Ball State University Athletics
Football Team Spring Practice #13 Report
April 21, 2011 | Football
Ball State's football team will practice Thursday prior to ending this year's Spring Practice with the annual Cardinal and White Scrimmage Saturday at 3 p.m. The Cardinals' head coach Pete Lembo discusses Practice No. 13 with the athletics media relations office.
We have only two practices left before the Spring Game, are you where you want to be at this time?
Our morale is very good right now. These players really seem to be enjoying practice. Our practices are not short. They are trying to get better and they want to learn. It would have been easy to put it on cruise control today, but they came out with a sense of purpose. Our assistant coaches are enjoying coaching these guys every day in meetings and on the field. That being said, we still have a long way to go. Attitude is a big part of it, but execution has to go along with it. We have got to become more consistent on offense and we need to cut down on some mental mistakes on defense. We have got to become much more detailed in our technique on special teams. Across the board, we need to continue to grasp the big picture concepts rather than memorizing assignments. It will come in time. Tomorrow's session will be in helmets only, but we expect to get a lot of quality work done. We are anxious to cut it loose on Saturday and see who will step up and make plays.
You are having a Career Night for your team Friday, talk a little about what you are trying to do for the student-athletes with this event?
We want to create an environment around the spring game where it becomes a weekend long celebration of Ball State football - past, present and future. Part of our mission is to use the football program as a means to connect our constituents. Friday night's event will feature seven football alumni - from different generations and different professional backgrounds. They will speak to the team about how their Ball State education - and their football education - has helped them succeed in their careers and in life. We hope it will help our players develop a vision for what they can become after their football careers conclude. It is also a great opportunity for our guys to network with these successful alumni. For example, we have several seniors interested in careers in sales and a couple of our speakers have been very successful in that profession. I am also excited to have Paul Schudel and Bill Lynch joining us as honorary coaches on Saturday. These coaches positively impacted the lives of so many student-athletes and became friendly with so many people during their many years in Muncie. I am sure they will also enjoy spending time with the current players. In terms of the future, we are expecting several of our 2011 signees and a large group of rising senior recruits to be in attendance on Saturday. I am looking forward to seeing all of those folks at Scheumann Stadium as well.
Your family is here for a visit, how has the transition gone for you and the other coaches as we close out Spring Practice?
We have met so many great people from the area and connected with the University. We really appreciate the efforts of a number of people to make us feel welcome and help us get acclimated. It says a lot about the fiber of the community. It also shows that people truly care about the football program having success. If your family is happy living in the area, it is always a little easier to spend those extra hours in the office. If an assistant coach's wife is making friends and the schools are strong for his kids, perhaps he thinks twice about leaving for another position elsewhere. It was spring break for our children in North Carolina this week, so they made the trek up here to see me and check out the team. Before you know it, the school year will be over and they will be moving here for good. Jen and the kids are excited about the next adventure.
Recruiting starts next week, do you feel prepared to move forward now that you have been here a few months?
We have been working on recruiting every day, so our coaches will be organized and well prepared to hit the road at the end of next week and throughout the month of May. Before they depart campus, we will spend a great deal of time discussing our current personnel and conducting year end meetings with the players next week. Each player will have a performance review with his position coach, our strength coach and myself. Progress on the field and in the weight room is just one piece of it. We will spend a lot of time discussing academic progress, social development and career goals. We also ask our players to fill out a self assessment that addresses many of the intangibles that are important to a student-athlete's success. This form helps me get a sense for where a player thinks he is at in several key areas of his life. I may agree or disagree. It is easy to talk about the good stuff, but it more important that we discuss areas that need improvement. It is critical that everyone is on the same page as we move forward and transition from spring to summer.
