Football | August 13, 2016

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Saturday marked the end of the first week of training camp for the Bronco football team. Through the first week there have been six practices, which has seen around 95 percent of the team's playbook has been installed. Saturday also marked the first day in full pads, due to the NCAA acclimation rule.

"We grew higher," head coach P.J. Fleck said. "It was one of the most impressive week ones I've been a part of as either a player, assistant coach or head coach."

Week one saw many new faces take the field for the team including freshmen such as linebacker Ron George, receiver D'Wayne Eskridge and defensive lineman Ken Aguirre. During the team's stampede drill on Saturday, Aguirre shed a 1-on-1 block and was able to get three yards to the side of him to bring down the ball carrier.  

Other young players have gotten into the mix on the defensive side of the ball such as defensive ends Eric Assoua and Antonio Balabani who each had sacks in the team's two-minute drill session Saturday.

"I think multiple guys have stood out," Fleck said. "On offense you have your guys but also guys like Luke Juriga who really hasn't been seen yet, but is doing an outstanding job. Zach Novoselsky has been filling in and doing a tremendous job there. We've got a lot of players that have been standing out and that's what's fun about this football team."

Aside from the on-field activity, this year's squad has seen changes to its routine between practices such as sleep patterns, diet, and in-practice nutrients given to help with recovery and keep hydration. The team's athletic trainer Arno Rheinberger and Fleck each used resources this offseason to learn about sleep patterns for both players and coaches to keep everyone at their peak performance.

"Our players are getting close to nine hours of sleep a night," Fleck said. "They're also getting naps in the afternoon. The diet is completely different. Our research has grown higher in the offseason with Arno Rheinberger and our strength coach Dan Nichol. We're going to do everything we can from pedialyte  popsicles to any advantage we can get we're going to. Our athletic director Kathy Beauregard does an outstanding job of providing resources so that we can be like a Power 5 team."

The next two weeks will still be about the Broncos focusing on their team before turning the attention to Northwestern for the season opener on Sept. 3 at noon ET on ESPNU. Camp will see WMU hold its first scrimmage as well as a daily goal of furthering mastering the concepts that were installed in week one and getting the younger players even further up to speed.

"Week one is completely behind us," Fleck said. "Teams separate themselves in week two. You're still a long way from the game and you've been through training camp for a week. It's been very physical and next week will be even more physical. We've got our scrimmage coming up and we'll learn more about our young guys."