Aug. 12, 2009
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -
Temperatures cooled down and the tempo heated up at Maryland's third preseason football workout, which was held at the on-campus practice field Wednesday.
Day three of fall camp featured the first practice in shoulder pads.
After two days of soaring heat, the Terps again practiced in muggy conditions, but were periodically cooled off with a few rain showers.
"We had a real good, tough practice," head coach Ralph Friedgen said. "We got a little break in the weather. It was cooler today. The defense was ahead of the offense. We had blitzing linebackers today. I think we have some team speed on defense. I like the way both teams competed. They worked hard."
One hour of individual workouts prepared the players for the second half of practice, which pitted offensive units versus defensive units on two different fields. Wide receivers practiced route-running early on, and displayed that when going 1-on-1 against the defensive backs later in practice.
WR Torrey Smith showed why he is considered one of the team's top playmakers, making several good moves and displaying impressive speed.
Smith is one of a number of speedy players on both sides of the ball.
"I think our overall team speed might be better than last year," Friedgen said.
On the defensive end, seniors Terrell Skinner and Jamari McCollough both proved they have the ability to be shutdown defenders.
"I think Terrell is playing even better than he was in the spring," Friedgen said.
Although it's only the third day of practice, it won't be long before some tough decisions need to be made in regards to the roster as the Terps have a little over three weeks until the season opener.
With that being said, Friedgen has been maximizing everyone's practice time so they will have the chance to prove themselves at Saturday's scrimmage.
"We went two teams on each field so we had 44 guys working at once," Friedgen said. "The reason I'm doing that is so we can get the young guys some reps. My philosophy is you learn by doing, not by watching. We're at the point now where we need to start trimming it down and get the guys ready to play. I want to look at some of those young guys Saturday at the scrimmage."
After morning meetings, the Terps will be back on field at 4:25 p.m. Thursday at the on-campus practice facility. They again will be in shoulder pads, with the first full-pad practice slated for Friday.
Preseason practices are closed to the general public, but open to members of the Maryland Gridiron Network (MGN) and Terrapin Club.
Terps Notes:
Practice Tidbits: The defensive line looked impressive during Wednesday's workout, as a number of players showed good moves in breaking through the offensive line. A.J. Francis, Zachariah Kerr, Carl Russell, A.J Francis and Derek Drummond all had impressive days in terms of power, speed and agility off the line. Friedgen singled out Drummond after practice for his pass-rushing ability ... the highlight of 11-on-11 drills came on a long pass play between Chris Turner and sophomore wide receiver Tony Logan. Logan was able to get a step ahead of the defensive back covering him, and Turner delivered a pinpoint pass 35 yards down field to a striding Logan, who made the catch just before the safety arrived to help ... DB Kenny Tate had a couple of interceptions in team drills ... Friedgen thought Lamar Young had his best practice of the preseason Wednesday. Young is battling Andrew Gonnella for the starting left guard position.
Strong Effort: After a bit of a down day Tuesday, Friedgen was impressed with the effort and the way the players competed on Wednesday. "I thought we gave in a little bit to the heat yesterday. When things started going bad today, guys started rallying around each other. We have to be able to keep our composure when things aren't going well. They have to be able to focus and hang together. There were a lot of things wrong with practice today. But I was looking at the way we competed and our effort and enthusiasm."
Predictable Punter: During individual workouts, preseason All-America punter Travis Baltz showed why he has received such high accolades. Baltz was consistently punting the ball 50-60 yards and keeping the hang time over 5.0 seconds. That, combined with his ability to place the ball towards either sideline, makes him a weapon for the Terps.
Healing Up: LBs Alex Wujciak, FB Cory Jackson and LB Ben Pooler all missed spring practice while rehabbing from off-season knee surgeries, but they have looked pretty healthy after three days of practice. "I'm very encouraged with Alex," Friedgen said. "It looks like he's running better than last year." ... the team has remained relatively healthy through three days of camp. Other than a few bumps and bruises, no one has missed significant time ... DB Jamari McCollough tweaked a hamstring Wednesday, but should not miss any significant time.
