Central Michigan University Athletics
Spring Football Kicks Off
3/15/2011 12:00:00 AM | Football
Watch: Spring Football Insider
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – The Central Michigan football program opened spring practice Tuesday morning with a two-hour workout at the Indoor Athletic Complex.
Second-year head coach Dan Enos welcomed the opportunity to get his team back on the practice field and take the next step in preparing for the 2011 season.
"We had great energy out there," Enos said. "We challenged our guys to play with intensity and toughness, but be coachable, and they did that today. We made a lot of mistakes as it's the first day of Spring, but we can live with those. We just want to make sure we are playing hard and playing fast."
The second set of spring practices in the Enos era at CMU will have a distinctly different focus from the first. While last year's spring practice season was spent installing new schemes on offense, defense and special teams and building familiarity between the coaching staff and players, Enos and the Chippewas hit the ground running this spring with established expectations and more focused goals for the spring.
"The biggest difference is the offensive and defensive players have been through this," Enos said. "They know the terminology so we can go a little faster this year.
"We want to establish who we will be as a football team, establish our identity. We want to be physical and disciplined. We were last in the league in turnover margin last year... our rushing offense and defense were 10th and 11th... and we were 11th in field goal kicking. We dropped 51 passes last year and left some big plays on the field. Those are all going to be huge points of emphasis this Spring."
Tuesday's practice was the first of 15 during the spring season for CMU, which culminates with the spring football game on Friday, April 15. Admission is free to the spring game, which kicks off at 7:30 p.m.
The football program will again host a free youth clinic before the spring game, giving kids a chance to meet and learn from their favorite Chippewas. Registration will begin at 4:30 p.m. in the Indoor Athletic Complex, and the clinic will begin at 5:30 p.m.
