Troy football opens competition heavy 2021 spring practice

Troy began its third spring practice under Chip Lindsey on Monday morning underneath a driving rain and amid the first signs of an approaching cold front.

The energy was still high as the Trojans began install with helmets only. With 21 starters returning from last season, Troy has an abundance of experience. With that experience comes competition and no position is safe.

“I like where we’re at from a competition standpoint,” Lindsey said after practice. “We’ve got more depth than we’ve had since I’ve been here. Obviously that’s important to developing your team. I think that creates competition at all positions.”

That includes the quarterback spot where Lindsey has opened up a four-man race between incumbent starter Gunnar Watson, junior Jacob Free, freshman Kyle Toole and Missouri transfer Taylor Powell. For now, every quarterback is splitting reps with the first, second and third teams.

“I really think it makes each and every one of us better,” Free said. “I think we’re making each other better and I’m definitely looking forward to the rest of the spring and the fall.”

Free made his first Division I appearances and starts last season and threw for 1,051 yards and six touchdowns. He’s battling an experienced gunslinger in Watson who is now 100 hundred percent healed from a rib injury, according to the sophomore. Watson is the longest tenured quarterback of the bunch and thinks highly of this year’s squad.

“I think we’re going to be pretty dang good,” Watson said. “We look good. Our receivers look good. Our defense has a lot of depth, they look very good.”

That defense has every starter back from last season’s improved unit, including All-American Carlton Martial, All-Conference lineman Will Choloh and All-Conference corner Terence Dunlap.

“We changed some things up but the great thing is that we have a lot of pieces coming back,” Choloh said. “It’s always great to be one more year mature so we’re just going to take that to the season. Coach (Brandon) Hall is probably going to be able to do a lot of cool things with us because we know a lot of the stuff we did last year. It’s very exciting. We’re very excited.”

Troy knocked over nine points off its scoring defense in 2020 and improved to fifth in the Sun Belt from eighth in that category. Opponents found the endzone 34 times, the lowest mark since 2017.

The Trojans will practice twice more this week on Wednesday and Friday, both times in helmets only.

Notes

• Kimani Vidal switched jersey numbers to No. 0, joins Florida State transfer Jamarcus Chapman as first Troy players to wear the number.
• According to Vidal, Powell texted him multiple times after arriving in Troy asking to throw with the running back to work on building a relationship.
• Wide receiver Tray Eafford and running back DK Billingsley are both recovering from shoulder surgeries and will miss spring ball.
• Choloh has bulked up to 299 lbs from 289 and feels “stronger than I’ve ever been.”