By Skip Myslenski
NUsports.com Special Contributor
SOUND BODIES: Injuries were not an issue as the 'Cats worked their way through fall camp, and their Kenosha practices were crisp and spirited and played out at a high speed. By last weekend, when they began their game-week prep, they had already run some 500 team reps, and in the days that followed they ran hundreds more as they got ready for their Saturday season opener against No. 21 Stanford. This was all in stark contrast to last fall, when injuries were very much an issue and those reps, said Pat Fitzgerald, were "significantly lower."
"I just think we're healthier than we've been, especially last year," he also said this week. "We were able to get back to training camp the way we usually have it this year, and I think that's really helped our depth, and it's helped our competition, and I think it's helped our football team by getting more reps, especially in comparison to last year. Last year was a joke from the standpoint of what we were able to do in camp from a health standpoint.
"When I say a joke, I mean from a rep standpoint. It's never a joke to have guys hurt. But we couldn't get done what we wanted to get done. So I think we're in a better place. Hopefully, we'll play that way."
UNKNOWN NO LONGER: Different too last fall was the status of running back Justin Jackson, who was then nothing more than a true freshman being slowly worked into the rotation. Soon enough he would emerge as the big dog, ending that year with close to 1,200 net rushing yards, and now he enters his second season 12 pounds heavier and, says he, "More flexible and more mobile. I've got a lot more knee drive, things like that. I'm a lot stronger in the lower half. I just feel great."
But sharing that position with him now are a bevy of talents, a deep group that includes the speedsters Solomon Vault and Auston Anderson, the powerful Warren Long and the unknown true freshman John Moten IV. So here there is no guarantee that he will average 20-plus carries a game as he did through the end of last season. "We'll see how that plays out," Fitzgerald said when asked about that.
"But from an overall standpoint, I like our depth. Justin's an All-Big Ten-level player, and we'll see how things progress as the year goes along. I really like what Warren has done. He's a big, physical back and he's had a really good camp. Then we'll see how the other guys fit into the mix. But I feel good right now about that depth. It's probably better than we've had in a long time. It's fun to watch those guys compete."
And what about Jackson himself? Does he still want 20 touches a game or is he willing to share the load?
"No. Not at all. We all want that (20 touches)," he said with a smile. "That's what makes this running back battle between us really fun. Not only are we all competing for those carries and those reps. We all complement each other really well. So I'm really excited to see how we all mix in. We're trying to run a lot of plays. So we're all going to be running in and out since everyone can't take every single rep. It's going to be interesting and fun to see us out there on Saturday."
TIME FLIES: Superback Dan Vitale begins his last rodeo as a Wildcat on Saturday, a stark reality that struck him when they returned home from their time at Camp Kenosha. "Then it really started to set in as to how quick it (his career) went," he recalled this week. "Sitting in this (team) meeting room with everybody too, it's weird being at the front (with the seniors). It's just crazy how fast it went, and that's something we're trying to stress with our younger guys.
"It goes fast and you've got to make the most of every play. Not just every play, but every moment you've got with everybody as a team. I can't wait to get it started and have a great season. But, yeah, I hope it doesn't go too fast."
QUICKLY NOTED: Often during camp Vitale lined up opposite his brother Tommy, a true freshman linebacker. "It's like looking in the mirror," the superback said. "But it's interesting. Half the time, I don't even think about who I'm blocking and then I look at him and it's my brother. Then he gives me an extra shove and I really realize who it is. It's an awesome competition. And I think it's great for him as well. Going against an older guy who's been here for a couple years, and then that extra competitive edge that pushes him a little bit harder knowing it's his older brother over there and you don't want to get stepped on by you're older brother. It's a lot of fun. I'm enjoying it more than I ever have." Is he enjoying it too? "Definitely. It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing. We talk about it all the time. When I'm 43 and he's 40, we can talk to our kids about how we had that one year together. It's awesome." … Stanford is led by senior quarterback Kevin Hogan, a three-year starter who last season completed 65.9 percent of his passes while throwing for 19 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. "He's a seasoned guy," 'Cat safety Traveon Henry said of him. "We see a very mature quarterback, a quarterback that'll make the right decisions, a quarterback that's not afraid to take shots. We're excited to get the opportunity to play him and get the season started because we feel we have a great secondary." … Among Hogan's weapons are sophomore running back Christian McCaffrey, who last season averaged 10.9 yards per-touch as a runner, receiver and returner. His father Ed also played for Stanford and (most notably) the Denver Broncos (where he was the favorite target of John Elway, another former Cardinal), and his grandfather Dave Sime won silver in the 100 meters at the 1960 Summer Games in Rome. . . . Another recognizable name on the Stanford roster is senior running back Barry Sanders, whose father (also Barry) won the 1988 Heisman Trophy before having a brilliant career with the Detroit Lions. . . . The Cardinal has eight starters back on offense, but only three from the defensive unit that last season surrendered an average of just 16.4 ppg. But, noted Fitzgerald, "They've got a lot of talented players that were in rotational roles last year. So we're going to have our hands full." … The 'Cats and Cardinal last met in 1994 at (then) Dyche Stadium, where their game ended in a 41-41 tie. Fitzgerald was a linebacker on that 'Cat team and David Shaw, the Stanford coach, was then a Cardinal receiver.
AND FINALLY, 'Cat safety Henry, on Saturday's game: "It's the opportunity of a lifetime. Some say it's a bowl game for us. Some say it's the Academic Bowl. There's a lot built into it. We respect those guys a whole lot. They have a great model and we've seen them have success. They're always competing in the PAC-12, they're always top-three PAC-12 every year. So it's definitely an opportunity we're looking forward to. It's really exciting. It's one of those games a lot of guys coming into Northwestern circled."
