Samford Closes Spring Practice With Scrimmage

Photo courtesy of Ethan Lowe, Samford Athletics.

By Steve Irvine

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - April 5, 2025

Samford closed its spring football practice on Friday with a scrimmage that featured good things on both sides of the football.

Chris Hatcher, the veteran Samford head coach, said the first part of the scrimmage was “total domination” by the defense.

“I thought our defense rushed the passer well,” Hatcher said. “I thought we tackled well again, so that bodes well for the future.”

The pass rush produced sacks by linebackers Deuce Caldwell II and Jake Haynes and defensive linemen J.D. Methvin and Maxton Woodward each had a sack. Cornerback Tucker Weber added an interception for the defense.

Offensively, starting quarterback Quincy Crittendon played just three snaps before calling it a day. Hatcher said the focus was analyzing the reserve quarterbacks.

“We had a couple of good quarterback runs down there in the red zone and got a couple of touchdowns,” Hatcher said. “It was the first time all spring we scored in the red zone.”

Brady Stober, a 6-foot, 185-pound freshman, scored touchdowns on a pair of 8-yard runs. He shared quarterback reps with 6-foot-1, 180-pound freshman Haden Klees and 6-foot-3, 200-pound sophomore Wake Forest transfer Charlie Gilliam. Gilliam led a scoring drive that was capped off by a 1-yard touchdown run by running back Connor Pace.

When the scrimmage ended, the Bulldogs began looking toward summer workouts. For Hatcher and his staff, they move ahead after getting some answers on building a depth chart for a team that returns very few starters. Crittendon is the lone returning offensive starter while three starters return on defense and two on special teams.

“This spring (we had) a lot of work to do,” Hatcher said. “But I do think we took some steps in the right direction at certain spots. We got a good evaluation of all our players and now we’ve got to figure out roster management. I think the biggest answer is I think we found out what we’re good at and what we need to work on come summer camp. I like the group of guys, they seem to enjoy one another. They have good discipline of themselves. Again, as we get through with this, roster management is going to be key for us moving forward as we head into the summer months.”