Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh Football Opens Preseason Camp
8/6/2021 7:57:00 PM | Football
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – In a return to a closer-to-normal football season, Lehigh opened preseason camp with its first practice on a hot Friday afternoon on the John C. Whitehead practice fields. Despite the hot temperatures it was a welcomed return to a more traditional preseason practice setting after the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled the 2020 fall season and limited Lehigh to a three-game season in the spring.
Friday's first day of practice also marked 29 days to Lehigh's season-opener against Villanova.
"It felt really good to be out here, practicing, in August," third-year head coach Tom Gilmore said. "Even though we have to go through a progression in regards to putting on pads and the amount of contact we can have, it was really exciting to be back on the practice field and being able to do those 'normal' football things again. Our players came out with a great attitude and showed a lot of enthusiasm. It was clear both the players and coaches were excited to be back."
Lehigh benefitted from the fact that a vast majority of the team was able to spend time over the summer working out on campus.
"A majority of the team was here throughout the summer," Gilmore explained. "All of our freshmen ended up making it to campus at one point or another, based on their availability after graduation. We had a lot of guys here in the summer working out. We made a lot of physical progress with the setbacks (from the pandemic). Having most of the team here together doing things on their own helped make the transition into this start of camp a lot easier than it would've been if they weren't here."
The Mountain Hawks will once again be a young team, with just 11 seniors, including a pair of fifth-years. The time spent together in the summer both helped the younger players prepare for camp, while making up for a lot of lost team time over the last 17 months.
"It's not just leading on the field from a football standpoint, but making sure guys are doing all the right things off the field as well," Gilmore said. "Building that culture that we're looking to build. We started to do that when I first took over. It was going really well but got interrupted by the pandemic. We weren't able to spend as much time together as we normally would have. Even in the spring we had time to practice but then we had to immediately, due to protocols, separate. Now having that time together to build that chemistry and build that trust with each other off the field, as well as on it, is going to be very important."
The roster features 26 first-year student-athletes and 32 sophomores who, due to the pandemic have yet to experience a typical fall preseason. Because of that, much of the early focus of this year's camp will be on fundamentals.
Gallery: (8-6-2021) First Football Practice 8-6-21
"Early on it will be important to get the fundamentals down in all three phases," Gilmore said. "Once you get them down and establish those good habits and learn how to do things the right way, then it becomes about learning how to play in game situations. We're a young football team. We have some excellent upperclassmen, but when you look at the makeup of our team, we're definitely heavier in the younger classes. We lack a little bit of experience, so getting the fundamentals squared away and then being able to move into the schemes and game situations is going to be crucial."
Lehigh practiced without pads, just helmets, on Friday and will do so again for practices on Saturday and Sunday. Things will ramp up early next week with the Mountain Hawks expected to don full pads for the first time on Thursday.
This year's camp schedule features planned scrimmages on Monday, August 16 and Sunday, August 22. The annual Alumni Steak Fry will follow the August 22 scrimmage. August 22 will also mark the end of the "camp" portion of preseason, with Lehigh's fall semester beginning August 23. The Mountain Hawks will move into their in-semester practice schedule beginning August 24 in preparation for the September 4 season opener.
The Mountain Hawks will open the 2021 season when Villanova visits Goodman Stadium on September 4. Lehigh will play six games at Goodman Stadium, culminating with the 157th edition of Lehigh-Lafayette November 20. Tickets for all Lehigh home games can be purchased online at LehighTickets.com or by calling 610-7LU-GAME during business hours.
Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive updates throughout the season.
Friday's first day of practice also marked 29 days to Lehigh's season-opener against Villanova.
"It felt really good to be out here, practicing, in August," third-year head coach Tom Gilmore said. "Even though we have to go through a progression in regards to putting on pads and the amount of contact we can have, it was really exciting to be back on the practice field and being able to do those 'normal' football things again. Our players came out with a great attitude and showed a lot of enthusiasm. It was clear both the players and coaches were excited to be back."
Day One ✅#GoLehigh | #beGREAT pic.twitter.com/PiTxc6kSvH
— Lehigh Football (@LehighFootball) August 6, 2021
Lehigh benefitted from the fact that a vast majority of the team was able to spend time over the summer working out on campus.
"A majority of the team was here throughout the summer," Gilmore explained. "All of our freshmen ended up making it to campus at one point or another, based on their availability after graduation. We had a lot of guys here in the summer working out. We made a lot of physical progress with the setbacks (from the pandemic). Having most of the team here together doing things on their own helped make the transition into this start of camp a lot easier than it would've been if they weren't here."
The Mountain Hawks will once again be a young team, with just 11 seniors, including a pair of fifth-years. The time spent together in the summer both helped the younger players prepare for camp, while making up for a lot of lost team time over the last 17 months.
"It's not just leading on the field from a football standpoint, but making sure guys are doing all the right things off the field as well," Gilmore said. "Building that culture that we're looking to build. We started to do that when I first took over. It was going really well but got interrupted by the pandemic. We weren't able to spend as much time together as we normally would have. Even in the spring we had time to practice but then we had to immediately, due to protocols, separate. Now having that time together to build that chemistry and build that trust with each other off the field, as well as on it, is going to be very important."
The roster features 26 first-year student-athletes and 32 sophomores who, due to the pandemic have yet to experience a typical fall preseason. Because of that, much of the early focus of this year's camp will be on fundamentals.
"Early on it will be important to get the fundamentals down in all three phases," Gilmore said. "Once you get them down and establish those good habits and learn how to do things the right way, then it becomes about learning how to play in game situations. We're a young football team. We have some excellent upperclassmen, but when you look at the makeup of our team, we're definitely heavier in the younger classes. We lack a little bit of experience, so getting the fundamentals squared away and then being able to move into the schemes and game situations is going to be crucial."
Lehigh practiced without pads, just helmets, on Friday and will do so again for practices on Saturday and Sunday. Things will ramp up early next week with the Mountain Hawks expected to don full pads for the first time on Thursday.
This year's camp schedule features planned scrimmages on Monday, August 16 and Sunday, August 22. The annual Alumni Steak Fry will follow the August 22 scrimmage. August 22 will also mark the end of the "camp" portion of preseason, with Lehigh's fall semester beginning August 23. The Mountain Hawks will move into their in-semester practice schedule beginning August 24 in preparation for the September 4 season opener.
The Mountain Hawks will open the 2021 season when Villanova visits Goodman Stadium on September 4. Lehigh will play six games at Goodman Stadium, culminating with the 157th edition of Lehigh-Lafayette November 20. Tickets for all Lehigh home games can be purchased online at LehighTickets.com or by calling 610-7LU-GAME during business hours.
Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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