Injury could force Tech to shuffle offensive line

If the leg injury suffered in Saturday’s scrimmage by Georgia Tech senior right tackle David Brown is serious — and while X-rays revealed no fracture, ligament damage was not ruled out by mid afternoon — then the Yellow Jackets’ options are multiple and far from obvious.

They range from deploying Austin Barrick, who last season played tight end and in the spring played A-back, to moving backup left tackle Nick Claytor, a redshirt freshman, redshirt freshman Clyde Yandell or moving junior Cord Howard or senior A.J. Smith from guard. Smith and Howard each started six games at tackle last season. Barrick got most of the work at No. 1 right tackle Saturday. Howard was at No. 1 left guard, and Smith was out injured.

No matter what direction coaches go, and Brown has not been ruled out, co-offensive line coaches Todd Spencer, who works chiefly with tackles, and Mike Sewak, who works with centers and guards, are busy.

“Coach Spencer and I are constantly trying to develop better pad level, better hand placement, and trying to put our guys in position,” Sewak said.

In the backfield

Anthony Allen, a transfer from Louisville, led all rushers for the second time in as many scrimmages. The B-back carried seven times for 90 yards, including a 70-yard touchdown. Starting B-back Jonathan Dwyer was in on 19 plays, rushing seven times for 84 yards, including a 55-yard touchdown.

“I don’t even want to experience [sitting out],” said Allen, who is ineligible to play this season. “But I know it’s going to come.”

Johnson said that freshman B-back Richard Watson, who has been injured recently, is expected to practice Monday.

Fumbles, fumbles, fumbles

Lucas Cox, who was a B-back before switching to A-back, moved back to B-back for part of the scrimmage, and his fumble was returned 39 yards for a touchdown by freshman safety Cooper Taylor.

Of the fumble, Cooper said, “I think it was [reserve linebacker] Tony Clark who knocked it out, and it bounced right up in my chest.”

Redshirt freshman linebacker Kyle Jackson, who had a sack, linebacker Steven Sylvester and cornerback Martin Frierson all had fumble recoveries. All these fumbles mean practice will not exactly go powder puff from here.

“We need contact with the [ball] security the way it was,” Johnson said. “That was atrocious.”

Ex-Navy QB talks

With quarterbacks Josh Nesbitt and Bryce Dykes nursing shoulder injuries, Craig Candeto can relate. He was a quarterback at Navy in Johnson’s first two seasons there, 2002-03.

“If you’re doing your job [at QB], you’re going to hit a lot,” Candeto said recently in a telephone interview. “You’re getting banged up on your hands, shoulders and elbows.”

Candeto liked Johnson’s offense and said he’s eager to see it run on a regular basis in a BCS conference. But he said toughness is job skill No. 1 for a Johnson quarterback, and he is not surprised by Tech’s slippery hands.

“We struggled early on,” he said of Navy’s 2-10 record in ‘02. “I wouldn’t say that it was really the system’s fault. We were putting yards up, and points on the board, but we had trouble holding onto the football. Most of the fumbles were balls getting ripped out, or a bad pitch. I fumbled a lot.”

Navy went 43-19 in Johnson’s final five seasons there.

Falcons coach watches

Falcons coach Mike Smith, a long-time friend of Johnson, was at the scrimmage. They’ve known one another since Johnson was an assistant at Hawaii and Smith at Tennessee Tech. They stayed at the same hotel when recruiting Atlanta.

“When I was coaching at Georgia Southern, he came down and did some clinics for us,” Johnson said. “When I was at Navy, I talked to him about being our defensive coordinator. He was with the Ravens. He stayed in the NFL. It worked out for him pretty good.”

Quarterback play

Freshman quarterback Tevin Washington still is likely to redshirt, but after slow start to preseason practices he had his second impressive scrimmage, including a 53-yard run. He rushed 13 times for 75 yards. … Jaybo Shaw’s 35-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Melton was pretty, but Johnson said, “I’m not sure he played as well today as he has been in practice.” … Reserve defensive end Jason Peters intercepted a screen pass by reserve quarterback Calvin Booker.

Ready to sit out

Taylor’s former Marist teammate, sophomore B-back Preston Lyons, must sit out this season after transferring from Colgate. While Allen is dreading sitting out, Lyons said that might work out well for him. “I’ve been mixing around [between A-back and B-back],” said Lyons, whom Johnson recruited while he was at Navy. “I will probably be a B-back because I played it in high school, and I think I’m pretty good at it.

“It’s probably good for me sitting out this year so I can put some weight on, and get my strength up so I can be ready to go next year. I weigh 210 [pounds]. I want to be about 220, 225.”