FULLERTON “”mdash; It was 84 degrees at 10 a.m on Saturday, Aug.
16, and the UCLA football team was heating up.
Literally and figuratively.
Fall camp began Saturday under a scorching sun at Titan Stadium
on the Cal State Fullerton campus, with players practicing in
shells. On Sunday, Aug. 17, the players began practicing in full
pads ““ an event the team has been waiting for.
“I think the players are anxious to get into shoulder
pads,” UCLA head coach Karl Dorrell said.
“It is kind of a green light.”
Dorrell certainly had his finger on the pulse of the team as
sophomore tailback Tyler Ebell noted that with three weeks until
the team’s first game of the season at Colorado,
“People are ready to unleash.”
Returning players noted a greater focus in this season’s
fall practices in comparison to those held during the past year at
Cal Lutheran.Â
Not surprisingly, players attributed this shift to coaching
changes, from Dorrell to new head strength and conditioning coach
E.J. “Doc” Kreis, who spent 10 years at Colorado in a
similar position.
“It has been really good,” sophomore wide receiver
Junior Taylor said.
“It has been very intense.”
Taylor knows about intensity ““ Dorrell said he is looking
for one of the younger receivers to step up and fill the void left
by the absence of senior Tab Perry, who will miss the season due to
academic ineligibility. Dorrell named Jacques Lazarus, Idris Moss,
Garrett Lepisto and front runner Taylor as players competing for a
spot on the depth chart.
Taylor has a minor thigh bruise but said he had no pain in his
thigh Saturday.
To combat the high temperatures, the coaching staff is stressing
hydration, as players get acclimated to the heat and the grueling
two-a-day practices, which begin this week.
“I don’t worry about the players because we get the
players hydrated,” Kreis said.
Freshman defensive tackle Thomas Patton sat out Saturday’s
practice with a sprained ankle while senior defensive tackles
Rodney Leisle and Ryan Boschetti did not participate in the
day’s scrimmage. All three players are day-to-day.
The team begins two-a-day practices Monday, Aug. 18, and will
hold an 11 a.m. scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 23. A $5 charge for
entrance to the scrimmage will benefit CSUF, and prior to the
scrimmage, there will be a kids clinic from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30
a.m.
The Bruins will open the season on Sept. 6 at Colorado. Their
first home game is the following week, a Sept. 13 game at the Rose
Bowl against Illinois.