This is a spring of radical change for the UTEP football team, but not for everyone on it.
Scotty Walden’s first move after leaving Austin Peay was to bring a bunch of Peay with him, including 11 players and much of his staff.
When asked to identify some early standouts in the first week, many of the names he came up with were returners, but he also pulled out three of those players who came with him from Austin Peay — running back Jevon Jackson and receivers Kam Thomas and Trey Goodman.
They serve as a bridge to the new era in their own way, taking on a leadership role that comes with familiarity with the system.
“Where it really is a bridge is in the weight room, drills and when things get hard at practice — they know what they’re doing,” Walden said. “Those guys have such an empowerment because they’ve been in our culture — some of those guys were in our first recruiting class at Austin Peay and now, like Trey Goodman, this is his fourth year in our shop. He knows culturally how we do things.”
Here are some players new to UTEP who have stood out after four practices.
More: ‘We want to go fast’: Seven UTEP quarterbacks begin spring battle for one spot
Trey Goodman, receiver
He was an all-conference player at Austin Peay last season when he had seven touchdown catches as part of his 34 receptions for 721 yards. He’s been an early standout at practice as he should slide right into a starting receiver spot.
“Coach Walden, the way he runs this program, it’s the ultimate accountability program,” Goodman said. “For me, having been with him four years now, I’m using my experience as an advantage for me and for the team. We’re going to need everyone, so helping those guys with my experience being around coach, bringing them along, giving them the insight I have so we can all be successful as a team, that’s what I bring to…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/five-utep-football-players-had-110104998.html
Author : The El Paso Times
Publish date : 2024-03-26 11:01:04
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