Sorry for the two-day break, but here are some news and notes from Friday's practice:

-I interviewed Tim Phillips for a story for the Morning Sun and he is a very well-spoken kid that seems like he could be the face of the program if his talent continues to develop. I really liked his attitude and demeanor.
-Speaking of Phillips, he was the first freshman to lose their helmet stripe. Freshmen are allowed to remove the stripe when their teammates feel they have proven themselves. Phillips is the first to do so, even surpassing D.J. Scott, Jeff Fantuzzi, and Jason Johnson, all three of which have been here since the spring!!
-Maddux is still hurt and Tim Brazzel was in red today along with Cody Wilson and Bobby James. All injuries are not considered to be serious.
-Steve Winston, who I was told would not be in camp, has been in camp and finally suited up today and took first team snaps at defensive tackle. I guess the depth concerns may have healed Winston up quicker than everyone thought.
-Armond Staten got snaps with the first team in place of Brazzel and Chris Repovz was starting at guard for Maddux with the first team.
-In the skeleton and scrimmage drills, Eric Fraser started things off with an interception of LeFevour on a deep ball.
-Vince Agnew, who played cornerback today, had a nice pass deflection against Bryan Anderson on a throw from LeFevour. Agnew played a lot of snaps at corner while Lorenzo White took snaps at safety.
-Freshman Kyle Zelinsky also had a nice pass deflection on a throw from Radcliff.
-Nick Bellore made a great interception on the run in coverage against LeFevour
-Derek Rifenbury completed a long pass to Jerry Harris as a highlight for the offense.
-Philips had another touchdown run (about 20 yards) where he juked past some linebackers. The coaching staff all had a big smile on their face and acknowledged the run amongst each other before getting back into "coach mode"
-LeFevour landed a long pass of 45 yards to Jeremy Wilson on his best throw of the day.
-During second team offensive plays, Adam Schneid and Eric Fisher were at the tackle positions.
-In the final scrimmage, the defense shined, racking up for sacks. Zombo had two, Dan Jackson had one, and Zelinsky had one.

The defense has looked better as a whole thus far, but Phillips has certainly been a bright spot for the offense. There is expected to be a lot more situational scrimmaging on Saturday, and I will post an update after the practice.