BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University will put the wraps on spring camp Friday evening with the annual spring game which is set for a 7 p.m. start from Provost Umphrey Stadium. Friday's scrimmage will serve as the 15^th practice date of spring which got started back on Mar. 26^th.
 
The scrimmage will be an actual Red vs. White scrimmage with the players being separated onto teams. Lamar will play quarters and look to run approximately 100 plays.
 
Lamar entered the offseason with a great deal of excitement after the nationally recognized turnaround during the regular season. In year one, head coach Pete Rossomando instilled a new attitude into the program. The Cardinals responded with their first winning season since 2018 and the fourth largest turnaround at the NCAA FCS level.
 
The 2023 season saw LU in the hunt for a conference title until the next to last week of the regular season. Lamar enter the 2023 ranked seventh in the Southland's preseason poll.
 
With that being said, Lamar returns 10 starters on offense, with the lone loss coming on the offensive front. The defensive side of the ball will see Lamar return seven of 11 starters. The Cardinals also return five of their seven all-conference selections from last season including running back Khalan Griffin, offensive linemen Jevale Roberson and Elias Ripley, defensive lineman Caleb Williams and defensive back Ramond Stevens.
 
In addition to the Cardinals returning all-conference standouts, Lamar will also return three quarterback who were with the team last season in starter Robert Coleman, reserve Jakolby Longino and redshirt freshman Aiden McCown. In front of the quarterbacks, Lamar returns an offensive line that brings back four of five starters from a season ago.
 
While Robert Coleman is the returning starter at quarterback for the Red and White, no matter who is behind center they will be surrounded by plenty of weapons. The Cardinals also return their leading rusher and their top seven receivers. The defensive side the ball has five of the team's top seven leaders in tackles back from a year ago.
 
Friday's scrimmage will start at 7 p.m. from Provost Umphrey Stadium with warmups getting started at 5:45 p.m.