University of North Carolina Athletics
Car-O-Lines
August 10, 2000 | Football
Aug. 10, 2000
by Rick Brewer
For years it was the biggest day of the summer for college football coaches.
The opening day of fall practice is still filled with anticipation, excitement and some anxiety. On every college campus in the country there is hope, enthusiasm and even a little mystery as teams officially begin preparations for a new season.
The key word here is "officially." Off-the-field preparations have been going on for some time.
Because of that, coaches are not quite as apprehensive as they once were on this day. At one time the arrival of players back on campus was truly that. Most had been away for two or three months - since the end of the previous semester.
Coaches looked forward to fall camp opening in order to see which players had stayed in shape over the summer, who had gained strength and speed by working out regularly during the off-season and who was not in the best of condition.
That was all before strength coaches began to give players summer workout plans. In fact, most players stay on their own campus for at least part of the summer to use university weight rooms and other facilities. Although coaches aren't allowed to take part in these sessions, they hear from other players, strength coaches and trainers who's doing what in summer training.
Plus, they can see the results when players stop by their offices to talk or look at film.
Weight rooms have been in existence for decades. But, the sophisticated equipment and computer plans that players now have the benefit of using really have evolved since the late 1970's.
The type of workout needed by a quarterback, for example, is far different than that required of an offensive lineman. It has been strength coaches like Carolina's George Smith who have developed the routines that different players should follow.
Even players who are at the same position might be in need of different summer programs. Perhaps one defensive lineman needs to gain strength in order to play, while another has to lose a little weight and develop more quickness. Their workouts might be slightly different.
Individual work in the summer has become a necessity for players who want to be competitive at the collegiate level. They know teammates are conditioning themselves and they must do the same to keep their spots on the depth chart when fall practice begins. Some are trying to move into a position for playing time and know they have to be in the best possible condition to do that when practice begins.
Anyone driving past Navy Field on the Carolina campus any day of the summer could see dozens of players running sprints on the artificial surface of Henry Stadium. Many players have found it's easier to get their individual workouts done by having teammates around them. They can push each other and get more accomplished.
There is an extra benefit to players for staying on campus and working out. They can go to summer school and get classes out of the way, lessening their academic burden for the school year. Although athletes must pass 80 percent of their classwork in the regular school year to be eligible under NCAA rules, some need to catch up if they have fallen behind their own particular school's academic standards.
"When I was at N.C. State in the late 1960's, a lot of players spent at least one semester in summer school," says Darrell Moody, who coaches the Tar Heel running backs. "But, the main reason was an academic one. Guys were so concerned with staying eligible to avoid the draft. Everyone wanted to stay ahead in their schoolwork, if possible.
"But, the problem was most schools wouldn't pay for summer school back then. So you ended up with many players getting jobs in the summer and working out on their own."
Carolina Coach Carl Torbush believes the biggest change in the summer routines of players started in the late 1970's.
"I always played baseball in the summer when I was at Carson-Newman," he says. "It may have been different at Division I schools, but most of our guys left campus when I was a player.
"But after I got to Southeastern Louisiana as an assistant in coach in 1976 I started noticing more and more of our players spending time on campus in the summer to work out. "
Buddy Curry, star linebacker at Carolina from 1976 to 1979, says he only went home from school for one summer after enrolling here.
"We had that old weight room under Boshamer Stadium where we would work out in the summer," he remembered recently. "It was hot and crowded in there. It's stunning to see what these guys have now at the new football facility in Kenan Stadium.
"But, we did what we had to do with what we had at the time. We knew if we didn't, we'd be falling behind other teams who were getting stronger and faster."
For the record, Torbush feels his team reported to practice in excellent shape. But, with the programmed workouts they now have, he really didn't expect anything else.
