Day 1

The Cajuns began the start of fall camp on Thursday afternoon with a crisp two-hour practice under mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the mid- 90's. The heat index for day one hovered near 100 degrees for nearly the entire session.

The team practiced in shorts and helmets on Thursday and will do so again on Friday, adding shoulder pads for practice on Saturday and Monday.

Thursday's work was the first of 17 practices during fall camp, which includes three scrimmages. The team will also have four morning walk-through sessions before practicing that same afternoon.

"I thought today was a good first day," head coach Rickey Bustle said. "We had good carryover from the spring.

"It tells me that they did a lot of work this summer both watching film and working on their own. I'm very pleased to see the guys running around well and I'm happy we are under way."

Bustle was quick to point out that the first day of fall practice was far from a formality and it wasn't a walk-through. The tempo of Thursday's work was quick and some players found themselves struggling to keep up both physically and mentally.

"We are trying to see where everybody is," Bustle explained. "It will give us an idea of how much we can put in offensively and defensively.

"The coaches are looking to see what the guys remembered from the spring, while the players are trying to show the coaches how hard they worked over the summer and that they aren't going to make mistakes.

"Showing great effort will always get you noticed."

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