University of Houston Athletics
All Present and Accounted For On Reporting Date
8/5/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 5, 2003
HOUSTON, Texas - University of Houston head football coach Art Briles and his staff breathed a collective sigh of relief today, as all 105 Cougar football players reported to campus today, signaling the official start of preseason camp.
With players arriving from all parts of the state, Briles wasn't nervous about the impending arrivals, but the first-year coach was definitely anxious to get the first day completed without any surprises.
"We just had a lot of good (surprises)," said Briles when asked about his team's first day. "Every thing was perfect today. We knew that about 95 percent of them would show up in shape, just because they kept in contact with our strength coach (Erik Slaughter).
"Everybody's in great shape. Their attitude is good. The personality of the team is good, so we'll crank it up tomorrow and see what happens."
After a morning of meetings and orientation with different areas of the UH Athletic Department, the Cougars will hit the field at 4 p.m. for their first practice of the 2003 fall season. Hit temperatures expected to reach almost 100 degrees in the sweltering conditions of August in Houston, Briles and his staff will prepare their team for these difficult conditions.
"We're going to be intelligent about this," added Briles. "We're going to talk to the guys about not trying to overexert early, because they're not any good to themselves or this University if they're cramping up.
"So, we will be smart about how we handle this. We need to get through the first few days and get them acclimated to it. As we go on, we'll turn it up a notch, but not at the expense of safety."
The Cougars will continue with one practice a day through Sunday. Two-a-days will start on Monday, August 11.
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