Troy
Troy

Troy Team Report

Updated: April 26, 2012 03:11 EST

Troy's offense was on fire during spring practice, reminding people of the days of 2006-10, when the Trojans' offense won plenty of shootouts to capture five straight outright or shared Sun Belt championships.

Quarterback Corey Robinson had plenty of weapons at receiver to throw to, namely Jamel Johnson, Chip Reeves, Eric Thomas and Chandler Worthy. The ground game was solid even behind a beaten up offensive line, and the defense was no match. In two spring scrimmages, there were a total of 16 touchdowns -- 15 from the offensive side.

"Coming off the year we had, everybody's fighting to come out here and do whatever it takes to get on top," receiver Justin Albert said. "This university and this football team is nowhere near used to losing. Being on top is the best feeling and that's where we're trying to get back to."

It's the end of spring practice, but the next few months are critical as the Trojans prepare for fall practice and the Sept. 1 opener at UAB. Troy has six home games for the first time since moving up to the FBS level, and four are against the top four teams in the Sun Belt last year -- Arkansas State, Western Kentucky, UL-Lafayette and Florida International. The other two are against Mississippi State and Navy.

"After spring ball is over, it's not over," Blakeney said. "If you're not getting stronger, you're getting behind. We don't need distractions. We need the football team to be the best citizens around.

"We've got to get a Master's degree in our defense and we've got to know what to do. For us to be successful offensively, (Corey Robinson) has to have another great year."

Defensive coordinator Jeremy Rowell didn't sound discouraged about the results of spring practice. The Trojans are experienced, but will get some help this fall with junior college transfer linemen Braylon Williams, Xavier Melton and Derrek Upshaw entering the fold, as well as cornerback Zach Miller.

"We've had some good and some bad," Rowell said. "We know where we're weak at and we know where we've got to have some help at. We know some of our strengths. We're just trying to learn how to play football again."

--Troy is deep at running back this year, returning four seniors in Shawn Southward, D.J. Taylor, Chris Anderson and T.J. Mitchell, but two more stepped up and proved they may be able to play this year. Junior Khary Franklin moved from wide receiver to running back and redshirt freshman Daron White showed he's ready to play.

--The Sun Belt announced that Troy's Thursday night, Oct. 11 game against Western Kentucky would be televised by ESPNU. Troy announced a road game to the 2013 schedule, as the Trojans will play at Ole Miss. Troy's 2013 schedule has one game left to fill.

--In late May, the school will install a new playing surface. The current one has been there since the 2003 season.

SPRING MOVERS

LB Tyler Roberts -- The redshirt freshman made plays all spring as the backup at the Bandit linebacker position -- a hybrid defensive end spot that can blitz or drop into coverage.

LB Dimitri Miles -- Miles, a sophomore, came to Troy as a walk-on last year and shined in limited opportunities. Despite missing part of spring with an injury, Miles is on track to be a starter at the WILL linebacker spot this fall.

C Andrew Phillips -- The rising senior dropped some weight and took command of the starting center spot this year after serving as the backup last year. The center position is crucial for Troy's offense, as he's basically the quarterback of the offensive line.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I think we're ahead offensively of where we've been. If everybody stays on board, maybe better than in years past. Corey's had a good spring and our runners had a good spring. We're growing up offensively." -- Troy head coach Larry Blakeney to the Dothan Eagle.

2012 OUTLOOK: Troy doesn't have anywhere to go but up after a dreadful 3-9 season ended what had been a string of five straight conference championships. This year's team will be much more experienced than last year's, and probably deeper and better equipped to handle injuries. A brutal offseason program tested the wills of Trojan players and they are determined to erase what happened last year and get back to a championship level. On paper, it seems like Troy has the pieces in place to contend.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: Quarterback Corey Robinson was in fine form in the spring as he got two of his favorite targets back from academic woes. Jamel Johnson and Chip Reeves were ineligible last year, but are back and looking better than ever. Eric Thomas and Chandler Worthy were the top two receivers last year and they look better. The running game was strong and the offensive line battled injuries to starters, but was able to build depth. Troy focused on red zone offense, as the Trojans were 119th out of 120 teams in that area last year, and the early results look promising.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: The defense, which finished 113th last year in total offense, certainly didn't look like it made much improvement after an awful 2011. But that could be because Troy's offense looked exceptional. It's very possible that the Troy offense may be the best unit that the Troy defense faces. Troy made a switch to a different 4-3 scheme, with one of the defensive ends acting as a hybrid end/linebacker who can blitz and drop back into coverage. That'll be senior Jacoby Thomas. The linebacker unit is experienced with three seniors and a sophomore who played last year. The secondary is also experienced, but the defensive tackles haven't shown that they are ready to be consistent contributors.

SCOUTING THE SPECIAL TEAMS: It's an entirely new unit, except for the holder in Jaquon Robinson and the punt returner in Justin Albert. Junior college transfer Will Scott, redshirt freshman Jed Solomon and true freshman Ryan Kay are battling for the kickoff spot. Right now, Scott may have the inside track on all three -- punts, kickoffs and field goals, with Solomon pushing him. Kay is further behind and could redshirt this year. Hunter Graham and Kendall Gibson are battling at long snapper.

TOP NEWCOMERS:

WR Jamel Johnson -- The junior college transfer picked up right where he left off when he played as a freshman at Troy in 2010, emerging as the top receiver during spring drills.

OL Chris Hawkins -- Hawkins came to Troy from Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College and has three years left to play three. Hawkins could step in as a starting tackle this fall.

DL Lonnie Gosha -- The Arkansas transfer is seeking a waiver to play this fall for family reasons. If he gets it, and it's a long shot, but Gosha will be an immediate force.

ROSTER REPORT

--Senior WR Corey Johnson had the only serious injury of spring practice, as he tore his ACL and is out for the season. Johnson caught 43 balls for 440 yards last year.

--OL Zach Johnson missed most of spring practice with a sprained neck, but returned at the end.

--Three starters from last year -- OL Kyle Wilborn (shoulder), LB Kanorris Davis (foot) and WR Jaquon Robinson (foot) -- missed all of camp, but are expected to be ready for fall practice.