Malik Hausman goes airborne while running punt blocking drills in Friday night's first practice of training camp for the 2020 season. 

 Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star

Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Jamarye Joiner strutted from Arizona Stadium to the Cole and Jeannie Davis Indoor Practice Center with an ear-to-ear smile.

Joiner, who's expected to be one of the Arizona Wildcats' top wide receivers this season, repeatedly chirped, "We're back! We're back!" as the Wildcats held their first practice of training camp on Friday evening.  The last time UA held an organized team practice that included full pads was in March — the pre-COVID-19 era. 

The UA will open its season Nov. 7 at Utah, part of a seven-game regular season.

Friday, the Wildcats were without coach Kevin Sumlin, who tested positive for the coronavirus. 

Donning protective masks, first-year defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads and offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone orchestrated Arizona's first fall practice, while Sumlin virtually patched in from his home. 

The Wildcats will continue fall camp on Saturday before taking Sunday off.

Gunnell’s offseason work

Opportunities for full “team” work — 11-on-11, 7-on-7 — were rare during the offseason. For many, the focus shifted to fundamentals and techniques. Sophomore quarterback Grant Gunnell put in work to sharpen his mechanics.

Sophomore Grant Gunnell is expected to start the truncated 2020 season at quarterback.

“We’ve been working with footwork, his ability to move a little bit,” Sumlin said earlier this week. “He doesn’t have to be the greatest mobile quarterback, but he's been working at his mobility, his footwork, his ability to … slide around in the pocket. Not necessarily taking off and running but moving around.”

Gunnell is listed at 6-6, 228 pounds. He’ll take off and run on occasion, but he primarily operates from within the pocket. That requires subtle movements and a quick release, and those are areas where Gunnell has grown.

Pac-12 Networks analyst Yogi Roth detected “a couple of mechanical issues” in Gunnell’s game at the 2018 Elite 11 competition. Gunnell didn’t make the final cut.

“He went to work on that,” Roth said. “When I saw him last year in camp and in live games, I said, ‘OK, he looked like the guy I saw on tape (in high school).’ ”

Roth compared Gunnell’s throwing style to that of Philip Rivers, whom Mazzone coached at North Carolina State. They don’t have classic, pure throwing motions like Andrew Luck or Jared Goff. But they get the ball out on time, and they’re accurate.

Gunnell spent some time in the offseason working with Tom House, the pitching coach-turned-quarterback guru whose pupils include Tom Brady and Drew Brees.

“Tom has a unique ability to break down the mechanics of throwing frame by frame and guide you on how to utilize your body with the least amount of force on your arm,” Roth said. “Ground force equals rotational force. If I can keep my feet on the ground, utilize my hips, fire with my back hip … your arm just happens.

“A lot of people talk about arm strength. To me … it starts at the toes and ends at the finger tips.”

Calendar favors freshmen

The majority of Arizona’s newcomers arrived on campus the weekend of Aug. 1-2 – almost two months later than they typically would. Sumlin doesn’t believe that will affect their ability to contribute to the team this season.

“I think it’ll be normal,” Sumlin said. “A lot of our guys, the California guys, don’t graduate until June. So they don't get here in a normal year until late June or July. So that would give you a month, really, before training camp would start in a regular year. So the timing is really about the same right now.”

The freshmen and transfers who got here in early August actually have had more time to train and prep on campus than usual.

Last year, if players arrived June 9 to begin academic Summer Session I on June 10, they would have been on campus for 47 days before the start of training camp (July 26). This year, with an Aug. 2 arrival date, they will have been on campus for 68 days.

“It's weird because it's late,” Sumlin said, “but these guys have been here. … Our guys that are new have been around us and understand things a little bit more.”

Players also had more time per week — 12 hours vs. the standard eight — to work out and meet with coaches.

Offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone helped lead the Wildcats during Friday night's practice with Kevin Sumlin quarantining at home. Sumlin has tested positive for the coronavirus.

“The month they’ve had or so of 12 hours, the ones that could get it, might be more beneficial than spring ball,” Roth said. “Because it’s about development. That’s all it’s been. For coaches, the ones I’ve talked to, they’ve kind of enjoyed that.”

Arizona will need freshmen to play this season, and Sumlin won’t hesitate to use them. The NCAA ruled in August that all fall athletes would get an extra year of eligibility because of the pandemic. So even if a freshman plays all seven games, it will count as a redshirt year.

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Contact sports reporter Michael Lev at 573-4148 or mlev@tucson.com. On Twitter @michaeljlev