April 13, 2002
The University of Notre Dame football team completed its first week of spring drills with a two-hour practice session Saturday afternoon. The workout culminated with a 30-minute controlled scrimmage that allowed first-year Irish head coach Tyrone Willingham and his staff to get their initial look at the 2002 squad in full-speed game situations.
Willingham noted he was pleased with the enthusiasm shown by the Notre Dame players on Saturday, but also cautioned that much work remains to be accomplished.
“We had a very good session, but the session was probably focused more on good things coming from our energy level and not necessarily our execution,” Willingham said. “There were some bright things, but overall we still need a lot of good work.”
One of the focal points of the spring season for the Irish has been the development of new offensive and defensive schemes. Willingham commented it will take time for his players to learn and understand the wide range of material they have been taught in the first week of practices.
“We’re still installing things and there’s still a lot more of this offense for them to learn,” Willingham said. “That process of trying to work through an understanding of the system will continue.
“Both sides (of the team) are coming along well,” he continued. “But, you have to understand that some things will not be as you as a coach would like them to be. At the same time, there is still progress being made, even though the execution may not be flawless yet.”
A Tiger’s Tale
Willingham was happy to discover following Saturday’s practice session that Tiger Woods was tied for the lead after the third round of The Masters. Willingham and Woods had become acquainted during the golfer’s two years at Stanford University from 1994-96.
“Tiger did some great things for us and our program in terms of being a model student-athlete that we could call on to talk to other student-athletes about the university, about himself and about what was going on,” Willingham said. “We developed a friendship, but he’s an awfully busy man these days, as he was when he was at Stanford.”
However, when asked whether he had ever played 18 holes with the two-time Masters champion and No. 1 player in the world, Willingham broke out into a wide grin.
“I would not put my game in the same foursome as Tiger,” he chuckled.
— ND —