University of North Carolina Athletics
Sunday Practice Notes
August 14, 2005 | Football
Aug. 14, 2005
By Adam Lucas
Uncertain weather forced Carolina inside Sunday evening for their third practice session of training camp. The Tar Heels had planned to stretch (that's "flex" in the Tar Heel football vernacular) in the indoor practice facility before going outside, but rumbles of thunder caused a change in plans. The Heels worked out inside for approximately two hours before going outdoors for the final hour of practice, which included a spirited team period...Jacoby Watkins and Khalif Mitchell did not participate in most of practice for the third straight day. Another, less commented upon absence has been that of punter David Wooldridge, who is recovering from an illness and has yet to dress out for a practice. He was at Sunday's session in street clothes. John Choate has handled the punting in Wooldridge's absence...Jesse Holley was back at practice Sunday. Because he missed Saturday's practice, the NCAA's acclimation rules required him to be padless on Sunday, limiting the contact drill work he could do with his teammates...
Sunday's practice was the first of the season in half pads. After two days of no contact, players were ready for some hitting. "With the half pads, you don't have to slow down," cornerback Bryan Bethea said. "When we go without pads you always have to make sure you don't bump into anybody and hurt somebody. Once you put the shoulder pads on, we feel like it's all go."...Tommy Richardson's leadership doesn't extend only to players. He and Barrington Edwards have been coaching up head manager Josh Bailey, who has the unenviable task of monitoring the time progression during practice. Bailey, who Richardson refers to as "HP" for his resemblance to Harry Potter, announces over the practice field microphone when each practice period is half finished and when two minutes remain. During a lull in Sunday's practice, Edwards and Richardson implored Bailey to deepen his baritone. "You've got to let it go from the gut," Edwards said. Being a manager remains one of the most time-consuming and thankless jobs available. As it turns out, it's also dangerous, as evidenced by a wrecked Gator cart (similar to a souped-up golf cart) on Sunday morning caused by a rabbit with a death wish that ran out in front of the equipment-transport apparatus. The rabbit escaped unharmed, the Gator was not as fortunate...
With three days of practice in the books, true freshmen remain somewhat overwhelmed. That's not a problem at most positions, where the Tar Heels have veteran depth, but it occasionally presents an issue at tailback. With Ronnie McGill out with an injury, the repetitions behind Barrington Edwards are frequently going to freshmen, which can sometimes make it an adventure to get lined up correctly...John Bunting said coaches have seen the results of the player-led WTA's (Winning Team Activities, which tried to closely mimic many practice drills such as pass skeleton) early in practice. "Offensively and defensively we've thrown an awful lot at these kids," he said. "But we felt like we could do that because of the way they worked during the spring and in the summer they did an awful lot on their own."...After Sunday's practice Carolina now has all their special teams installed...Freshmen will receive an extensive academic orientation on Monday morning...Frustrated with the modified baseball pitching machine the Heels have been using to fire punts at the punt return candidates, Carolina turned to a less mechanical option Sunday night: freshman quarterback Bobby Rome. The rookie's arm strength has been impressive in the early days of camp and he was called on to hoist simulated punts towards the returners...Most athletic play of the day: Kyndraus Guy had a nearly Peppers-like swat of a pass during a team period that he almost came down with after tipping. Don't misunderstand--we're not saying Guy is Peppers, just that it was the type of play you've seen Peppers make before.
Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly and can be reached at alucas@tarheelmonthly.com. He is the coauthor of the official book of the 2005 championship season, Led By Their Dreams, and his book on Roy Williams's first season at Carolina, Going Home Again, is now available in bookstores. To subscribe to Tar Heel Monthly or learn more about Going Home Again, click here.
