Click here for a photo gallery from today's practice.
Click here for an interview with senior center Dustin Davis.
Belton, TX—The 2010 season officially kicked off for the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor football team when the Cru hit the practice field for the first time Sunday evening. A group of 184 players went through a crisp workout that lasted almost two hours. The full-team practice gave 108 newcomers a chance to see exactly what Cru football is about with 76 returners leading the way through the first practice.
“We really wanted to give the new guys a chance to get a feel for what practice was going to be like today,” Cru Head Coach Pete Fredenburg said. “We wanted to let our leadership come through and I think the leadership on this team with guys like Quincy Daniels, Dustin Davis and Max Taylor could be some of the best we've ever had.”
Daniels, Davis and Taylor are all Preseason All-Americans and the Cru returns six starters on both sides of the ball from a team that finished 10-2 overall and shared the American Southwest Conference championship with Mississippi College last season. The early part of camp will focus on finding replacements for the five starters on offense and defense that departed and finding some depth behind those returning starters. There was at least position that caught Coach Fredenburg's eye on the opening day of camp.
“The defensive line really excited me today,” Fredenburg said. “We've got some freshmen there that are really good and we really think can help us this season.”
The team will move to a morning practice on Monday with newcomers hitting the field at 8:45 AM. Returners will hit the field a little later to give the younger players a chance to get some individual attention from the coaching staff. The first practice in full pads will come Thursday morning at 8:45 AM. All of the practice sessions will be held at the practice fields at the Cru Sports Plex.
The Cru will open the 2010 season with a 1:00 PM road game at Wisconsin-La Crosse on September 11th. UMHB will then open ASC play the following week with a 6:00 PM road game against McMurry University. UMHB season tickets are available for purchaseby calling (254) 295-4216.
