Hurricanes Return to Practice Field To Prepare For Temple
Sept. 10, 2002
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (www.hurricanesports.com) – The University of Miami football team returned to Greentree Practice Field on the Coral Gables campus Tuesday to begin preparations for its BIG EAST Conference opener against Temple.
The major news of the day centered on injury issues. Earlier on Tuesday, head coach Larry Coker announced during the weekly press conference that split end Andre Johnson will miss the Temple game after minor shoulder surgery. He also announced that junior defensive tackle Santonio Thomas is probably out for the season with a torn pectoral muscle suffered against Florida.
On a positive note, tailback Frank Gore suited up for the full pads practice for the first time this fall after missing all of the preseason recovering from knee surgery. Gore, a sophomore, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament during spring practice and underwent reconstructive surgery. He could return in the next few weeks, but his prognosis for the season remains unclear. Gore participated in limited activity and did not play in contact drills on Tuesday.
Coach Larry Coker noted that the team looked rested and alert after the brief layoff.
“It was a really good day today, I think we needed (Monday) as a day off,” Coker said. “Guys were rested and they flew around pretty well today and that was good. We needed that. We hadn’t had much time off since day one and we had a very physical, hard week last week. I think it’s going to be important that we finish the week off and be fresh and in great condition. We did condition today and we will continue to do that. It’s going to be important for us just to be able to play a lot of players. We’re going to play on artificial turf (Saturday at Temple) and the temperature is going to be hot. If it’s sunny, we’re going to have a lot of heat.”
On Saturday, UM will travel to Philadelphia for its first Big East Conference contest against Temple. The game will be televised by the ESPN Regional network from Franklin Field. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. ET.
The following Saturday, September 21, the Hurricanes will welcome Boston College to the Orange Bowl for a nationally televised battle on ESPN beginning at 7:45 p.m. ET.
Those seeking information about tickets to any upcoming Hurricanes’ events may call 1-800-GO-CANES. On-line purchases may be made at www.hurricanesports.com.
