Sonny Holland Classic concludes spring football

The clouds dissipated and the sun shone down on Bobcat Stadium on Saturday, April 7 for the annual Sonny Holland Classic. A crowd of 1,000 people attended the relaxed spring football scrimmage showcasing new players, transfers and players with less experience.

The scrimmage began with junior quarterback Chris Murray and freshman quarterback Tucker Rovig taking turns leading the offense in a total of five redzone drills. The Bobcat offense scored on three of the five attempts, including a touchdown from sophomore transfer running back Tyler Natee. There were also two field goals split between junior transfer kicker Tristan Bailey and freshman Jacob Byrne, who came into MSU’s program a wide receiver and is now listed on the Cats’ spring roster as a kicker. While both made 20-25 yard kicks, they also both missed a kick from similar range.

In between the first and second “quarter,” an entertaining special teams blocking drill took place. After the drill, each quarterback led a drive from their own 20-yard line and then their own 35-yard line. During the sequence, senior running back Logan Jones saw a lot of touches, and put together some nice runs. Murray also put a throw right on the money to junior wide receiver Kevin Kassis for an eight-yard touchdown. In addition, Bailey kicked an impressive 53-yard field goal. At the conclusion of the second quarter, a punting drill took place.

After halftime, each offense participated in a two-minute drill, then performed more passing drills. The final quarter consisted of new and less experienced players competing in an 80-yard drive scenario set up by the coaching staff.

Head Coach Jeff Choate acknowledged that not a lot was done during the three hour event, but added that their big scrimmage took place last week, though it wasn’t open to the public. Choate also went on to say that he was happy spring football is over. All in all, the Sonny Holland Classic allowed fans to get a sneak peek at what the Cats have going for next fall and take a look at how players have improved over the offseason.