.png&width=42&height=42&type=webp)
University of Minnesota Athletics
Blog: Gophers Complete Fifth Spring Practice
4/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
The University of Minnesota football team is now one-third of the way through spring practices. The Gophers wrapped up a 2-1/2 hour workout at the Gibson-Nagurski Football complex early Thursday evening.
It was the second full day in pads with full contact and the Gophers saw a lot of live action in preparation for Saturday’s first full scrimmage of the spring.
With the squad nearly two weeks into spring ball and three more weeks to go, Brewster said his guys were hitting what he termed the “grind phase” where they have to work to keep their focus and remain sharp through each practice.
“The newness has worn off,” Brewster said. “We’re in pads every day. It’s a contact practice. Mentally, we’ve got to push through that. Today, I thought we had a couple mental lapses due to some fatigue. We’ve got to have great discipline throughout the course of the practice and that’s important.”
But despite a couple mental lapses, Brewster was still happy with much of what he saw from the Gophers Thursday.
“Our guys are playing at a high level and they’re competing at a high level,” he said. “That’s really exciting to me that they’re playing with the kind of effort that they’re playing with. I’m pleased with what we’ve got.”
Brewster said the defense is still ahead of the offense at this point in the spring. But the offense did have some success with some big plays during the workout.
“We’re making explosive plays offensively,” Brewster said. “There are some inconsistencies. But I like what we’re doing, running the football. We’ve got Duane Bennett, Kevin Whaley, DeLeon Eskridge ... we’ve really got some good runners. I’m also pleased with what we’re getting out of our fullback. Jon Hoese is doing a nice job.”
A few other notes:
-- There were some tunes emanating from a pair of speakers during some of the early portions of Thursday’s workout.
“It was a little music, just to have a little fun,” Brewster said. “It was just for the guys to have a little fun during pat-and-go and stretch.”
Brewster was asked if the hip hop selection that was playing during that session was his choice. “No, that’s not me,” the coach said with a bit of a grin.
-- As is the case on many football teams, the quarterback often ends up as a de facto spokesman for the team when it comes to talking to the media. Gopher quarterback Adam Weber isn’t immune from the media’s interest in what he has to say.
Weber made an appearance on Big Ten Tonight Thursday night in an interview that was taped Wednesday afternoon. Weber will also be appearing on Sports Primetime Friday night on Channel 9.
- The Gophers are heavily involved in the Minnesota Football Coaches Clinic on Friday and Saturday. The clinic began Thursday and will be highlighted by a Friday night talk from Coach Brewster and Super Bowl Champion coach Brian Billick. On Saturday, attendees at the clinic will get a tour of TCF Bank Stadium before heading over to the Gibson-Nagurski Complex to watch the Gophers' practice and scrimmage.
-- We’ll have a full report from Saturday’s scrimmage for you here at GopherSports.com.
-Andy Seeley
