Holgorsen Pleased
March 20, 2012 11:42 AM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University football coach Dana Holgorsen is pretty pleased with the way his team has performed so far through the first four days of spring drills.
“I was pretty fired up about one of the things after the first day of pads,” Holgorsen said Sunday evening. “You question how physical your team is because they haven’t hit in a while. I don’t care what kind of offense you run, what kind of defense you run or any of that, if you’re not physical you’re not going to be very good. I was really pleased with how they responded to that and got out there and did a lot more things from a physical nature, so that was good to see.”
Holgorsen said the defense, under the guidance of new defensive coordinator Joe DeForest, is coming along.
“They’re being spoon fed a little bit. They’re putting in one or two new things a day,” Holgorsen said. “I don’t see a whole lot of blown assignments or mental busts; there are mistakes everywhere out there as far as offense, defense, and special teams, but I’ve been really pleased with how those guys are coming along defensively.”
West Virginia’s 70-point explosion in the Orange Bowl was a big boost to the program and Holgorsen says he sees it every day by the way the players are working and paying attention to detail.
“I had a sense that our morale was high. From the eight weeks of the offseason, we were around them the last four weeks quite a bit in meetings and watching competition, weightlifting and team runs and you can sense that they’re excited about what’s going on,” Holgorsen said. “We added some defensive coaches, and I sense that they’re pretty fired up about being here. They’re eager to learn. I sense that after watching four practices that they’re excited.”
That excitement has spilled over into all aspects of the program, according to Holgorsen.
“I can assure you if you take a poll from the entire team, there are a very high percentage of them who look forward to coming into the building to where you’re going to get the most out of them from a study hall perspective, a weightlifting perspective, meetings and practice,” he said. “No matter what it is, if the guys are excited about coming in, you’re going to get a whole lot out of them. I think we’ve accomplished that.”
In the year and a half he’s been here, Holgorsen has created a positive environment where the players are eager and excited to work hard and improve– even during the spring when there are no games on the horizon.
“Throughout the course of spring without having a game, if you wear them out, then you’re not going to get a whole lot out of them,” Holgorsen explained. “I told them after practice (Sunday) they’re crazy if they didn’t use this day to get better. We had a bunch of meetings and practice time. If you don’t take advantage of that, then there’s something wrong.
“For the majority, we did get a lot out of it, which is why we hold three practices a week and don’t go back-to-back days and have meetings between practices,” he continued. “You need to have some recovery time and not wear them out. We’re not preparing for a game, but you’re trying to make yourselves, your unit and the team better, so that’s what the overall objective of the spring is. If you break down or get worn out, then you’re not going to get that accomplished.”
Holgorsen said he is happiest when he walks off the field after watching a practice when players take advantage of their opportunities and seize the moment. Holgorsen mentioned redshirt freshman wide receiver Dante Campbell as an example of a young player doing that.
“Dante Campbell is a guy who redshirted and was down in the dumps like all redshirt kids are, was on the scout team all year, and then spring hits, and you’re anxious to see how things will work for you. He’s taken advantage of every single rep that he’s had,” Holgorsen noted. “He looks good. He’s a big target; Geno (Smith) will throw to him, he blocks well, and he’s a guy we’re thrilled to deal with right now. Seeing guys like that taking advantage of the opportunity is what makes me happy.”
Obviously not everyone one is doing that, but the goal is always to get as many players in the program as possible who want to take advantage of their opportunities.
“If the effort’s there, you want to see them get better at what we’re doing schematically and technique-wise,” Holgorsen said. “If they don’t take advantage of having four or five hours to show what they can do, then there’s something wrong with them. There are a couple of them that don’t, but you can tell the guys who did.”
Practice continues today.
“I was pretty fired up about one of the things after the first day of pads,” Holgorsen said Sunday evening. “You question how physical your team is because they haven’t hit in a while. I don’t care what kind of offense you run, what kind of defense you run or any of that, if you’re not physical you’re not going to be very good. I was really pleased with how they responded to that and got out there and did a lot more things from a physical nature, so that was good to see.”
Holgorsen said the defense, under the guidance of new defensive coordinator Joe DeForest, is coming along.
“They’re being spoon fed a little bit. They’re putting in one or two new things a day,” Holgorsen said. “I don’t see a whole lot of blown assignments or mental busts; there are mistakes everywhere out there as far as offense, defense, and special teams, but I’ve been really pleased with how those guys are coming along defensively.”
West Virginia’s 70-point explosion in the Orange Bowl was a big boost to the program and Holgorsen says he sees it every day by the way the players are working and paying attention to detail.
“I had a sense that our morale was high. From the eight weeks of the offseason, we were around them the last four weeks quite a bit in meetings and watching competition, weightlifting and team runs and you can sense that they’re excited about what’s going on,” Holgorsen said. “We added some defensive coaches, and I sense that they’re pretty fired up about being here. They’re eager to learn. I sense that after watching four practices that they’re excited.”
That excitement has spilled over into all aspects of the program, according to Holgorsen.
“I can assure you if you take a poll from the entire team, there are a very high percentage of them who look forward to coming into the building to where you’re going to get the most out of them from a study hall perspective, a weightlifting perspective, meetings and practice,” he said. “No matter what it is, if the guys are excited about coming in, you’re going to get a whole lot out of them. I think we’ve accomplished that.”
In the year and a half he’s been here, Holgorsen has created a positive environment where the players are eager and excited to work hard and improve– even during the spring when there are no games on the horizon.
“Throughout the course of spring without having a game, if you wear them out, then you’re not going to get a whole lot out of them,” Holgorsen explained. “I told them after practice (Sunday) they’re crazy if they didn’t use this day to get better. We had a bunch of meetings and practice time. If you don’t take advantage of that, then there’s something wrong.
“For the majority, we did get a lot out of it, which is why we hold three practices a week and don’t go back-to-back days and have meetings between practices,” he continued. “You need to have some recovery time and not wear them out. We’re not preparing for a game, but you’re trying to make yourselves, your unit and the team better, so that’s what the overall objective of the spring is. If you break down or get worn out, then you’re not going to get that accomplished.”
Holgorsen said he is happiest when he walks off the field after watching a practice when players take advantage of their opportunities and seize the moment. Holgorsen mentioned redshirt freshman wide receiver Dante Campbell as an example of a young player doing that.
“Dante Campbell is a guy who redshirted and was down in the dumps like all redshirt kids are, was on the scout team all year, and then spring hits, and you’re anxious to see how things will work for you. He’s taken advantage of every single rep that he’s had,” Holgorsen noted. “He looks good. He’s a big target; Geno (Smith) will throw to him, he blocks well, and he’s a guy we’re thrilled to deal with right now. Seeing guys like that taking advantage of the opportunity is what makes me happy.”
Obviously not everyone one is doing that, but the goal is always to get as many players in the program as possible who want to take advantage of their opportunities.
“If the effort’s there, you want to see them get better at what we’re doing schematically and technique-wise,” Holgorsen said. “If they don’t take advantage of having four or five hours to show what they can do, then there’s something wrong with them. There are a couple of them that don’t, but you can tell the guys who did.”
Practice continues today.
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