UA coach Rich Rodriguez said his team will participate in “the most unconventional spring practice in college football this year” – and not just because it starts in winter.
In short: The Wildcats will spend most of their time doing individual drills — fundamentals and techniques, blocking and tackling. They will spend just a fraction of their time doing “team” drills — like running plays.
“I might not even have a spring game,” Rodriguez said, although an open-to-the-public scrimmage is scheduled for Friday, March 4.
He described team drills as “the most overrated part of spring football” and individual work as “critical.” The “spring” drills start Feb. 5.
“I haven’t finished all the spring schedules yet, but we’ll have a practice where we do no team periods at all,” Rodriguez said this week. “It’ll be all fundamental work for two hours.”
The impetus for this philosophical shift? In part, it’s what Rodriguez believes in.
“Half the scrimmages you have, or the spring game, you either don’t play your top guys or you cross your fingers that nobody gets hurt,” Rodriguez said. “It’s good to look at schemes, but what are you trying to win? Beat your own team? It’s not nearly as important as teaching them how to play.”
The shift is also a product of this past season’s unusual schedule.
Arizona did not have a midseason bye. That’s usually when coaches can spend more time with younger players whose in-season duties typically are limited to the scout team. The Wildcats also played an early bowl game (Dec. 19), limiting the number of pre-bowl practices. That’s typically a time when young players get individual attention.
Rodriguez believes the February start sets up better for the months that follow. The coaches get extra time to prep for the spring recruiting cycle. The players, meanwhile, can get into a consistent weightlifting routine. They’re also free and clear to concentrate on academics during final exams. The other benefit of starting earlier is that if anyone gets hurt during spring drills, they have an extra month to heal before training camp.
Of course, players who have been hurt have less time to recover before spring practice starts. Linebackers Cody Ippolito (knee) and Jake Matthews (foot) are among those who aren’t expected to be available. The same goes for another linebacker, Derrick Turituri, who missed the final nine games of the season because of a hip injury.
The other potential downside of starting Feb. 5 is that it really condenses the schedule this month. That wouldn’t be such a big deal if Rodriguez weren’t in the process of hiring two defensive coaches and possibly changing the scheme on that side of the ball. Then again, if schemes are being de-emphasized in spring as much as Rodriguez says, maybe that won’t matter very much.
