Holtz pleased with Bulldogs
RUSTON – As Louisiana Tech wrapped up Monday morning’s practice session at the Jim Mize Track and Field Complex – the Bulldogs fourth in fall camp – Head Coach Skip Holtz said he was pleased with what he has seen from his team and is eager to see them in full pads for the first time on Tuesday.
Tech underwent its normal two-hour morning session Monday morning, its fourth straight day of workouts. The Bulldogs continue preparation for their Sept. 1 opener at South Alabama and Sept. 8 home opener against Southern.
“We got an opportunity to install a lot the first two days while we were in shorts,” said Holtz. “We have had some great work with shoulder pads. A lot of emotion. A lot of enthusiasm. Until we put on shoulder pads, we're out here running around and everybody's bored. Then you come out here and you start having the opportunity to get a little bit of team, a little competitive one-on-one, skelly. All that. Tempers start flaring, emotions start getting fired up.
“Day one I thought the offense got the best of it. Day two I thought the defense had the best of it. That's how you improve as a football team. We always talk about how iron sharpens iron. One day the defense will have a good day out here and then the offense will come roaring back and have a good one the next day. I like what we've gotten through two days in shoulder pads. Tomorrow is the first day in full pads which will really speed up the tempo a little bit for some of these guys. But right now I think I love the attitude and effort. I think these young guys are learning an awful lot, and there's an awful lot of talent on this field.”
Holtz has been utilizing the final 20 minutes of workouts to develop the Bulldogs third and fourth string players, with an emphasis on getting LA Tech’s newcomers more team repetitions that they don’t receive during the normal workouts when the Bulldog first and second teamers are on the field.
“We put these guys in a little bit more of a leadership situation,” said Holtz. “We want to find out how we can develop the younger players, especially with the new rules where you can play four games as a redshirt. So we're going to practice two hours like we did last year. The ones and twos are going to get the bulk of the work during those two hours. The threes and fours will get all the individual and segment work, but they won't get a lot of team work.
“After we're done with our two-minute drives, we send the ones and twos into the fieldhouse and we keep the threes and fours out here for about 20 minutes to make sure that we can get a little bit more.
We call it a developmental period. Now week eight we can play these guys for four games so we've got to do what we need to do to develop them. We plan on doing this throughout the course of the year even when we get into scout teams.”
Tech will take the practice field Tuesday morning in full pads for the first time this fall and Holtz said he expects more work on the ground game.
“We want to make sure we don't throw our fundamentals out the window,” said Holtz. “We're not going to come out here and scrimmage. It's not going to be taking everybody to the ground. We just get a chance to put pads on. We'll spend a lot more time in the running game. You know you want to be careful how much you run in the ball in shells and thigh boards, so the last four days we have focused a lot on the passing game and playing the game in space. You will see a lot more running game. We will do inside run; a lot more team run.”
The Bulldog defense will get a boost by the addition of three junior college linebackers in Brandon Floyd, Connor Taylor and Trey Baldwin. The trio
should bolster the middle of the Bulldog defense this season providing immediate help.
“Brandon Floyd and Connor Taylor were here for spring practice and that makes a huge difference,” said Holtz. “They had five months to digest it all, and they've come out here now with confidence making calls, knowing what's going on. I’ve really been impressed with just how much they've picked up in a short period of time.
“And then Trey Baldwin just got here. So he's just now in his first 15 days. So obviously Trey is a little bit farther behind from a mental standpoint. He's certainly not from a physical standpoint. He is a great player, and I'm looking forward to watching him grow and develop. He's out here now as a junior, an upperclassman. He's out here getting extra work right now in the developmental period because this is what he needs to be ready to play.”
The Bulldogs play five home games this year, including the home opener on Sept. 8 against Southern when the University will celebrate the first 50 years of Joe Aillet Stadium. Tech is one of only four programs in the country to win a bowl game in each of the last four years, joining Utah, Wisconsin and Georgia.