On Monday, the Catamounts initiated the first of two, four-week plans to prepare for the two scheduled football games set for Nov. 14 at Liberty and Nov. 21 at Eastern Kentucky.
"There has been a lot of planning that's gone into getting ready and we didn't want to go full until we had the (COVID-19) testing piece right for the welfare of our student-athletes. Now that we've got that part figured out with the help of Harris Regional Hospital, it's getting close to go time," said WCU head coach Mark Speir.
In anticipation of the 2020 fall season, Catamount football student-athletes originally returned to campus alongside their men's and women's basketball counterparts in mid-July to resume off-season training. Then in the first week of August, preseason camp tentatively commenced, adhering to state and university guidelines and protocols with players working out in organized bubbles. Those segmented practice sessions were derailed just eight days later as the Southern Conference announced its intention to postpone conference play until the spring semester.
Speir added, "Among the toughest parts of this preseason has been adjusting to a new normal and keeping our players fully engaged," referencing the journey his squad has been on since returning to campus in mid-July.
Including both the position coach changes through the offseason and the pandemic that wiped out all spring activities, this preseason is highly important for the Catamount football team. Player-driven training through the spring and early summer that was spurred through social media posts to keep teammates accountable will again give way to WCU's athletic performance staff guided workout sessions as preseason fall camp nears in early October.
The first of the two, month-long plans features a heavy-dose of consistent team conditioning and weight room workouts as WCU's pointed preparations resume. The second four-week period, which is slated to begin on Oct. 7, Speir compared to a typical spring football slate that will culminate with the pair of games at both Liberty and EKU.
"That first four weeks, we're going to condition four days a week in the mornings as a team and we'll lift four days a week in the afternoons in different groups. We're using that time to just get ourselves back into football shape. We'll also start having our position and team meetings," Speir explained. "Then, starting in early October, we'll have a four-week window to practice three days a week, much like we do in the spring, spread it out with meetings on the off-days to get ready for our two games this fall."
Without having a summer preseason camp leading into a typical season, Speir added, "We can't go every day like we normally would in the fall. Usually, you have 15 practices in the spring. We're going to have 14 practices leading up to the game week and then play our two nonconference games. That's the mentality that we're using to get ready."
In true Speir fashion, the ninth-year head coach found a way to draw a downhome comparison of what his team will be going through over the next two months before competitions in November.
"It's like a carpenter that's just starting," spun Speir. "When he first grabs that hammer and starts pounding on those nails, day one and two, it feels good. But by the end of that first week, you've got blisters all over your hands and it hurts. Those harden and heal, turn into calluses, and that's when you become a carpenter. That's how we're approaching practice this fall."
WCU's preseason practice is slated to open with the first of two helmet-only sessions on Wednesday, Oct. 7 on the newly minted turf at E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field. Additional practice information and a complete practice schedule, as well as broadcast information for both of WCU's fall football games, will be released in the coming weeks.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount football and WCU Athletics through social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/CatamountSports), Twitter (@Catamounts, @CatamountsFB), and Instagram (wcu_catamounts).
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Catamount Football Looking to 'Build Calluses' Through the Fall - catamountsports.com
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