Bobcats Open Spring Drills
3/25/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
On the first day of his fifth spring training camp as Montana State's head football coach, Mike Kramer engineered a trade. One hour into that first practice, Kramer already liked what he saw.
"Jimmy Beal made a great hustle interception that really cemented in my mind that we made the right move," Kramer said of a swap that saw Beal, a running back last season, move to cornerback and redshirt linebacker Jason Gathing move to running back.
Beal, a sophomore who came to MSU as a cornerback two seasons ago, moved back to his original position to add a veteran presence to the secondary. Kramer said he is pleased with the results. "Jimmy is a good player, and he's really going to help us at corner. He'll give us some experience and stability there this spring, and in the long term he has a chance to be an excellent player."
Gathing redshirted last fall as a junior college transfer, and moves across the line of scrimmage partially because of MSU's extreme depth at linebacker. "Jason is the energizer bunny," Kramer said. "He has a ton of energy. He's a player that needs to be on the field. He hasn't played running back for an extended time since high school, but he has all the tools to be outstanding at that position."
Beal and Gathing are both joining young, thin position groups. Redshirt freshman Dan McInerney and Gathing are the only true tailbacks, while fullbacks Grant Elliott and Chris Young join them in the backfield. Junior college tailback Milton Morris is expected to miss the spring with an ankle injury. At cornerback, Beal joins junior DeAngelo Wall, who played sparingly last year in his first varsity campaign, and redshirt freshmen Andre Fuller, John LeBrum, and Kory Austin.
"These moves are permanent," Kramer said. "They improve our team."
On the whole, Kramer was pleased with his team's first practice. "It was an excellent initial session," he said. "There was good energy and good enthusiasm. I was happy with the way we started."
Kramer indicated the Bobcats will practice on Thursday and Saturday at 3:30 pm this week, and next week on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 3:30 pm. This Saturday's practice will be the team's first in pads.
"Jimmy Beal made a great hustle interception that really cemented in my mind that we made the right move," Kramer said of a swap that saw Beal, a running back last season, move to cornerback and redshirt linebacker Jason Gathing move to running back.
Beal, a sophomore who came to MSU as a cornerback two seasons ago, moved back to his original position to add a veteran presence to the secondary. Kramer said he is pleased with the results. "Jimmy is a good player, and he's really going to help us at corner. He'll give us some experience and stability there this spring, and in the long term he has a chance to be an excellent player."
Gathing redshirted last fall as a junior college transfer, and moves across the line of scrimmage partially because of MSU's extreme depth at linebacker. "Jason is the energizer bunny," Kramer said. "He has a ton of energy. He's a player that needs to be on the field. He hasn't played running back for an extended time since high school, but he has all the tools to be outstanding at that position."
Beal and Gathing are both joining young, thin position groups. Redshirt freshman Dan McInerney and Gathing are the only true tailbacks, while fullbacks Grant Elliott and Chris Young join them in the backfield. Junior college tailback Milton Morris is expected to miss the spring with an ankle injury. At cornerback, Beal joins junior DeAngelo Wall, who played sparingly last year in his first varsity campaign, and redshirt freshmen Andre Fuller, John LeBrum, and Kory Austin.
"These moves are permanent," Kramer said. "They improve our team."
On the whole, Kramer was pleased with his team's first practice. "It was an excellent initial session," he said. "There was good energy and good enthusiasm. I was happy with the way we started."
Kramer indicated the Bobcats will practice on Thursday and Saturday at 3:30 pm this week, and next week on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 3:30 pm. This Saturday's practice will be the team's first in pads.
Wednesday, June 10
Friday, March 27
Monday, March 23
Friday, March 13
