Even though he's been feeling less than 100% thanks to a cold, David Bailiff continued to find nothing but reasons to smile after the Owls second practice of their 2010 training camp at Rice Stadium on Sunday night.
"We had another great practice tonight, a spirited effort at a fast tempo," Bailiff said. "They've brought a blue collar attitude out here and really have been ready to work."
The Owls have hit the ground running--literally--from the start of camp, thanks to the emphasis on a fast temp in new offensive coordinator David Beaty's offensive scheme. While the break-neck pace caused its share of havoc in the spring, Bailiff's troops have shown a great retention of the concepts from the spring and, thanks to an impressive effort over the summer (more on that tomorrow), they are better prepared to put those concepts into practice on the field.
"It's been great to see them come out here ready to move around at a high tempo."
Bailiff noted that the lack of pads makes it easy for the skill positions to stand out in the first days of drills. "It's no fun to be a lineman in these first two days, since they don't have pads on and we tell them to take just three steps and stop so we can run the play. I haven't spent as much time watching them to this point, but I'll be interested to see how they look once the pads come on," he added.
The incoming group of freshmen skill position players continue to impress Bailiff.
"Jeremy Eddington is really fun to watch. He's big and fast and really looks the part. Andy Erickson really plays fast and shows a great burst out there. Mario Hull has been making some plays. It's great to see how fluid Gabe Baker and Bryce Callahan are in drills," he noted.
The Owls will step up the practice routine tomorrow as they pull on shoulder pads for the first time on Monday night. They'll repeat the same routine on Tuesday, before pulling on full pads for the first time on Wednesday.
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