TRADITION NEVER GRADUATES! GIVEAWAY & MEMBERSHIP DRIVE

By Justice

Today marked the 13th of 15 practices for the spring period and the final one with media availability before the 2025 Spring Game and Fan Field Day being held this Saturday (4/19) at 2pm at S.B Ballard Stadium.  

We got to see some 11 vs 11 action and drills today.  The energy for today’s practice was the highest it has been for any of the practices the media has been able to attend this spring.   We also got extended looks at what would seem to be the first units and I was impressed.  However, it was extremely windy today. While I did record the media scrum with Coach Decker, Mario Thompson and Stephon Dubose-Bourne, unfortunately the video is unusable due to the heavy wind interference with my mic leading to unlistenable audio. My apologies but it was a out of my control.

Offensive Observations:

  • The wide receivers that were with Colton Joseph and the first unit were TJ Lott (Slot), Tre Brown (Outside) and Ja’Cory Thomas (Outside). 
  • Jalen Butler was the tight end with the first unit.
  • The offensive line in front of Colton from left to right was Zach Barlev, Skyler Grant, Ryan Joyce, Connor Drake and Stephon Dubose-Bourne
  • The Offensive Line in front of Quinn Henicle from left to right was Josh Schuetzmann, Kainan Miller, Billy Gough, Theo Bachelder and Carson Bradley.
  • Running Backs we got to see included Maurki James, Devin Roche and Tariq Sims. Maurki James caught a couple of passes out of the backfield today. It was nice to see that dimension of his game.  But I will note that it is hard to take too much from these practices for this position due to the nature of them; no tackling.
  • During a two-minute drill, WR Tre Brown made a nice diving catch in the endzone for a touchdown on a pass from Colton Joseph.
  • Colton Joseph had a nice 70 yard touchdown run showing off his elusiveness and speed.
  • WR Ja’Cory Thomas made a great toe tapping catch in the corner of the end zone on a pass from Quinn Henicle.


Defensive Observations:

  • The 3 players that combined to make the three-man front on the line for the first unit were from left-to-right; Kris Trinidad, DeAndre Lynch and Christopher Spencer.
  • The linebackers that played with the first unit were Jason Henderson, Mario Thompson and Jahleel Culbreath.  Linebacker looks like the strength of the defensive unit.  Jason, Mario and Jahleel all look really good and are primed to be a big part of the ODU defense in 2025.
  • At safety, we saw a rotation of Mario Easterly, Lucas Struck, Nickendre Stiger and Daevon Iles. There was a notable absence today at practice and that was Safety Patrick Smith-Young and is now no longer listed on the official roster. I think it is safe to assume Patrick will be entering the portal soon. 
  • At cornerback, we saw Zion Frink, Langston Wiliams and Botros Alisandro manning the outside wide receivers.
  • Defensive End/Edge Fred Giles made a nice play on a whistle sack of Quinn Henicle.  

Several Class of 2026 Recruits were at practice today and there will surely be more in attendance on Saturday.  The players and coaches are very excited to show out for the Monarch faithful during the Spring Game and to interact with fans after the game during the Fan Field Day!

You heard that correctly, not only will you get to see the 2025 Monarchs on the field for yourself, once the game is over there will be opportunities for you to earn your own bragging rights by attempting a 15 or 20 yard field goal, racing the clock or your friends in a 40 yard dash or testing your quarterback skills with some target practice.  And don’t forget the Meet and Greet with the players for photos and autographs! Hope to see you all there and as always GO MONARCHS!

 

 

90% of of every dollar goes directly to the athletes

Have a Question?

CONTACT US

Show Your Support

MAKE A ONE-TIME CONTRIBUTION

Send a Gift to a fellow Monarch

SEND A GIFT CARD
© 2025 The Pride of ODU | The Pride of ODU is a separate entity from Old Dominion University.