OXFORD, Miss. \u2013 The sun rose at 6:50 a.m. Thursday, but by that time the Ole Miss football team was already halfway into an intrasquad scrimmage on the indoor practice field that head coach Hugh Freeze described as \u201ccompetitive\u201d and \u201cphysical.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dressed in full pads, the first-team offense and defense went head-to-head, while the second-team offense and defense also squared off against each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought the one defense pretty much dominated the scrimmage,\u201d Freeze said. \u201cThe two offense did some good things. The one offense did some good things in the early drives, but had way too many negative plays still. I loved the competitive spirit. To have an early morning, a quick turnaround from yesterday, I thought they did well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Freeze was pleased with the Rebels\u2019 stable of running backs, which did not turn the ball over during Thursday\u2019s workout.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think all of our young backs are doing some good things at times. Nick (Parker) stood out today, and so did (Mark) Dodson. (Darryan) Ragsdale had a decent run.\u201d<\/p>\n
The head coach also liked the play of newcomer Anthony Alford at safety and sophomore Woodrow Hamilton at defensive tackle.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnthony Alford is getting better and better. He really had a good day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWoody Hamilton played really physical today. Our weight program is helping us with that. Our coaches are demanding that. I think we\u2019re getting more physical.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was a new face on the sidelines Thursday morning. Freshman Martavious Newby, who just helped the Ole Miss hoops team capture the SEC Tournament Championship and win a game in the NCAA Tournament, was wearing a No. 17 jersey while he watched practice.<\/p>\n
Freeze said Newby, who Freeze recruited for football when he was at Arkansas State, would need to get acclimated before he could start working in individual drills. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound athlete will be with the linebackers initially.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s made it clear ever since he\u2019s been here that he\u2019d like to try to play both (basketball and football),\u201d Freeze said. \u201cOf course I spoke with Andy (Kennedy) about it, and Andy\u2019s great with it. We want to be straight with the kid and find out what we think his future is. It was (Newby\u2019s) idea, and certainly we\u2019re open to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rebels will be off through the Easter weekend and will come together again for their eighth spring practice on Monday, which has been scheduled for an 8 p.m. start.<\/p>\n
All spring practices are open to the public. Use of cell phones and cameras are prohibited for fans at practice, and fans must remain in the designated area. Fans are not allowed between the practice fields.<\/p>\n
For an updated schedule of practice times and locations, please refer to the 2013 Spring Practice Schedule button located on the left side of the OleMissSports.com football home page. All information is tentative and subject to change.<\/p>\n
Spring ball will culminate with the 2013 BancorpSouth Grove Bowl on Saturday, April 13, at 1 p.m. Admission to the game is free this year.<\/p>\n
A number of activities will surround Grove Bowl week, including that Saturday morning’s Chucky Mullins Award Ceremony, which will be a breakfast at 8:30 a.m. at the Jackson Avenue Center (old Wal-Mart building). Tickets are now available for the event by visiting the OleMissSports.com ticket site or calling 888-REB-TKTS.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"