HUNTSVILLE, Al. - Alabama A&M coach Anthony Jones wasn't surprised with what happened Saturday. It seems, in each of Jones' eight previous seasons, the Bulldogs' defense jumped all over the offense on the first day in pads.
That was the case again.
"We were flying to the ball," said Okosun, a first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference preseason selection. "We've got Frank and (end) Brian (Christian) up front. We've got guys at linebacker and in the secondary that know what they're doing and that allows us to come out here on the first day and go full speed. We looked pretty good today."
Jones couldn't disagree.
"They got after us today and we didn't respond the way I would have liked," he said. "We've got a bunch of freshmen out there who haven't seen college football up close and personal and they're going to make mistakes, but I'm not discouraged by that. We've got to coach them through them and not panic."
The defense held the upper hand in all of the competitive drills, including Oklahoma, which pits two offensive players against two defensive players and a runner, inside run and 7-on-7.
Even so, starting quarterback Deaunte Mason didn't seem all that concerned.
"Today was a lot of fun," he said. "I was good to get back in rhythm and get ready for the season. I saw a couple of things I liked and a couple of things I didn't like. I think we had pretty good effort. We made some mental mistakes because it was hot and some of the players don't know their plays.
"Even though we're having to rebuild our offense, I think we've got the pieces. We've got some older guys at wide receiver and running back and we've got some younger guys, too. I think we'll be pretty good."
Towns was impressed with a number of his players, but tackle Tim Tillman really caught hit eye.
A 6-foot-1, 275-pounder out of Augusta, Ga., Tillman could emerge as an important reserve with junior tackle Anthony Jackson's eligibility in question.
"It appears that the light has come on," Towns said. "He has picked up the tempo and he knows that we're doing right now."
"Tim stayed here and had a good summer," Jones said. "He got stronger and he's in better shape. He showed a great desire to compete today."