March 23, 2007

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EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - The three-time defending Patriot League champions opened spring practice on Friday afternoon with a two hour helmets-only session in a light rain on the FieldTurf at Fisher Stadium.

"I thought we had a very good first day," said head coach Frank Tavani, who has guided the Leopards to three straight appearances in the NCAA Playoffs. "The kids had a tremendous amount of energy and came out ready to work. You can tell they've been anxious to finish their strength and conditioning program and get back out on the field."

While all eyes will be on the quarterback situation following the graduation of three-year starter Brad Maurer, Tavani said that every position is open for evaluation this spring.

"Obviously the trigger position will receive the most attention, but we'll be taking an extremely close look at all of our personnel over the next 15 practices. We have a wealth of talent among the underclassmen that hasn't been tapped yet, and putting them in competitive situations with our returning starters will show us what we'll have next fall," Tavani explained.

The Leopards will hit the field Saturday and Sunday morning, then take Monday off before returning on Tuesday to give them four practices in the first five days. The front-loaded schedule was set to alleviate issues that arose due to academic schedules, Tavani said.

Afternoon practices will begin at approximately 4:30 p.m., while the weekend morning practices will get underway at 9:00 a.m. The practice schedule will be adjusted on Friday, March 30 to allow the Leopards to attend a presentation by Erik Weihenmayer at 4:00 p.m. in Colton Chapel. Weihenmayer, the only blind conqueror of the highest peak on all seven continents, spoke to Lafayette's players and coaches before the 2005 Lafayette-Lehigh game.