga each recorded pass breakups.• The team session followed, with the defense coming up with stops early on breakups by Cade Campos from his middle linebacker spot and in the secondary by Keondre Jackson and Jeff Bowens … the offense did get the momentum at the end however, as a big completion from Rittenhouse to Crawford and a 20-plus yard run by Mason Blakemore capped off the first day of action.

Up Next: The Redbirds return to the field Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. for practice No. 2. For updates, photos, and video from 2023 Redbird Football Fall Camp, follow the team's official X (@RedbirdFB) and Instagram (isuredbirdfb) accounts and log onto GoRedbirds.com.

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