Football taking it slow
8/12/2010 7:00:00 AM | Football
By Cody Stark
Huntsville Item Assistant Sports Editor
Now it's time to get down to business.
After a few days of practicing in helmets and shoulder pads, the Bearkats will suit up and let the real hitting begin today. Sam Houston State will hold its first intrasquad scrimmage of preseason camp at Bowers Stadium Thursday at 7.
The scrimmage will open with special teams and individual position drills. Around 7:30, the offensive and defense will go head to head in game-type situations with officials on hand.
So far, Bearkats head coach Willie Fritz has been pleased with the effort he has seen in camp.
"The kids are working hard and doing a good job," the coach said. "We have had some injuries, which has hurt us with depth. But they are working hard. We are trying to get an edge to us and we are starting to get in that direction."
With so many newcomers to the team, Fritz has taken a slow approach this fall. He has put an emphasis on fundamentals leading up to the first scrimmage.
After today, the Bearkats will begin to pick up the pace as the coaching staff gets a better feel for who is going to step up and contribute this season.
"We have 50 veterans and 40 newcomers, so it is like spring ball all over again," Fritz said. "Next year when we have more returning players, it won't be like this. I just want to take things slowly. I know my coaching staff is getting anxious to open things up, but right now, we need to teach these kids how to play football.
"If you start throwing a lot of things at them at once, it can get confusing and they can get behind. We wanted to go slow up until the first scrimmage, then we can turn the page and get rolling."
Offensively, the Bearkats are still looking for a quarterback to step up. There are still questions at running back and wide receiver.
But today, Fritz would like to see the offense limit pre-snap penalties and take care of the football. Two areas that are very important to the success of any team.
"The big thing I want to see is for us not to commit any pre-snap fouls and not to turn the ball over," Fritz said. "We want to be a disciplined football team. If we don't commit too many mistakes, then that shows me we are heading in the right direction."
These scrimmages serve as a learning tool, so defensively, the coaching staff isn't going to throw the kitchen sink at the offense.
"Defensively, we are going to be very vanilla," Fritz added. "We want to evaluate the tackling and the blocking. We don't want to get too complicated. We will be tackling to the ground."
Preseason camp will run to the opening day of classes August 25. The Bearkats expect to hold four full-contact scrimmages during preseason work.
Sam Houston will open the 2010 slate Saturday, Sept. 4 against the Baylor Bears at Waco. The first home game will be Saturday, Sept. 25 when Gardner-Webb visits Bowers Stadium for Bearkat "Family Weekend."
The game Sept. 25 will feature a guest appearance by the Houston Texans Cheerleaders, a fireworks display and special halftime activities.
Other home games will be Oct. 16 (Homecoming) vs. Southeastern Louisiana, Nov. 6 vs. McNeese State and Nov. 20 vs. Texas State. The final three home games will kickoff at 2 p.m.
Season tickets for Bearkat football at Bowers Stadium are available through the new exciting "2-2-2" offer, order your tickets now by going to the Bearkat tickets page on www.gobearkats.com or call (936) 294-1729.
The "2-2-2" offer also includes two corner tickets to the "Battle of the Piney Woods" game with Stephen F. Austin at Reliant Stadium in Houston on October 23.
Fans also may visit the Sam Houston athletic ticket office located in the Ron Mafrige Field House located in the south end zone of Bowers Stadium. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
