The blazing heat was not the only sizzling story of the day as the ULM football team started the week on a positive note with an impressive scrimmage on Sunday.

The team worked on all three phases of the game, showing some progress heading into its first game of the season.

Sophomore quarterback Caleb Evans had an efficient day going (11-16) for 190 yards and three touchdowns.

Junior quarterback Garrett Smith split reps with the first team offense going (14-16) for 101 yards and scoring both on the ground and through the air.

Sophomore quarterback Will Collins also took some snaps, going (5-6) for 28 yards running for the third team offense.

Evans went (4-5) on his opening drive. The drive was capped off with a 33-yard field goal by junior kicker Craig Ford.

The next drive had a different outcome as Evans marched the offense down the field and completed a 21-yard pass to redshirt freshman Darius Rodrigue.

The completion set up an 8-yard laser pass to freshman wide receiver Bryant Badie for the touchdown.

Smith is becoming more comfortable with the offense since coming back from his injury. There was a stretch where he completed 12 straight passes including a 5-yard pass to Badie to complete the goal-line period.

Junior running back Ben Luckett also looked great coming back from injury as he burst through the defense on one drive to score a 40-yard rushing touchdown.

Redshirt freshman running back Kayin White also helped by recording two touchdowns on the day.

In an article posted by ULM Athletics, coach Matt Viator talked about the state of the offense.

“We haven’t talked about it (starting quarterback) to be honest with you,” Viator said. “It’s something that we’ll sit down and obviously get coach Kubik’s opinion about it.”

Viator praised the progress of his sophomore quarterback, Evans. He has been getting stronger and more comfortable in his postition as quarterback, according to Viator.

The defense also had a solid outing for the scrimmage. They recorded 16 tackles for loss and a whopping seven sacks.

Junior linebacker David Griffith recorded six tackles, and senior defensive tackle Howard Houston Jr. had three tackles for loss and a sack.

Coach Viator talked about the progress of the defense after the game.

“Defensively, I think we played pretty good,” Viator said. “We’re running to the football a lot better than we have.”

Viator said he wants to work on a few defensive play types including man coverage and blitz plays. Viator also wants to see his defensive line get to the quarterback quicker.

The team’s first game of the season is Thursday, August 31, at Memphis. Kickoff is slated for 8:17 p.m. and will be televised on the CBS Sports Network.