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 Spring Football Practice Reaches Mid-Point
April 15, 2005 ORONO, Maine - University of Maine football team continued spring drills on Friday afternoon at Alfond Stadium. Under sunny skies, the Black Bears worked for just under two-hours with an emphasis on red-zone offense and defense. It marked the eighth of fifteen scheduled practices in April for the Black Bears. "We practiced a lot of red-zone and that was important on both sides of the ball," said head coach Jack Cosgrove. "I think we got something out of the drill, with the offense having some success and the defense having some success. We had a lot of reps where both sides got better as a result. At the halfway point of practices I think we are further along in some places than we thought we would be. We have some inexperience on both sides of the line and we have made better progress there than I thought we might. We have some key guys missing right now at the skill spots that is preventing us from seeing what we really can be, but that is the way it is." One position that will be key for the Black Bears this season is the offensive line. Senior Ben Lazarski (New Windsor, N.Y.) started all eleven games at center last season and senior Ryan Bird (North Andover, Mass.) was the starter at left tackle. Senior Brian Quinn (Middletown, Conn.) started two games at right tackle, while junior Justin Roberts (West Milford, N.J.) started one game at left guard. The other linemen with experience include sophomore Jacob Folz (West Paris, Maine), junior Eric Ouellette (Biddeford, Maine) and sophomore Shawn Demaray (Livermore Falls, Maine). Redshirt freshmen Christopher Parcells (Short Hills, N.J.), Christopher Arnao (Newtown, Pa.) and Nabil Salim (Union City, N.J.) will all be counted on to provide depth on the line. "We will be primarily a slide protection team and we are getting better at that every day," said Lazarski. "We should be able to run the ball well this year. This year we are also looking forward to showcasing our great receivers because Ron Whitcomb can drop back and pass the ball, plus we will play the gun some with Chris Legree. We are going to be a very balanced offense; I don't think we are going to be just run or just pass. Our real strength is keeping defenses off-guard with our packages." The team has made some changes to the practice schedule for the remainder of the spring practices. The revised schedule is as follows: Sunday, April 17 12:55 p.m. Wednesday, April 20 3:50 p.m. Friday, April 22 3:50 p.m. Saturday, April 23 4:30 p.m. Jeff Cole Spring Scrimmage Wednesday, April 27 3:50 p.m. Friday, April 29 3:50 p.m. Saturday, April 30 9:25 a.m. Scrimmage, Black Bear Youth Experience
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