Mike Norvell rarely makes definite statements during his media availability after practice. Today, he changed his tune.

“I thought the defense was definitely the winner today.”

After a mistake-filled practice on Tuesday, Adam Fuller’s group wanted to respond on Thursday. An interception from Justin Cryer on the first snaps of 11-on-11 work sent them in the right direction. All three levels worked in tandem together and wreaked havoc for the offense. The defensive line dominated as they squeezed the pocket against the pass and exploded into the backfield against the run. The linebacking core, led by DJ Lundy, communicated more effectively today than last practice and put all the players on the same page. With everything smooth in front of them, the secondary did its thing as the QBs were frequently forced to pull the ball down, and coaches needed to blow the play dead from coverage sacks.

The day was not all bad for the offense as their young freshman stepped up and made plays. Luke Kromehoek, Kam Davis, and Camdon Frier impressed and will be written about later. The coaching staff wants to continue to give their young guns more run, and they trust the work they have put in. Specifically, the Luke-Camdon connection grows every day in practice, and they hooked up for a couple of nice throws and catches during the 1-on-1 portion of practice.

After the day ended, Mike Norvell announced Destyn Hill and Jerrale Powers would be out for the rest of spring.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices