Spring Break has come and gone, some guys stayed home, and some took trips. Personally, I took off to New York for a couple of days with my girlfriend and her family. Now we find ourselves almost four weeks into the closest thing we get to lining up against an actual opponent until the fall, spring ball.
Spring ball starts as soon as spring break ends, and it's a five-week period that consists of 15 practices. Three of those practices are scrimmages, and the last scrimmage is the Spring Game which will be Saturday, April 27 at 2 p.m. in War Memorial Stadium.
The spring game is what gets the most attention, as it is a chance for the team to showcase what we have been working on all winter and spring. The last time that the public has seen any of us with pads on was in New Mexico all the way back in November.
Even though there are only 15 real practices throughout those five, weeks spring ball is still an everyday grind. On the days that we do not have practice, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, there are mandatory weight lifting sessions in the morning. In the afternoon, there are meetings where we watch the film from the practice before.
Film was one thing that took me by surprise coming out of high school and transitioning into the college football scene. We watch EVERYTHING, and the film is not even limited to the team reps in practice. We watch individual drills, one on one reps against the offensive linemen, and everything in between.
On the days that we do have practice, there are meetings where we go over that day's practice and things that we are going to be putting in as well. This includes offensive, defensive, and special teams schemes.
So, that's a little bit of our schedule, but how do things change for the boys in the trenches? The winter is competitive when it comes to lifting and running and all that fun stuff, but we didn't come here to run and lift - we came here to play football.
Spring ball gives us a 15-practice window to throw the pads on and really get into it. That means that offensive and defensive linemen are going against each other rep after rep.
We have one-on-one pass rush drills, which is exactly what it sounds like, one offensive and one defensive linemen, no ball, you put your best move on the other and the best man wins.
For the last half of practice, we go to straight 11-on-11 football. Guys are competing on every snap until the whistle blows, and sometimes a little bit longer than that.
Why is it so important to compete on every snap? Spring ball is a huge evaluation period for our team. Coaches are looking to have some semblance of a depth chart figured out by the time the spring game rolls around and everybody is fighting for a spot.
We have a saying around the building and that is, "Everything you do is being evaluated." This rings true both on and off the field, and spring ball is a huge evaluation.
When asked about the competition in the trenches that goes on in spring ball,
Ravontae Holt said, "Every practice, guys have been really competitive. And I feel that it has gotten guys better on both sides of the ball."
Ravontae is headed into his junior season here at Wyoming and is going to be a key piece of our defensive line this year.
Alonzo Velasquez is a junior offensive lineman and he said, "The competition has increased, the O-line has a really good mentality headed into the year, and the competition overall has become more competitive. Guys get a little chippy out there, which I think is a good thing, because both sides are trying to get better. And when one side shows more energy, it encourages the other group to do the same."
Alonzo is serving as more of a coach on the field for the Pokes this spring due to an injury, but he looks to be a leader for the offensive line group.
Spring ball is the closest thing that we get to playing football in the regular season. The biggest thing that we all need to remember is the importance of every practice. Every practice is an evaluation period, and what we do now will have a huge impact on our role in the fall.
