The Bulls arrive in Vero Beach!

[HappyHourHero]

#USF OL Mark Popek being carted off field after suffering injury to right leg. Not sure if knee or ankle.

And some bad news....

http://twitter.com/TribuneScott/status/20927884040

[Mama_Bull]

#USF OL Mark Popek being carted off field after suffering injury to right leg. Not sure if knee or ankle.

And some bad news....

http://twitter.com/TribuneScott/status/20927884040

And, Sims has been held out of practice as a precaution due to a prior concussion.

I don't think Holtz can afford to redshirt both Eatmon and Kaufman this year. Right now it looks like Eatmon is doing better, but it's still early in camp.

[Mama_Bull]

More tweets from Scott:

"Today was the wall," said head coach Skip Holtz followin practice.

2 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .

Todd Chandler never did return to practice.

Mistral Raymond moved to corner following Washington's injury.

6 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .

Quentin Washington has a hamstring tweak.

34 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .http://twitpic.com/2dtrnl

[NCBull]

More tweets from Scott:

"Today was the wall," said head coach Skip Holtz followin practice.

2 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .

Todd Chandler never did return to practice.

Mistral Raymond moved to corner following Washington's injury.

6 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .

Quentin Washington has a hamstring tweak.

34 minutes ago via Twitter for Android .http://twitpic.com/2dtrnl

...this is a little concerning.

[Mama_Bull]

POPEK HURT: USF’s offensive line has been without starting RT Jake Sims since moving camp to the Vero Beach Sports Village due to lingering concussion-like symptoms.

Near the end of Wednesday night’s practice, USF potentially lost another offensive tackle when sophomore Mark Popek went down with a right knee injury during live drills. Bulls coach Skip Holtz and trainers rushed to check on Popek after players waved them over once the pile cleared.

“I just know he was engaged in a block and somebody rolled into his knee,’’ Holtz said. “I don’t know the severity.’’

The 6-foot-7, 288-pound Popek started five games as a true freshman last season and entered fall camp at No. 2 on the depth chart at left tackle. Meanwhile, Holtz said Sims was scheduled to have more tests Wednesday night to see if he can return to practice.

INJURY REPORT: TEs Jeff Hawkins and Chase Griffiths missed their third consecutive day of practice in Vero Beach due to concussion symptoms. Both are day-to-day … CB Quenton Washington sat out Wednesday’s practice nursing a hamstring injury … WR Sterling Griffin, who suffered a fractured ankle and lower leg injury in the offseason, is no longer walking in a protective boot.

http://www.tboblogs.com/index.php/sports/comments/lou-holtz-visits-camp-popek-goes-down-with-knee-injury/

[Mama_Bull]

From Greg Auman

USF football: Lou Holtz talks about training off-campus

[Mama_Bull]

Dr Skip gives us his diagnosis. 

[Mama_Bull]

Bulls bonding in Dodgertown

August, 12, 2010 Aug 121:15PM

By Brian Bennett

There isn't much for South Florida players to do in Vero Beach besides focus on football and get to know each other. And that's exactly the way coach Skip Holtz wants it.

Holtz brought the Bulls to Dodgertown -- the former spring training home of baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers -- last Sunday for an intense two-week training camp. The move was necessitated by ongoing construction at USF's practice facilities, but it also gives the team a chance to bond. Holtz said at Big East media day that there were still "wedges" within the team, some of which was left over from the Jim Leavitt controversy this winter.

Players bunk with one roommate in the complex's hotel-style residential complex. Room assignments were chosen to avoid the usual comfort zones.

"I'm a receiver and I'm rooming with a DB (Quenton Washington)," receiver Dontavia Bogan said. "They're splitting up all the cliques and getting everybody together."

Holtz is also employing team-building exercises, such as having each player stand up and tell everybody else something about his new roommate.

"Coach is full of surprises," receiver Lindsey Lamar said. "I feel like we're all getting a good continuity together. I'm learning things about my teammates that I never knew before. There couldn't be a more perfect setting."

The team will be at Vero Beach until Aug. 19, and players aren't allowed to leave the complex. They can use their phones and computers, but video games are verboten. Bogan said a typical day of late has consisted of waking up at 6 a.m., going to practice and meetings all day before finishing up at 10:30 p.m.

School officials estimate this training camp excursion will cost about $185,000.

Off-site training camps are rare in college football. The only other Big East team that does so is Cincinnati, which heads to Camp Higher Ground in eastern Indiana each August. Louisville coach Charlie Strong is sequestering his team in a hotel during training camp, and took away his players' cars during their stay.

Time will tell if this is a trend that catches on, costly as it might be for some schools. For South Florida, the move might pay off for a team trying to build chemistry under a first-year head coach.

http://espn.go.com/blog/bigeast/post/_/id/11138/bulls-bonding-in-dodgertown

[Mama_Bull]

Barrington on a restrictive-contact program

Posted By Scott Carter at Aug 13, 2010 at 11:07 AM

At one point late last season, former USF coach Jim Leavitt called Sam Barrington the best freshman linebacker in USF history.

Barrington showed improvement as the season wore on and in the regular-season finale at Connecticut, he filled in nicely for an injured Kion Wilson by registering a career-high seven tackles.

However, so far in fall camp Barrington has done little tackling due to a lingering shoulder injury that forced him to miss a week of spring practice.

Barrington, at the top of the depth chart at MLB coming out of spring practice, is working behind fellow sophomore Michael Lanaris currently.

He is on a restrictive-contact program to make sure he doesn’t re-injure the shoulder.

“I’m going through the motions, making sure I can help coach up the other guys and anything I see on the sidelines that I can help with,’’ Barrington said after Wednesday night’s practice. “You’ve gotta be a teammate all the time. You’ve gotta be your brother’s keeper, and just because I am hurt, that doesn’t mean I can’t help the other guys.’’

As for the shoulder, here is what Barrington had to say: “I’ll be 100 percent by the start of the season. Coach Snyder has given me a selective role – no contact. He is very supportive of it. He wants to keep me in the motions. Teammates are helping me out with it.’’

When will the limited-contact ban be lifted? “No idea,’’ he said.

While Barrington has been limited in live drills, Lanaris has shown he is ready for more playing time. As a true freshman last season, Barrington played in all 13 games, recording 41 tackles. Lanaris, a redshirt freshman a year ago, played in 12 games primarily on special teams, recording just one tackle.

“He’s showing us that he can do some good things out there,’’ defensive coordinator Mark Snyder said.

http://www.tboblogs.com/index.php/sports/comments/barrington-on-a-restrictive-contact-program/

[Mama_Bull]

No question in my mind that skip has a future in broadcasting. Move over Dr Lou. 

Coach Skip Holtz Video Blog - Day Six