His playoff prowess hasn’t slowed him down.
James Madison wide receiver Antwane Wells Jr. is still practicing like he has something to prove, according to third-year Dukes coach Curt Cignetti. Wells Jr. caught 33 passes for 606 yards and six touchdowns, including four in the postseason, this past spring in his first campaign with the program.
“A lot like Julio Jones’ mentality,” Cignetti said of Wells Jr.’s attitude toward practice. Cignetti was previously the wide receivers coach at Alabama when Jones, a seven-time Pro Bowler, played for the Tide.
“It’s the warrior mentality and the toughness. Very similar,” Cignetti said.
Wells Jr. carries a presence with him that isn’t hard to miss during any given practice at Bridgeforth Stadium.
He’s either trying to better himself or his teammates. On more than one occasion this month, Wells Jr. hustled to take an extra rep when the wide receivers were broken into pairs for a particular drill. Sometimes there were uneven numbers, and the last receiver to go needed a partner to complete drill. Wells Jr. stepped in.
And earlier this week, when he ran a route in the rain and no quarterback delivered the ball, he stomped in frustration because he was mad they wasted the rep.
He runs crisp routes and is purposeful in his habits.
“I thought last year at the end of spring, I’d never seen a guy practice as hard as he had practiced,” Cignetti said. “I’ve been around a lot of great ones, lot of great ones and I’ve never seen a guy expend that energy.
“We GPS these guys and he put a number up on the GPS the other day that our strength and conditioning coordinator said, ‘I’ve never seen anything close to it.’ … He works and he’s hungry. The fire is always burning.”
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- Friday night marked the Dukes’ second and final scrimmage of preseason camp. Cignetti said for the second straight week he walked away impressed with JMU’s defensive front.
“We’re doing a good job of stopping the run on defense and putting heat on the quarterback,” he said.
On the flip side, he said the offensive line needs protect the quarterback better.
- A few scrimmage standouts Cignetti noted were: the defensive line, running back Kaelon Black, running back Austin Douglas, slot receiver Kris Thornton, quarterback Cole Johnson, quarterback Patrick Bentley and kicker Ethan Ratke.
Thornton and Alex Miller had touchdown catches. Safety Wayne Davis had an interception, per the coach.
- Cignetti said Austin Douglas has elevated his game this preseason.
“He has definitely taken a step forward,” Cignetti said.
Douglas, Black and fellow backfield mates Lorenzo Bryant Jr. and Latrele Palmer have benefited from extra reps with others sidelined for recent practices and the scrimmage.
Cignetti said fifth-year senior running back Percy Agyei-Obese, a preseason All-American and the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in the Colonial Athletic Association, is dealing with a minor injury and could be another five to 10 days away from returning. It’s up in the air whether or not Agyei-Obese will play in Week 1 against Morehead State.
