Strong and the Cardinals Finish Practice #4
March 30, 2010 | Football
March 30, 2010
Louisville, Ky. - Emotion and enthusiasm reached a new-high at the fourth Spring football practice of the 2010 season for the University of Louisville.
Head coach Charlie Strong has emphasized from the first team meeting that toughness and going hard on every play was going to be demanded of this team everyday.
The "Circle of Life" drill, which help instills toughness, was cut short after two reps because a few of the players continued to battle well after the whistle was blown. Strong later made the team run for a couple of other plays after the whistle.
While Strong appreciates the extra effort and knows its a positive for his program, the coaching staff is emphasizing competition, not activity after the whistle.
"They were a little fired up out there today," said Strong. "I love to see the competition out there on every play and how hard the guys are going, but we have to be smart. After the defense got beat in the scrimmage on Saturday, I like the way the defense responded. They got after the offense a little bit on Monday."
Two wide receivers had a good day for the Cardinals on Monday. Seniors Doug Beaumont and Troy Pascley were effective in the short passing game, working the middle of the field and the sidelines. Beaumont made the catch of the day -- a one-handed diving catch during the 7-on-7 drills.
The Cardinals' offensive staff installed a lot more of the playbook on Monday for practice, and that was evident in some of the new wrinkles put into the offense for the afternoon practice. Red-shirt freshman Jeremy Wright, sophomore Darius Ashley and senior Bilal Powell ran hard and showed that the Cardinals' running game might be a real strenghth.
Greg Scruggs showed his versatility by moving to the end at times during practice after playing mostly inside for the first three practices. Tim High missed most of practice with an injury.
Will Stein, one of three quarterbacks on the roster, was carted off the practice field after suffering a high-ankle sprain. It's unsure at this point how much time Stein will miss at this point.
Special teams was a point of emphasis for Monday's practice. Louisville spent the early portion of practice working on special teams, primarily with their punt and field goal units. They also put a lot of work on the field goal units where senior cornerback Johnny Patrick penetrated and blocked a field goal. The staff also installed the kickoff return game for the first time this spring. Victor Anderson, Jacques Caldwell and Johnny Patrick took most of the reps at returning kicks.
Practice concluded with a mini-scrimmage. The defense, who got beat pretty good on Saturday, came out with a lot more intensity. Malcolm Tatum recorded a sack and there were a couple of big hits on the day by Isaac Geffrad.
The Cardinals return to the practice field on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.
