Second targeting call on DB spurs concern
As BYU’s Neil Pau’u caught a pass in the right flat, UTSA safety Rashad Wisdom charged forward and lowered his head.
Pau’u spun to try to avoid contact, but Wisdom still landed flush, crashing the top of his helmet into Pau’u’s back. Wisdom remained face down on the field after the play, kicking his feet into the ground in apparent pain.
Officials reviewed the hit and determined Wisdom had committed his second targeting infraction in two weeks, leading with the crown of his helmet on the hit during the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game at BYU.
After sitting out the first half of the matchup because of a targeting infraction against UAB two weeks ago, Wisdom again will be sidelined for the first half of Saturday’s game against Army.
As UTSA returned to practice this week, coach Jeff Traylor told Wisdom a story from his time as an assistant high school coach at Jacksonville in the late 1990s, recalling a player who suffered an “unfortunate incident” because he ducked his head on tackles.
“He needs to see what he hits. He has to get his face up,” Traylor said. “There’s a lot left after ball, so we need to keep Rashad safe. … All of us are trying to reach him to let him know that we want him to be a great father, and a great friend, and a great husband one day. There’s life after football.”
With Wisdom out because of the targeting call and safety SaVion Harris sitting the past two games with an injury, the Roadrunners turned to redshirt senior Antonio Parks and sophomore Kelechi Nwachuku to start at the position Saturday against BYU.
Both notched seven tackles to tie for the team lead.
“The game is becoming a whole lot slower, and it’s starting to become my show when I’m out there, and I’m having that confidence of knowing where I need to be,” Parks said.
Parks was listed at cornerback when he transferred to UTSA from Arizona in spring 2019. He said he came to UTSA in search of more playing time and had experience at safety and nickel. He shifted positions when the Roadrunners needed depth.
He appeared sparingly last season, finishing with 11 tackles. Through five games of 2020, he ranks fourth with 23 tackles.
“My game has expanded. I’m very much smarter than I was last year,” Parks said. “I’ve loved it. It’s been feeling great. I’ve been seeing myself as this type of player who can move around and be versatile.”
Nwachuku started UTSA’s final six games last season, but Saturday marked his first start of 2020. Traylor said Nwachuku missed most of the fall due to injury, returning to full activity within a week of UTSA’s opener against Texas State.
“I was just getting my groove back, getting my conditioning up, and trying to do whatever is needed from me,” Nwachuku said. “I feel like I can contribute more, and I feel great. I’m just ready to work.”
Meanwhile, Traylor said he has does not intend to reveal UTSA’s plan at quarterback before the team taking the field against Army.
Frank Harris started Saturday’s game against BYU and completed 7 of 13 passes for 58 yards with an interception before leaving in the second quarter when he appeared to re-aggravate a right knee sprain suffered three weeks ago.
Though Traylor said Harris was healthy enough to return to the field in the second half, UTSA stuck with Lowell Narcisse, who completed 17 of 20 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns.
“We’ll get with (offensive coordinator Barry) Lunney and the offensive staff, and we’ll come up with a plan, and we’ll let you guys see it Saturday around noon,” Traylor said.
Defensive tackle Jaylon Haynes is “day to day” after missing the past two games with an undisclosed injury, Traylor said. Haynes left UTSA’s game Sept. 25 against Middle Tennessee and did not return.
Haynes sat out UTSA’s games against UAB on Oct. 3 and against BYU on Saturday, and defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix said last week that Haynes decided undergoing surgery was “best for him in the long run.”
Haynes is considered UTSA’s top option on the defensive line, leading the team with three sacks despite missing two games.
“He’s looking better,” Traylor said. “We hope this weekend. We hope.”
Senior offensive lineman Dominic Pastucci also has been playing hurt, Traylor said, working primarily with the punt team instead of at left guard to lessen his workload. Redshirt freshman Demetris Allen started at left guard Saturday, splitting snaps with junior Brandon Rolfe.