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University of Minnesota Athletics
Camp Blog: Full Pads Come On, So Does Heat
8/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
It was the first day in full pads for the Golden Gophers this fall, and the excitement started early.
First, however, a couple of notes. Senior wide receiver Eric Decker continues to gain preseason accolades. Today he was announced as one of 55 players named to the watch list for the 73rd Maxwell Award for the Outstanding Football Player in the Nation. Also, Decker was named a preseason All-American by Ivan Maisel of ESPN.com.
Now on to practice. As mentioned it was a steamer out there, with the thermometer at 90 degrees for the beginning of camp. There were other warm days this week, but today was the first where it was 90 to start practice. Luckily there was a nice wind out of the east, or it could have been worse yet. See the video below for a feature on how the Gophers deal with heat.
With the first day in full pads, along comes excitement, and today was no different. Some friendly talk started during warm-ups, and when the coaches broke out the Oklahoma drill early in practice, the intensity was at a high.
"For the first day in pads, it was a good start," said head coach Tim Brewster. "We've got some mistakes that we need to correct. But we'll just keep going and keep getting better."
Some highlights of the Oklahoma drill included defensive tackle Garret Brown having a very good day in the drill and Logan U'u losing his helmet trying to break a tackle. The showstopper however was the match-up between Matt Stommes and Cedric Mckinley. Stommes-McKinley by the numbers includes: over 500 pounds and 13-feet of man. We'll say this, the pads popped.
Check out the video below for plenty of action from the Oklahoma Drill.
In the first team session, the offense opened with a Jon Hoese run up the gut for about eight yards. The intensity remained high throughout the session, and the defense with a play in the offensive backfield.
In the seven-on-seven session, the offense got a quick start with an Adam Weber to Nick Tow-Arnett pass for about 15 yards. One next play however, the defense countered when Nate Triplett picked off a tipped pass, and housed it for the score.
Practice then ended with maybe the most exciting session of all. The offense got the ball on the one, going into the endzone. With favorable field position, the offense held the upper hand, with the trademark play being a Weber-to-Decker fade route in the corner.
"It was good. We finished strong on the goal line," said Coach Brewster on the final session. "The offense had its way a bit down there, but there was great competition. I think the competition has been really good through the first week."
In summing up the first week of practice, Brewster closed saying, "The defense has obviously been ahead this week. But the offense did some good things today, particularly on the goal line. The defense is flying around out there."
Also remember, fans can follow Golden Gopher football on Twitter, and get video updates on our YouTube page.
-Pat McCabe, Athletic Communications Assistant
