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Football Concludes Spring Practice with Second Annual Jeff Cole Scrimmage
May 6, 2006 ORONO, Maine - The University of Maine football team concluded its 2006 spring practice schedule on Saturday by playing host to the Second Annual Jeff Cole Scrimmage at Alfond Stadium. A large number of fans were in attendance and witnessed several nice plays turned in by both the offense and defense. "We have made a lot of improvements this spring," said head coach Jack Cosgrove, who will be entering his 14th season as the leader of Black Bear football program this fall. "We have a veteran defense, but we are young at a few spots on offense." The defense produced the first highlight of the day by recovering a fumble on the opening play. Defensive tackle Bruno Dorismond (New Canaan, Conn.), who provided solid play on the defensive front all of last season, jumped on the loose ball to begin the contest. The first-team offense came back out onto the field and started to move the ball into the defense's territory. Quarterback Ron Whitcomb (East Rochester, N.Y.) hooked up with wideout Manzi Pierre (Queens, N.Y.) for several nice completions on the drive. However, the possession was halted when defensive end Matt King (Stoughton, Mass.) intercepted a Whitcomb pass and returned it 25 yards back to midfield. The scrimmage was a special game for King, who missed the final eight games of last season with an injury. The injury was a tough one for King, who had recorded 6.5 tackles for loss in the first three games before suffering the setback. The defense continued to play well the rest of the first half and got a sack from Dorismond and a safety from defensive end Patrick McCrossan (Sparta, N.J.). "Our defense is going to be the strength of our operation next season," Cosgrove said. "They played well in the early going and forced a couple of turnovers. I liked their enthusiasm." The offense began to move the ball in the second half. H-back Anthony Cotrone (Valley Stream, N.Y.) keyed one of the early possessions with a pair of first-down runs, as those two plays set up a Whitcomb 30-yard touchdown pass to Pierre in the back corner of the endzone. The next possession for the offense did not start out well as Dorismond and McCrossan each recorded a sack. However, Whitcomb kept the chains moving later in the drive as he scrambled and connected with Arel Gordon (Rochester, N.Y.) for a first down. The senior-to-be signal caller then found Kenneth Fersner (Stamford, Conn.) in the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown pass, which capped the scoring on the day for the first team offense. The second team offense also got into the scoring act late in the scrimmage. H-back Wellington Talkpa (Hamilton, N.J.) pounded out a tough first down run to move the chains, and redshirt freshman quarterback Michael Brusko (Zionsville, Pa.) completed a nice 30-yard pass to Rodney Salomon (Marlboro, N.J.) to set up a first-and-goal at the three-yard line. Brusko capped the drive two plays later with a two-yard touchdown run. "I thought the guys on offense did some things that I liked," Cosgrove said. "They came back after those early turnovers and made some plays. They got a couple of scores which helped them gain some confidence. They'll continue to get better and learn from the positives they had today." Pierre, McCrossan and Lionel Nixon Jr. (New Haven, Conn.) were honored after the game as the most improved players on offense, special teams and defense, respectively.
"All three guys did a great job of working hard this offseason and it showed throughout spring practice," Cosgrove said. "They are very deserving of their awards."
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