In a spring season centered around Western’s quarterback race, it was the return game that stood out during the annual Red-White Scrimmage.

Sophomore wide receiver Antionne Lightfoot had six returns for 210 yards to give the offense the field position it needed in its 68-36 victory.

“That’s the one thing I told them in the locker room – ‘You learn the value of field position,’” coach David Elson said.

The scrimmage had a unique scoring system that allowed the defense to score points by forcing turnovers and defensive stops among other things.

The game started out slow for the offense, down 0-12 at one point, but a 73-yard touchdown run by quarterback Brandon Smith gave the offense momentum.

“We picked up the tempo and got some things going,” Smith said. “We got a big play here or there and a spark, and that’s all you need to get into a rhythm.”

Smith finished the game throwing for 59 yards on three of nine passing, including a 30 yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Dustin Boyer.

“Brandon was solid,” Elson said. “But we are still missing some throws we need to be more consistent with.”

In winning the game, Smith and his fellow white team members earned the right to eat steak at the team cookout, while the losing team had to settle for hot dogs.

The other two quarterbacks for Western, freshmen Kawaun Jakes and Marcus Vasquez did everything they could to move up the depth charts.

The two of them combined for 246 yards by completing 20 of their 27 passes.

“I feel much better than I did in the beginning of the spring of our quarterback position as a whole,” Elson said. “I feel like we will kick off our season with a very solid guy that I think will be able to lead us to win.”

Smith will remain No. 1 on the depth chart according to Elson, but Elson also said that things can be subject to change this summer.

Though the defense lost, junior linebacker Chris Bullard said he thought the defense showed great effort and tenacity.

“We made major strides – we had guys step up, and everyone overall played as one unit,” Bullard said.

Elson said he was very happy with the potential depth of the team after some starters recover from injuries.

“If you get to just one or two guys are out and look and see what our depth chart will look like, it makes you feel pretty good,” Elson said.

Bullard said that the chemistry is good now, but once the injured players come back, he thinks it will improve.

Elson is excited for the upcoming year but knows there is still work left to be done.

“We’ve got to become a smarter football team, make better decisions and eliminate penalties that aren’t forced,” Elson said.