Blount, Rams seek answers during spring practice

Winston-Salem State walked off the field at Bowman Gray Stadium after a tough loss to Norfolk State last season as a team with many holes and questions.

The Rams opened spring practice March 30. Some questions, like who will be the offensive coordinator in 2009 have already been addressed.

The battle for starting quarterback, however, still has along way to go before being determined, according to head coach Kermit Blount. Blount said that, for the time being, it's a two-man race for the starting spot.

"Right now it's Branden Williams and Jarrett Dunston," he said.

Williams is a red shirt freshman, and Dunston is a rising senior.

Redshirt junior Tienne Jefferson, last season's opening-day starter, has been moved to free safety this spring. Blount reiterated that nothing is set in stone when it comes to the Rams' starting quarterback.

"The guy who comes the spring may not be the guy who is determined to be the starter in the fall," he said.

"We still have to come back to camp in August and do this all over again, so we're just going to play it by ear."

Blount's job should be easier next season, as he will no longer have to serve as the primary play caller on offense. The team hired Alan Hall to be its new offensive coordinator. Hall, who most recently served as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator at Savannah State, will relieve Blount of those duties.

"It's a tough job trying to do both," Blount said.

"I was trying to focus on both and that was tough to do."

Hall inherits an offense that has many holes to fill, aside from the one under center.

Rams lost both of last year's top receivers, Bryant Bayne and Brent Thomas, as well as veteran offensive linemen Joseph Blanks and Michael Helton.

Despite the losses, Blount said he sees players with the potential to step up and fill the voids.

"We're thinking that Dominique Fitzgerald is going to turn the corner and be our prime receiver, along with some other guys," he said.

As usual, Blount anticipates his defense to be strong. He said he's expecting his defensive line in particular to be much improved.

"We were real young on defense, especially up front," he said. "I think with that year of experience that they have under their belt, and the opportunity to participate in the spring [practice], I think those guys are going to be a leading group for us on defense," he said.

Unlike their counterparts on the other side of the ball, little has changed defensively. Defensive coordinator Mike Ketchum said he's decided to keep things relatively the same when it comes to play calling.

"We haven't put any new stuff in for those guys, that's for sure," he said. "They all know what we are doing."

Ketchum is also in charge of the team's offseason conditioning program. Blount said that the team is in good shape and credited much of that to Ketchum's workout plan.

"Coach Ketchum does a good job with our conditioning program," he said.

"They've been conditioned and weight trained the whole time," he said. "Conditioning is not an issue for us. We think we're ahead of the game there.

"We just have a really young group of kids that we've got to help mature. We've just got to get them to the point where we can come out and compete in September," Blount said.

Spring practice ended April 11. Blount said that while the spring doesn't necessarily set the rotation, it does weigh heavily when assembling the depth chart in the fall.

"You put a bunch on it because you get the chance to get the guys back into what you want to do, and that's being technically sound offensively and defensively," he said.

"You put a lot of weight on it because you get to come back and coach football all over again and prepare yourself for August."