Daily Trainer #4
8/7/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Day two in pads was much better than day one, and it didn't surprise Rob Ash a bit.
"I think it was obvious we were more used to pads today than yesterday," MSU's second-year coach said. "It was hot at the start of practice and we were moving well, the contact was better. I really think yesterday's sloppiness was just because it was the first day in pads. I was very encouraged by that."
Ash also liked MSU's ramped-up intensity on Thursday. "We had some great competitiveness today in this practice," he said. "That's what you can do when you get the pads on, play with a little more competition. I thought the team period was really good. The offense stepped it up today, that was better."
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It will be a while, probably more than a week, before the status of MSU's quarterback competition changes. That doesn't mean, though, that Rob Ash isn't pleased with what he's seen.
"We're still in a holding pattern," Ash said. "All three guys are getting exactly the same amount of reps with the ones, the twos and the threes. They're all doing a good job, helping each other out. Our focus right now is on learning the offense, and we'll try to figure out who's ahead of who later on."
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For the first time since April, the Bobcats get to play real tackle football on Friday.
That marks the day - the fifth of a team's fall camp - that full pads are allowed. Ash cautions, though, that the day won't exactly be live.
"We'll go in full pads (Friday), but the key is we never do a full scrimmage or a lot of tackling or anything that first day in full pads. There will probably be five or 10 minutes of individual drills for tackling just to get used to it again, but the team periods will still be high and hard and we won't tackle to the ground until Saturday afternoon."
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Friday, August 8: Practice #5, 3:15 pm, full pads
Saturday, August 9: Practice #6, 8 am, half pads; Practice #7, 3:15 pm, full pads
Wednesday, June 10
Friday, March 27
Monday, March 23
Friday, March 13
