Hurricanes Adapting To The Heat
Aug. 16, 2005
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami football team continued to press on through the August heat and the 2005 preseason at the Greentree Practice Fields on Tuesday morning. Sparse clouds provided little relief from the heat and practice field goalposts stood unwavering against a barely-noticeable breeze, offering only slivers of shade. Manicured practice fields turn into green baking sheets and the suffocating humidity seems to raise the mercury high enough to qualify the Greentree Practice Fields as outdoor saunas.
That’s what more than a hundred UM student-athletes, coaches and training staff have been dealing with the last 10 days. Add a couple pounds of equipment, throw in a mouth guard while you sprint 40 yards to the ball every play, and you get a better idea of what every UM player is going through.
“We have a lot of guys with a little soreness, but that is to be expected this time of camp,” head coach Larry Coker said. “We have to push through that.”
The Hurricanes seem to be nearing the end of a cycle that is an annual rite of passage in preseason football camps. It began with cramps and dehydration for some players the first few days, evolved into soreness, and will nearly vanish as the team becomes a well-oiled machine.
“I think we understand hydration a bit more,” Coker said. “We’re trying to enforce eating properly, and we’re going only one practice a day for most of the sessions. That makes a lot of difference. If you come back out at three this afternoon and do this again, I think it may be more of a factor.”
Coker diminished the two-a-day factor by beginning practice on August 6 and allowing 29 days to fit in the 29 practices allowed during the preseason, per NCAA Bylaw 17.11.2.4.1 (“During the preseason practice period, institutions may not engage in more than 29 on-field practice sessions.”). That doesn’t mean the Hurricanes’ day is over after practice. Days are filled with plenty of off-field activities that include film sessions, treatment and meals until the lights go out at 11 p.m. “We don’t get to practice this afternoon, but I’m sure we’ll have a good meeting session,” Coker said.
Miami will conduct its third and final two-a-day session on Thursday, the most physically-grueling hump left on the road to the Sept. 5 showdown in Tallahassee.
“I think we’re in great shape,” Coker said. “Again, it’s just making sure that we hydrate. I don’t care what type of condition you’re in. These guys have no body fat. That makes a big difference, as far as cramping up and dehydration.”
The Hurricanes will step back onto the practice field and into the heat at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Notes: For the second straight day, nearly a dozen NFL scouts attended practice to check Hurricanes seniors… Coker put the play of Orien Harris and Baraka Atkins at the forefront of his comments following Tuesday’s practice. “We couldn’t block those guys today, which is good from a defensive standpoint.”… Coker thought linebacker Tavares Gooden (knee) is close in his return to the practice field… He also stressed the preparedness his team needs to have and used the injuries to right guards Tony Tella and Derrick Morse as examples. “We’ve seen how things have happened. We had depth at guard, and all of the sudden we don’t have depth at guard. We have guys who will be out a few days and now we have new first-teamers. We’re practicing a lot of people right now. We’re all getting some work and we’ll continue to do that for a few more days.”
