Thursday Morning Notebook | Preseason Camp 2015
August 06, 2015 | Football
Offensive coordinator Garrick McGee during Wednesday's preseason media session.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football team's 2015 preseason training camp is underway and here is a look at the latest news and notes on the Cardinals.
Split Practices Scheduled for First Four Days of Preseason Camp
The Cardinals begin preseason camp on Thursday in what will be the first of four straight days of split practices for the team. During Wednesday afternoon's media session, head coach Bobby Petrino told reporters how he and his coaching staff expect to organize the sessions on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. An important element in those early practice sessions will be managing Louisville's five quarterbacks and the numbers of repetitions each day.
"We will have Lamar Jackson and Tyler Ferguson go with what we call the newcomers though not all of them are newcomers. With the vets, we'll have Reggie (Bonnafon), Will (Gardner) and Kyle (Bolin) taking the reps," explained Petrino. "We do a lot of reps in practice and they'll all get their different work. The first day we'll emphasize Reggie more with the ones. The second day Will and the third day Kyle so they'll get more reps than the other guys do with the No. 1 offense. Overall, as the day works out, they each get about the same amount of work."
Last season, the trio of Gardner, Bonnafon and Bolin each earned starts during the Cardinals' 9-4 season. Gardner led the way with seven starts and played in eight games overall highlighted by the season-opening 31-13 win against Miami. Bonnafon saw action in a team-high 10 games, including five starts, and led Louisville to its 31-28 win at Notre Dame. Bolin's first action of the season came in a relief role in the Nov. 29 victory against Kentucky before earning his first career start in the Belk Bowl against Georgia.
Gardner Cleared to Practice Following Knee Injury
Petrino announced during Wednesday's media session that Gardner has been cleared by doctors to resume full football activities after recovering from a season-ending knee injury suffered in last season's 38-19 win at Boston College on Nov. 8. Prior to the injury, Gardner threw for 1,669 yards and 12 touchdowns while completing 57.5 of his passes in 2014.
"He's been completely cleared through the medical staff and he says he feels better than he has in three years," Petrino said of Gardner. "What we have to now see is how does he handle the volume. How does he handle it five days in a row. But he's certainly feeling good and he did a good job testing last week. He felt good about it and I think he's very confident."
Rankins an Every Down Lineman for Louisville
Senior defensive end Sheldon Rankins leads a talented group of lineman for the Cardinals entering the 2015 season and has established himself as a guy who can play on any down. An All-ACC Third Team honoree last season, Rankins had 53 tackles and led the team with eight sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss. He also added a pair of interceptions while starting all 13 games in 2014.
"We break it down to first and second down, when you have to stop the run and rush the passer. The down and distance usually dictates what someone does so on third down, you usually see more passes. We break it down to first and second down players and third down players," explained defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, who enters his second season with the Cardinals. "Sheldon is a guy who can play all three downs for us and affect the game. We will work to get him in those situations but we also have to keep him fresh, which is something we'll work on the next couple of weeks."
Cardinals Look to Solidify Offensive Line
One of the most competitive position battles during preseason camp will be offensive line, where the Cardinals look to replace departing seniors Jamon Brown, John Miller and Jake Smith. Louisville does return senior Aaron Epps, who started six games at right tackle last season, and junior Tobijah Hughley, who started 12 games at center.
"Those are huge shoes to fill because all three guys are practicing in NFL training camps right now," said offensive coordinator Garrick McGee of Brown, Miller and Smith. "You didn't just lose three seniors, but you lost three guys that are playing in the pros now. We do feel good about our young kids and we've recruited well. We just have to get them out there in training camp and get them game ready."
Time, Emphasis Placed on Special Teams
The Cardinals special teams unit is led by the return of kicker John Wallace, who is on pace to set numerous school records in the kicking game. The senior connected on 15 of 19 field goal attempts last season and was perfect on all 50 extra point attempts. Along with the daily reps for Wallace, Louisville places a lot of focus and energy in building the best special teams unit possible.
"We spend a lot of time on special teams. One of the things I believe in is giving our special teams coordinator plenty of meeting time. We do walk-throughs for special teams when we're doing our offensive and defensive walk-throughs, so we take a lot of time on it," Petrino said. "We expect our starters to play on at least two special teams and that's something that's real important. It's important for those young men because if they want to play in the NFL, they need to show the NFL they can play on special teams. It's a big part of the game especially with the kinds of games we have early in the season. You have to figure out how you can help win the game on special teams."
