University of North Carolina Athletics
COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF: Inside A Carolina Practice
August 12, 2003 | Football
Aug. 12, 2003
By Adam Lucas
Outside Navy Field on Monday morning, you could hear pads slapping, whistles blowing, and the occasional raised voice from a coach. The sign at the entrance to the field read, "Football Practice Closed Today," but for one day, TarHeelBlue.com takes you inside a Carolina football practice.
9:25 a.m.: It is the first day of two-a-day practices. New NCAA legislation requires a five-day acclimation period of single practices, and then restricts two-a-day work to every other day.
John Bunting uses four different tempos at his practices: tag, thud, scrimmage, and assignment. This particular part of practice is done at assignment tempo, as the Heels work on "Competitive Blitz." The first-team offense and first-team defense walk through different formations and defensive adjustments, with each play first called out to the starters and then relayed to the sideline, where the third- and fourth-string units watch. The busiest man in this drill is middle linebacker Doug Justice, who has to recognize the offensive formations and then make the appropriate adjustments to his defense.
9:45 a.m.: The flex (or stretching) period begins. Dexter Reid leads off the usual pre-practice roll call with the defensive backs' signature shout of "Rude Boyz." Every position group has a call, but Rude is the one that seems to have most taken hold. The roll call ends with each class shouting their years, with the freshmen receiving the predictable smattering of boos.
9:58 a.m.: Jarwarski Pollock, Michael Gilmore, Michael Waddell, and the most talked-about man to not yet don a pair of thigh pads, Lionell Green, work on punt returns. Green's first practice was Saturday, which means he hasn't yet fulfilled the NCAA's five-day requirement and can't wear full pads.
Each practice period is broken only by a manager, who announces "Halfway" over the public address system when the period is half-over and then gives a "Two minutes" warning when just two minutes remain.
10:10 a.m.: It's time for the Carolina drill, which matches different position groups in intense physical competition. On one side of the Astroturf field--the Heels practiced on Astroturf again Monday morning because of the heavy rains in the Chapel Hill area that left the grass field soaked--freshman linebacker Joe Kedra is earning praise from John Bunting for the way he fended off a tight end in his part of the drill.
The most boisterous part of the drill takes place at the end of the field, where the defensive linemen and offensive linemen are going head-to-head. In addition to the sheer force of 300-plus pound behemoths trying to level each other, the linemen usually provide a very enjoyable running commentary. The o-line, in particular, is used to working as a unit and frequently shouts encouragement to each member. When Jupiter Wilson levels a defender, a big cheer goes up from everyone wearing a navy (offensive) jersey.
Not to be outdone, Chase Page--no coincidence, a former offensive lineman--is trying to pump up the defenders. It's up to defensive line coach Brad Lawing, however, when Kendall High struggles on the drill. "Kendall, we don't give ground," Lawing says after Skip Seagraves wins a battle with the sophomore. When High is made to repeat the drill and performs better, Lawing runs up to him and says, "That's the way to compete."
10:20 a.m.: During an individual period, wide receivers coach Gunter Brewer works with his charges on how to get separation from press coverage. "You've got to hit him and make him never want to lay a hand on you again," Brewer says.
Meanwhile, the defense is going through the dreaded "Tar Heel pursuit" drill. At the snap of the ball, all 11 players must react into the proper coverage. Before they can reach their destination, a whistle blows and they all drop to the turf before resuming their dash. They'll have to endure two more whistles--and two more drops--before the next unit takes over.
10:35 a.m.: The receivers are now working on route-running, which provides an opportunity for offensive coordinator Gary Tranquill's unique critique.
10:45 a.m.: John Bunting is getting edgy. He has spied several players not running as hard as he would like between drills.
10:55 a.m.: True to his word, Bunting is giving several freshmen the chance to get repetitions with the second-string, and a couple even earn snaps with the first-team during 9-on-7 drills. Those drills are done at "thud" tempo, which means the defense wraps up the player with the ball but does not take him to the ground.
11:00 a.m.: Matched up against freshman Adarius Bowman, Green breaks quickly on a slant pattern and picks off an interception. Despite his coverage prowess, however, Green still needs significant work on his conditioning.
Meanwhile, Willie Parker--who might be the story of training camp--picks up a nice block on Devllen Bullard in pass protection and earns a rare compliment from Bunting.
11:15 a.m.: Bunting's good humor is short-lived, as a defensive lineman earns a "wake-up call" with sluggish play. The "wake-up call" is delivered by strength and conditioning coach Jeff Connors and involves running energy-sapping bear crawls on the grass field for several minutes.
11:25 a.m.: During a break, senior Dexter Reid instructs Mahlon Carey, who is trying to make the switch from tailback to safety, on something Carey missed in an earlier drill.
11:26 a.m.: As the break comes to an end, the offensive linemen start edging toward their side of the field. Line coach Hal Hunter tells them he wants them to run to their area as soon as the whistle blows, and they continue creeping up. With a smile, Hunter looks at his charges and says, "Stop right there. If you guys get any closer, they'll have you over there doing bear crawls, and that doesn't look fun."
11:35 a.m.: The full squad works on red zone offense, featuring a nice grab in the back of the end zone by Bobby Blizzard.
11:50 a.m.: Monday's morning practice is over. Bunting sends the team off to a round of meetings with the following statement: "Everybody here is going to learn how to work. And everybody here is going to learn to win. Learn. To. Win."
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly and can be reached at alucas@tarheelmonthly.com. To subscribe to Tar Heel Monthly, click here.
