Michigan State University Athletics
Spartan Football Media Day
8/20/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 20, 2000
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EAST LANSING, Mich. - These past six practices that we've had as a whole unit I think have been very very impressive. I've been very happy with our development the team has undergone so far. I wish we could have had a little bit more heat. The team came back as I said earlier in the week in very good shape. I was very pleased about that.
We've thrown a lot of information at them the last six days. The returning players I thought did an excellent job of picking up where they left off last spring. I thought the first day the defense was well ahead of the offense. The past couple of days the offense started to get the timing down and started to make some plays and things like that. We put the guys in a lot of special situations, went down to the goal line and the red area. We worked on the two-minute drill last night. So we really threw an awful lot at the team as a unit.
Today will be our first day in pads, kind of go back for a little review starting basically at day one. Tomorrow and Tuesday we'll continue to add more new information.
As far as injuries I told you Paul Harker and Brian Ottney are still out but they are progressing very very well. We have new casualty. Sean Poole who had a knee injury in high school and reinjured his knee so he had to have that reconstructed. So he is going to miss the season but he's still here in school and we plan on having a very healthy recovery.
The overall progress of the team has been very good. I'm very happy with how we're moving in the right direction.
Questions from the media
(On Ryan Van Dyke) Ryan is having a pretty preseason camp. As I said earlier the defense is a little bit ahead of the offense right now. The timing of the passing game is not where it should be. We haven't made the progress in that area we need to make, but overall Ryan is doing very well. He's taken total control and stepped up as a leader on offense. I think he's only going to continue to get better.
(On the kicking game) Every night we've had a kickoff competition between the guys kicking off and field goals and we have a pretty good competition going there.David Schaefer right now is probably a little ahead of everyone. Michael Servis has definitely improved over the last two days. Dan Orner is in there competing and Mark Bojovic, another walk on, we have he is also competing too.
(On T.J. Duckett and the running game) The running game is pretty much on task now. T.J. is really doing a fine job at that position. We've been doing a little bit more of getting Dawan Moss involved in the offense from the standpoint of carrying the ball. Both those two guys have really, really done a good job thus far in the preseason camp. I think T.J., the way he's progressed over the spring and summer to this point, I think he's heading for having a great season. I'm very happy with the progress of Tyrell Dortch, a very exciting runner. When we're in a team situation, he's made plays over and over. I think he's going to help this football team this year. And not to leave out Little John Flowers. He's come back and he's in great shape and he's been playing very well in the preseason also. Overall that group I think we have a pretty good nucleus of backs.
