By Chris Estrada

Thump! … Smack! … Crunch!

Whether it was field goal kicks battering the side of the field house or Northeastern football players hitting each other, a symphony of sounds accompanied the Huskies’ lone spring game yesterday at Parsons Field, with the Husky offense taking on the Husky defense. And considering the game signaled the unofficial start of the 2008 season, the noises were probably music to the ears of those in attendance Saturday afternoon.

Following a productive afternoon, head coach Rocky Hager expressed confidence in his team for the upcoming season, and specifically, their season-opening game Thursday, Aug. 28, against Mid-American Conference champion Ball State.

“I think we have the ability to play very solid, and to play very well, and to get the win in Muncie, Ind. on a Thursday night,” Hager said to the crowd after the game.

With the right-field stands at Parsons halfway filled with onlookers, the team went ahead with its 15th and final practice of the spring after the baseball team’s doubleheader with UNC-Wilmington, since the baseball and football teams share a field. Once warmups and special teams work was completed, the two squads – one in red jerseys, the other in white – went into position practice, with Hager overseeing six of the linebacker corps.

Shortly thereafter, the offense (white) and defense (red) faced-off in an intra-squad scrimmage. With senior quarterback Anthony Orio not taking part due to injury, the quarterbacking duties went to senior John Sperrazza and sophomore Alex Dulski.

Both reserve QBs looked solid on the afternoon. Sperrazza engineered two scoring drives in the game; one that ended in a 30-yard field goal by junior Mat Johnson and another that was capped by a nine-yard touchdown pass to senior tailback Alex Broomfield, who will be expected to shoulder the rushing load this season in the wake of Maurice Murray’s graduation. Broomfield was solid Saturday as he also notched a 40-yard rushing touchdown.

Meanwhile, Dulski began strong on his first drive of the day. After he was nearly picked off on second down by freshman defensive back Jake Catlin, receiver Ron Conway stretched an over-the-middle catch from Dulski into a 75-yard touchdown several plays later. Dulski would later connect for another touchdown reception to junior tight end Ty Sibert, as the 6-foot-1 receiver beat his defender to the ball and ran into the end zone.

Following the on-field festivities, the Huskies held an awards ceremony that featured a salute to their 10 graduated seniors. The coaches also doled out their team awards for last season. Murray was honored with the offensive Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, while Joe Mele won the defensive MVP honor and Conway was named special teams MVP.

In an amusing segment, Maurice Murray was given the Chicken Lou’s Award and had a new menu item named in his honor: the “Lou’s Wrappin’ in ‘Mo’-Town” sandwich wrap.