Tulsa to Begin Spring Football Practice on March 14

Photo by: Brett Rojo

Tulsa to Begin Spring Football Practice on March 14

2/19/2021 2:47:00 PM | Football

TULSA, Okla. –– Spring practice dates for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team will take place during a 4-week period over the months of March and April, it was announced today.

The first day of the 15-practice spring schedule takes place on March 14, while workouts will conclude on Tuesday, April 13. The normal practice week will include sessions on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Two Sunday workouts are on consecutive weeks, March 14 and 21.

The decision on whether a spring game will be played will be determined at a later date.

Tulsa is coming off of 2020 season that saw the Hurricane play in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game, the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl and finish the season with a 6-3 record.

In 2021, Tulsa enters spring practice with 57 returning lettermen, including three players who missed the 2020 campaign. The Hurricane returns a total of 32 players who have started at least one game over their careers.

From last year's roster, Tulsa returns nine starters and six part-time starters on offense, while on the other side of the ball the Hurricane has 10 defensive starters and five part-time starters returning.

The three past lettermen who missed last season but will return in 2021 is running back Shamari Brooks, offensive lineman X'Zauvea Gadlin and linebacker Yohance Burnett. Brooks is the 5^th leading rusher in school history with 2,700 yards and 23 touchdowns in 32 career games. He missed last season after suffering an ACL injury a week prior to the season opener. Gadlin, who started all 12 games during the 2019 campaign at right guard, is the other offensive player who missed 2020.

On defense, Burnett also missed the year with an ACL injury after a spring and fall that had him as the starter heading into the season. Burnett recorded 34 tackles and 2.5 TFL in 12 games during the 2019 campaign.

Tulsa's offensive line returns all five starters, all of whom earned all-conference honors in 2020. Left tackle Tyler Smith was a first-team all-AAC pick as a redshirt freshman, while right tackle Chris Paul earned second team honors. Guards Dylan Couch and Dante Bivens and center Gerard Wheeler were honorable mention selections. Three tight ends with playing experience including two starters – Ethan Hall and James Palmer – return in 2021.

All-AAC second-team receiver Keylon Stokes leads a receiving corps that returns seven letterwinners. Stokes had a team-high 644 yards and three TDs. Juan Carlos Santana, Josh Johnson and Sam Crawford Jr. each had more than 25 receptions for over 350 yards and a combined total of 11 TDs on the year.

Quarterbacks Seth Boomer and Davis Brin have each seen playing time for the Hurricane.
In 2019, Boomer filled in for an injured Zach Smith late in the first half and led Tulsa to a 34-31 win over UCF. Last season, Brin came in against Tulane after injuries sidelined both Smith and Boomer and led the Hurricane to a 30-24 comeback win that included a "Hail Mary" pass to tie the game as time expired in regulation.

Shamari Brooks, who will miss spring drills, leads a running back corps that saw Deneric Prince gain 475 yards and four TDs in eight games and TK Wilkerson rush for 317 yards and four touchdowns in seven contests last season.

On defense, the only loss, although a big one, is Consensus All-America linebacker Zaven Collins.

Returning starters Tyarise Stevenson, Jaxon Player and Anthony Goodlow anchor the defensive front along with part-time starter Cullen Wick. Player was a first-team all-AAC performer last year after totaling 37 tackles and 9.5 TFP for -26 yards.

Stevenson, Goodlow and Wick combined for 61 tackles, 11.5 TFL for -45 yards and 7.5 sacks for -37 yards.

Second-team all-conference selection Justin Wright and senior Treyvon Reeves had solid seasons in complementing Collins at the linebacker position. Wright was second on the team in tackles with 62 and had 9 TFL for -23 yards, while Reeves totaled 43 stops and 5.5 TFL.

In addition, Grant Sawyer, with 23 stops and 7 TFL, Robert Revels III, Dorian Hopkins, Brian Johnson and Mitchell Kulkin have all seen playing time at linebacker for the Hurricane. Yohance Burnett, who returns from injury and graduate transfer from Oklahoma Jon-Michael Terry will be in the mix for a starting position as well.

Burnett, recovering from ACL injury, will miss spring drills, while Terry is enrolled and available to participate during the spring.

The secondary returns all five starters from 2020, led by safety and leading tackler Kendarin Ray. He had 63 tackles and also a team-high seven pass breakups, while nickel safety Cristian Williams, a second-team all-AAC pick last year, had 48 tackles and four breakups while TieNeal Martin added 27 stops and six pass breakups.

Starting corners Akayleb Evans and Allie Green IV have combined to start 48 games in their careers. Green was a 2020 semifinalist for the Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back, while he and Evans totaled 57 tackles and four breakups last year.

Tulsa returns all of its specialists in 2021 including place-kicker Zack Long, punter Lachlan Wilson, deep snapper Adam Higuera and holder Cannon Montgomery.

2021 SPRING PRACTICE DATES
Sunday, March 14 (Helmets Only)
Tuesday, March 16 (Helmets Only)
Thursday, March 18
Saturday, March 20
Sunday, March 21
Tuesday, March 23
Thursday, March 25
Saturday, March 27
Tuesday, March 30
Thursday, April 1
Friday, April 2 (PRO DAY)
Saturday, April 3
Tuesday, April 6
Thursday, April 8
Saturday, April 10
Tuesday, April 13