ORANGEBURG, SC – South Carolina State opened fall football practice Thursday (Aug. 5) with an approximately two-hour workout amid temperatures approaching 100 degrees on the field.
The Bulldogs, two-time defending Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions, got through the drill with minimum casualties as only a couple of players developed cramps due to the high temperatures, according to SC State head coach Buddy Pough.
“We have some (players) that are in shape and some that are not,” Pough said. “But, key for us is that it appears we made it through the session in good shape. We may find out later that a few more players may experience some heat-related problems but most of our players were here in summer conditioning and that's a big benefit.”
Pough, who is beginning his ninth season, said that for an opening session, the staff took a look at a lot of players and is trying to see if some of the young players can quickly acclimate to the system and help out in the fall.
“We are trying to acclimate some of our young players early,” he said. “They do not have the experience but we think it's important during the early stages to put them in there and see what happens. We have 14-15 new scholarship players and we wanted them to hit the ground running.”
Just under 90 players took the field for the Bulldogs' first practice.
SC State, 10-2 and 8-0 in the MEAC last year, has been picked in a preseason poll of league head coaches and sports information directors to earn a third consecutive conference title. Overall, Pough's team has been the preseason favorite in the MEAC four straight years.
Senior quarterback Malcolm Long, who set four school passing records in 2009, was the preseason pick for offensive player of the year. He was one of 13 SC State players on the preseason team, including six who joined him on the first team.
The Bulldogs will hold their second workout Friday at 3:10 p.m. SC State will hold its annual Press and Picture Day Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m. at Dawson Bulldog Stadium, then conduct its third preseason drill in the afternoon at 3:10.
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