Football | March 01, 2019

KALAMAZOO, Mich.- The Western Michigan football team has wrapped its first five practices of Spring Ball, which began on Monday, Feb. 18. The Broncos will now pause for the University Spring Break period and return on March 13 to start the first of the final 10 practices, which conclude on March 29. Western Michigan will hold its open to the public spring practice on Saturday, March 23.

SPRING OVERVIEW

It's been a very, very busy first five practices for the Broncos, who have welcomed five new coaches, a new defense and several position changes.

''Offensively, I'm a drink-through-the-firehose coach,'' head coach Tim Lester said. ''I don't wait. I put it all in.

''We put in 33 percent (of the offense) on day one, 33 percent on day two and 33 percent on day three. My theory is instead of holding back the guys that need to go slow, I want the guys to learn fast. Some of them are drowning by day three and looked it.''

Then came the fifth day when Lester was happy because everything was clicking on both sides of the ball.

''It was definitely our best day of practice so far,'' he said. 'On Day Five, there were no busted coverages on defense and the offense was clicking for the most part.''

With all of the change, Western Michigan still has plenty of consistency, as the Broncos had just nine seniors that completed their eligibility this past fall. As calculated by SB Nation, WMU returns 84% of its total offensive production and 85% its total defensive production from 2018, which ranks among the top in the nation.

When senior tight end Giovanni Ricci raced down the side line and sophomore quarterback Kaleb Eleby hit him for a touchdown, or when the energized defense stuffed several plays, it was evident that an experienced group are beginning to fine-tune their craft.

''Some days the defense is ahead and some days the offense beats the defense,'' Lester said. "It is fun to watch it go back and forth. And when you have it right, that's the way it should be.

''Probably 90 percent of the defense and offense are in. We're putting checks in and we can spend the next 10 practices after Spring Break honing things."

NEW DEFENSE

Lou Esposito took over the defense prior to Western Michigan's 28-21 win over Northern Illinois in the regular season finale and Lester made the defensive coordinator promotion official in January. It didn't take Esposito very long to show his players that changes were being made for 2019.

''Lou has spent this whole offseason teaching football to our defense,'' Lester said. ''It's not just their job, but the formations, what they are trying to do.

''Even when I talk to the defensive backs during a drill, I'll ask, 'Who has this area?', and Tranquill (senior Justin Tranquill) will tell me what he and other positions have, too. It's unbelievable how far they have come in the universal understanding of what everyone is doing.''

Esposito actually started it in January when he would text his defensive players with pictures of formations and then quiz them on the name of the formation - will they have to check at certain times and asking his linemen and cornerbacks what the linebacker is going to call on a certain formation.

The defensive enthusiasm is at about 150 percent in practice, too, some may say a direct by-product of Esposito's energy.

''You can feel the energy of the defense,'' Lester said. ''He gets them ramped up and it's a blast.

''It's been more challenging for the offense, which is good.''

WASSINK THROWING AGAIN

Quarterback Jon Wassink is ahead of schedule after suffering a 2018 season-ending foot injury in game nine against Toledo.

''Jon is out of his boot and able to put cleats on and moving around fairly well. He's throwing the ball and looks great. We have him in on one-on-ones and 7v7s, but we haven't put him in any team reps,'' Lester said.

''We want to be protective of him, and we will keep him limited this spring. The biggest thing is we don't want him behind the line or with the defense rushing at him until that foot is totally healed."

QUARTERBACK PLAY

Sophomore Kaleb Eleby is back for his second spring and is coming off a freshman season in which he threw for 1,092 yards and four touchdowns over the final five games following the injury to Wassink.

"Kaleb is getting better and all of these extra reps are great as he continues to grow and develop," Lester said. "You can see how much more comfortable he is back there this spring versus last spring."

The rest of the quarterback group consists of sophomore Griffin Alstott, senior Alex Mussat and sophomore Chris Riddle. Alstott will be entering his first active year with the Broncos after sitting last season following a transfer from Purdue.

POSITION CHANGES

Spring is the time to tinker and Lester has done a little of that, too. One of the biggest changes was moving senior D'Wayne Eskridge from wide receiver to cornerback. Lester said the plan is for Eskridge to play on both sides of the football in the fall.

''Dee looks great at corner,'' Lester said. ''He had a pick on the first day.''

Eskridge caught 38 passes for 776 yards and three touchdowns last season, averaging 20.4 yards per catch, which ranked 11th in the nation.

Senior offensive lineman Luke Juriga is moving from guard to center, taking the place of graduated All-Mid-American Conference performer John Keenoy. Juriga has some experience at center, playing that position two years ago against Wagner, the only game Keenoy did not play in his career.

Coming off a Freshman All-American year, sophomore Jayden Reed has moved from the slot to the outside. Reed led the Broncos in receptions last year, grabbing 56 passes for 797 yards and eight touchdowns. He also ran back a 93-yard punt return for a touchdown.

''The last practice before break was the first time Bird started to understand the spacing of the field on the boundary,'' Lester said. ''He been looking very good.''

Senior Stefan Claiborne has moved from cornerback back to safety, a position he played two years ago. Sophomore Patrick Lupro is now at cornerback and junior Luke Sanders goes from wide receiver to tight end, while sophomore Tanner Mathias was moved from the defensive line to the offensive line.

''This is the normal amount of movement in the spring,'' Lester said. ''Athletes like Dee, you know what they can do, but you want to know if they can do other things that will help us out even more.

"We will continue to move guys around, we want our players to learn and know other positions on the field, which will only make us stronger.''

EARLY ENROLLEES

Four members of the 2019 recruiting class enrolled early to get a head start on their college careers. They are wide receiver Corey Crooms, kicker and junior college transfer Thiago Kapps, freshman defensive back Damari Roberson and junior defensive back and junior college transfer Ozziah Williams.

YOUNG VETERANS

In previous seasons, coaches would see how their freshmen would improve during practice when they played on the scout team, but would never get into a game, thus redshirting. The new rule that an athlete can play in up to four games and still be redshirted has changed the college football landscape.

''For example, in the bowl game, McCabe (redshirt freshman Will McCabe) and Fiske (redshirt freshmen Braden Fiske) played on the defensive line when BYU wanted to run it down our throats, but couldn't do it because those two played great,'' Lester said.

''You're not finding out about your young players in the spring anymore. You find out in those four games the previous season.

''We know Lupro and (sophomore) Zaire Barnes can do because they got a chance to play last year.''

INJURY UPDATES

Junior offensive lineman Mark Brooks was the Broncos' other major injury last year, sustaining an ACL injury against Eastern Michigan in game six. Brooks will be out this spring and working towards a return this fall.

After missing last year with a shoulder injury, freshman wide receiver Dashon Bussell is back on the field and is beginning to showcase his speed and ability. Justin Tranquill has been cleared to play without a knee brace and has increased mobility.

Senior linebacker Alex Grace and sophomore offensive lineman Dylan Deatherage are two of a handful of players who will miss this spring after minor post-season shoulder surgeries.

COACHES CONTINUE TO FOCUS

It may be Spring Break for the team, but the Western Michigan full-time coaching staff will be staying in Kalamazoo to keep working.

''By moving up spring practice, we'll finish on March 29 so our coaches can have the public school spring break off to go somewhere, hopefully warm, with their families,'' Lester said.

''February is a hectic month for us recruiting and a lot of teams give their coaches seven or eight days off after signing day, but we roll into spring ball.

''Our coaches love having the time off on the back end to enjoy their families''

Moving up spring drills also gives the players time to focus on classwork before final exams in the hope the Broncos can repeat their fall academic achievement of having nine players have perfect 4.0 grade-point-averages, 36 players make the Dean's List (3.5 GPA or higher), 57 total players have GPAs over 3.0.

2019 SCHEDULE RELEASED

The complete 2019 schedule was released on Feb. 20 and for the first time since 2016, Western Michigan will enjoy five of its six home games on a Saturday at Waldo Stadium. 

The Broncos open the 2019 season at home against Monmouth on Saturday, Aug. 31 and are also at home against Georgia State on Saturday, Sept. 14. WMU's two non-conference road games are at Michigan State on Sept. 7 and at Syracuse on Sept. 21.
 
Western Michigan begins MAC play hosting Central Michigan on Sept. 28. Other home MAC opponents include Miami, Bowling Green and Ball State. The Broncos are on the road at Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Ohio and Northern Illinois.

Western Michigan football season ticket renewals—which include a ticket to all six home games—can be renewed now. Please call us 1-888-4-WMU-TIX (968-849) or visiting Athletics Ticket Office at Waldo Stadium (off of Stadium Drive, near Gate 9 at the northwest corner of the venue) during business hours (Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.).