Northwestern University Athletics
Camp Kenosha Report -- August 13
8/13/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 13, 2002
KENOSHA, Wis. - The Wildcats endured a single session on Tuesday, going hard in the morning before taking the afternoon to do extended meetings and lifting.
The practice was typical of a 17-period session, as the players did positional drills for the first half of the session before going to 7-on-7 and eventually 11-on-11.
Afterward, Head Coach Randy Walker gave his thoughts on what he's seen the first four days of camp.
"We've been throwing a lot at them," he said. "As a result, things have been a little helter-skelter, but that's to be expected. Hopefully, they're going to do a lot of work today in meetings. One of the tough things about preseason is that we've only got about three weeks to prepare them for the opener, so we have more than saturated them with information."
Most fans are keenly aware of the battles taking place at quarterback and running back, where the Wilcats are trying to replace Zak Kustok and Damien Anderson, respectively. So far, Walker likes what he has seen at those spots.
"Some guys are doing some good things at those positions," he said. "I like to talk about getting better, and I think Tony Stauss has really taken that to heart. He seems more in command -- he's not been perfect, but there is a poise there that I haven't seen before. I see the same thing with Brett Basanez and Alexander Webb.
"As for the running backs, we've been giving a lot of guys a lot of snaps, and we're going to keep giving them snaps throughout the camp. But I've been very pleased at their level of play."
Walker is also excited by what he sees on the other side of the ball.
"We've got some young guys over there, but they are making things happen," he said.
With the graduation of a strong senior class from a year ago, one of the questions surrounding this year's team was where the leadership would come from. Thus far, Walker is happy with what he has seen on the field.
"All the seniors are doing a good job," he said. "But at the same time, there are some young guys who are stepping up and being leaders in their own right. Overall, I like what I'm seeing."
CAMP NOTES: The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) announced its 2002 All-America Watch List, and a pair of Wildcats were listed. They are Austin King at center and Jeff Roehl on the offensive line. A total of 46 Big Ten athletes were put on the Watch List.
UP NEXT: The Wildcats don their full pads at 8:40 a.m. Wednesday. An afternoon practice is also scheduled for 4 p.m.
