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The University of Utah Athletics
Ute Football Team Starts Camp On Monday
7/31/2003 12:00 AM | Football
July 31, 2003
SALT LAKE CITY -
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CAMP QUICK NOTES
First-year Ute head football coach Urban Meyer will conduct his first fall practice camp at the U., starting on Monday, Aug. 4 ... all practices are closed to the public ... there are some changes in the practice schedule from that released last week. Please see Preseason Dates and Practice Times for more details ... 105 players, including 80 scholarship players, are expected to report to camp on Sunday, Aug. 3 ... the Ute football team will practice on Ute Baseball Field during preseason camp (Ute Baseball Field is located on Guardsman Way) ... Utah was picked to finish fifth in the Mountain West Conference in the preseason media poll.PRE-CAMP NOTES
The annual Ute Fan Fest is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 23 in Rice-Eccles Stadium. All of Utah's varsity athletic teams will take part in the interactive Fan Fest ... Out until further notice is two-time all-conference senior defensive end Jason Kaufusi (shoulder) ... 38 lettermen and 12 full or part-time starters return from last year's 5-6 Ute team ... 6 offensive starters are back: Brett Elliott, QB (6-3, 205, Jr.), Matt Hansen, TE (6-5, 245, Sr.), Thomas Herrion, OL (6-3, 315, Sr.), Marty Johnson, RB (6-0, 230, Sr.), Chris Kemoeatu, OL (6-4, 339, Jr.), Brandon Warfield, RB (5-10, 210, Sr.) ... 5 defensive starters return: Ray Holdcraft, LB (5-11, 242, Sr.), Jason Kaufusi, DE (6-3, 250, Sr.), Arnold Parker, DB (6-2, 210, Sr.), Dave Revill, DB (5-11, 205, Sr.), Josh Savage, DE (6-4, 276, Sr.) ... Last year's starting kicker is also back in Bryan Borreson.KAUFUSI HEADLINES PRESEASON TEAM
Utah senior defensive end Jason Kaufusi was named to the 2003 MWC preseason all-conference team by vote of members of the league's media at the annual MWC Football Preview, held July 27-29 in Las Vegas. Kaufusi, a two-time first-team all-MWC pick was a unanimous preseason pick for the second straight year. Other Utes on the preseason all-conference team were: senior strong safety Dave Revill and senior running back Brandon Warfield. Both Revill and Warfield made the second team last year.MWC PRESEASON POLL
Utah was picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll conducted at the MWC Football Preview and voted on by the league's media. If recent history holds true, Utah's ranking won't mean much in the end. Last year Utah received more first-place votes than any other team while finishing a close second to CSU in total points (111-113) in the preseason poll. In reality, Utah finished the season tied for fifth place. In 2001, the Utes were pegged sixth in the preseason poll and finished in a third-place tie.SINGLES AND DOUBLES
The NCAA has passed new legislation that limits two-a-day practices for Division I-A teams to every other day. Utah's scheduled "double days" are Aug. 9, Aug. 11, Aug. 13, Aug. 16 and Aug. 18. The new rule does not apply to the Ute coaches, who will also be on the field for two practices, coaching two different sets of players, on Aug. 4, 5 and 6.GETTING ACCLIMATED
The NCAA requires a five-day acclimation rule, which will work like this in the case of the Utes: shorts and helmets on Aug. 4-5; shorts, helmets and shoulder pads on Aug. 6-7 and full pads on Aug. 8.PRESEASON DATES
The Ute newcomers and veterans are scheduled to report to preseason camp on Sunday, Aug. 3. The first day of practice is Aug. 4 and the first day in full pads is Aug. 8. The first double-day practices will be held on Aug. 9. Utah will practice a total of 26 times between Aug. 4 until the end of preseason camp on Aug. 27. (Teams are permitted 29 total practices in 35 days, but Meyer plans to give the team Sundays off.) Classes begin on Aug. 20. Utah's first game is on Thursday, Aug. 28 vs. Utah State in Salt Lake City.PRACTICE TIMES
The schedule for two-a-day practices (Aug. 9, 11, 13, 16, 18) is 9:00-11:00 a.m. and 4:05-5:45 p.m. The single day practices will be held from 9:00-11:00 a.m. once the complete team starts practicing together on Aug. 7. From Aug. 4-6, the team will be divided into a mixture of newcomers and returners and there will be one morning and one afternoon practice. The opening week's practice schedule follows.OPEN & CLOSED
All of Utah's practices and scrimmages will be open to the media but closed to the public. Please note that televisions may tape only the first 30 minutes of practice.INTERVIEW POLICIES
Interviews for Utah football players and coaches are conducted at the conclusion of practice. During the preseason, this can be after either the morning or afternoon session. Assistant Athletics Director Liz Abel or a sports information designee will attend the practices and arrange for interviews. A 24-hour advance notice is suggested for interview requests involving a particular athlete or coach. Please call Abel at 581-3511 to arrange interviews.EARLY STARTERS
Utah's Aug. 28 game vs. Utah State marks the earliest season-opener in school history for the Utes. The decision to play the game on Thursday, rather than the traditional Saturday kick-off, was made to allow fans an opportunity to take advantage of the Labor Day weekend. Game time is 7 p.m. in Rice-Eccles Stadium.SUPER SCHEDULE
The 2003 Utes will face one of the tougher schedules in school history. Utah has three quality BCS schools on its schedule: California and Oregon of the Pacific-10 and Texas A&M of the Big 12. Utah's games with Cal and Oregon will be televised live by ESPN and ESPN2, respectively. Things won't ease up in conference play, with the Utes playing perennial league leaders Colorado State, Air Force and Brigham Young on the road.A NEW ERA
New Utah Head Coach Urban Meyer is widely considered one of the up-and-comers in the college coaching ranks. Meyer, 39, was hired by Utah on Dec. 12, 2002 after leading Bowling Green to a two-year record of 17-6. At BGSU, Meyer went 5-0 against BCS teams, including two wins over ranked opponents, and his team cracked the AP Top 20 after starting the 2002 season with eight straight wins. Named the 2001 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year as a first-year head coach in 2001, Meyer went 8-3 and 9-3 in his two years at BG. His previous coaching stops included assistantships at Ohio State (graduate assistant), Illinois State, Colorado State and Notre Dame.MEYER SAYS
"I don't want to set our hopes too high, but I am so excited to start camp. The returning players are much better than they were in the spring. We challenged them that if they had a good summer and worked hard, we would be a good football team. I thought our strength coach, Jason Veltkamp, and his staff did a good job. I feel like if we can stay healthy, we're going to be good."Like every other coach in the country, I'm very concerned that we lost our acclimation period with the newcomers. Now they are going to get thrown right in with the varsity. They (the newcomers) are not in the same condition, they are going to be homesick and they are going to be generally overwhelmed.
"By the first day of two-a-days (Aug. 9), we hope to have a good chunk of our offense and defense in. On offense, we'll see how much carryover there is from spring ball and if our quarterbacks worked hard at throwing the ball."
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