Bucknell University Athletics
Bison Gridders Meet the Media
8/13/2001 8:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 13, 2001
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Head coach Tom Gadd and several of his Bucknell football players met the media on Monday, the same day the Bison veterans were expected to check in for preseason camp. Nearly a dozen media members were present for the annual Media Day luncheon, which featured comments from Gadd and a "Punt, Pass and Kick" competition among the media on Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium's newly installed Field Turf.
Following a full day of physical exams, equipment issue and conditioning tests, the full Bison squad will practice as one for the first time on Tuesday, with a double session scheduled for 8:15 a.m. and 3 p.m. The freshman players reported to camp last Thursday and practiced together on Saturday and Sunday.
Following are comments from head coach Tom Gadd at Monday's Media Day.
"We have a chance to be a really good football team. We are deeper and more talented than we have been. Whether that plays out into a great season I don't know. The players make that decision. The chemistry of the team is built upon the players and staff making a commitment to work hard."
On dealing with the summer heat: "We are going to work these kids hard, but in light of the recent injuries and tragic deaths due to the weather, we are really going to monitor their water intake and be smart about it."
On last season's disappointing finish: "I think we are coming off a season in which there was a lot of hurt in the way we lost the last three football games. It is something that sticks with you. Some of the things we have done, like our new uniforms and the new turf, are aimed at giving the players a different emotional outlook on the way we play football."
On the new Field Turf in Mathewson Stadium: "I think this turf represents a step in the right direction for this program. This is a better football program today than it was two or three years ago, and the turf is a big part of that."
On the Bison's offensive outlook: "Offensively, we have everybody back. Our quarterback, Todd Wenrich, is back and coming off a great summer. For a young man like Todd to spend his summer in Lewisburg, painting fences and pulling weeds on a farm while he gets in shape, it is a real testimony to him. He is ready to go, and every other piece is in place offensively, from tight end to running back to wide receiver to offensive line. It doesn't matter which position you look at, we have quality football players there."
On the Bison's defensive outlook: "Defensively is where we are going to be different. As coaches, we look at guys like Vince Ficca and Kevin Eiben and don't take them for granted anymore, because now that they have graduated we sit here and wonder who is going to make those plays. So while offensively we comeback with a fat hand, defensively we have to figure out who is going to plug up some of those holes."
"A big thing for us is to stay healthy. I've been involved in coaching for 32 years, and I said it last year and I wasn't kidding or exaggerating, but I have never been at a place where we went through the injuries that we did here last year. Hopefully we have that behind us now."
On the Patriot League: "This league is better. When I first came in here in 1995, the talent in the league was scattered. There were some good players, but top to bottom it's nowhere near at the level it is now. The skill, size and athleticism that is starting to show up forces you to play better every week."
