Hopkins making gains for UConn football team

Storrs — Nate Hopkins absolutely loves his grandmother's cooking.

During summer visits to her house in North Carolina, Hopkins would feast on her delicious meals.

"She's a lovely lady, so anything I want to eat, she's going to give it to me and that's a problem," Hopkins said.

Hopkins, a redshirt sophomore running back from Flower Mound, Texas, had to walk away from some of his favorite foods to be able to run away from defenders on the football field for UConn. He's winning the willpower battle. This spring, the 6-foot-1, 213-pound Hopkins is in the best shape of his football career. He's dropped body fat and added muscle.

"You talk about a guy who changed his body," coach Randy Edsall said after Tuesday's practice. "Truthfully, I had some question marks about him in terms of sometimes I didn't think his effort was as good as it needed to be, or should have been.

"He's had a very solid spring. You can see the difference in him. He's in better shape. I think he understands his strengths and his weaknesses and he plays to those things. I've been pleased with him.

"But sometimes you give the horse too much sugar and then the horse doesn't run as fast. So I don't know how much more sugar I can give him other than that because I don't want him to be a trotter rather than a thoroughbred."

Hopkins' transformation featured a major change in his diet. He's eating healthier food and given up sugary drinks. Water only now.

It's been especially difficult to give up his favorite food: waffles.

"I love a lot of bad stuff," Hopkins said. "But I just think about what I

want to accomplish whenever I do want to eat that stuff." So what prompted him to change course? Hopkins basically got sick of being overweight for his position and hearing about it from his UConn coaches.

During his high school days, Hopkins said he "had a lot of meat on the bone."

"I had to get that down so I could be effective on this level," Hopkins said. "It feels great. I honestly don't know how I played like I did in high school. I was lazy and overweight. But I'm glad it got to me."

Hopkins picked a good time to get shed pounds.

The running back position is a bit thin this spring. Kevin Mensah, the top returning rusher, has missed practice time due to academic issues.

Hopkins has had a great chance to state his case prior to heading into the offseason.

Last season, Hopkins led the Huskies with seven rushing touchdowns and ranked second both in rushing yards (343) and carries (92). He had only three receptions — a number that he'd like to increase this fall.

Becoming more versatile is a point of emphasis for Hopkins, whose goal is to be an allaround, every-down running back.

"I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish last year, which was to start at some point and contribute to the team," Hopkins said. "And now I just want to be more consistent and I want to do it every week."

As the biggest back on the roster, Hopkins is comfortable with contact. He enjoys throwing a block as much as scoring a touchdown.

"I just want to contribute however I can contribute," Hopkins said.

UConn has one more workout on Thursday before holding its annual spring football game on Saturday at Rentschler Field in East Hartford. Kickoff is at noon. There is no admission charge. The stadium will open at 10:30 a.m.

News and notes

• Hergy Mayala, the team's top receiver last season, watched practice from the sidelines on Tuesday. He sprained his MCL in his left knee on Saturday. "We don't think it is too bad," Edsall said. "We did an MRI. He should be fine." ... Mensah, Marvin Washington and James Atkins sat out due to academic reasons. They also will miss Thursday's practice and Saturday's spring game. "Just trying to do everything I can to be pro-active with those guys to make sure there won't be any issues with them finishing up the semester." ... Defensive back Taj Herring-Wilson left practice early after getting his "bell rung" ... Defensive end Connor Freeborn (MCL sprain) is done for the spring. He'll be back for summer workouts. g.keefe@theday.com