The University of Memphis football's 2013 season finished on Dec. 7, but, less than three months later, the team is already preparing for next season.
The NCAA limits teams to 15 practice sessions in the spring semester, so the coaches have a short time to get players ready for the fall, including redshirted players from last season and players from the 2014 recruiting class who have already enrolled.
Spring practice is a time for the players to get repetition with basic sets and formations in order to get better acclimated and adjusted for the next season. It gives coaches an opportunity to thoroughly evaluate the talent for next season and choose the best direction for the team.
Along with incorporating new players, the Tigers also have a new coach. This is Ryan Walters' first spring coaching the cornerbacks at Memphis. The 28-year-old coached at North Texas last season.
Since graduating in 2008, he has held graduate assistant positions at the University of Oklahoma, University of Arizona and the University of Colorado, his alma mater.
Head coach Justin Fuente said in a press release that this is the time he will really evaluate those coming off redshirt years.
"There are some guys that are coming out of redshirt years who will have to get a great evaluation," Fuente said. "They have been running plays off cards (scout team) for the last six or eight months. Now they get to run our stuff with our terminology. I know those kids are ready to bridge the gap."
Memphis returns nine starters on the offensive side, including last year's leading rusher Brandon Hayes, who was awarded a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. However, nobody is given a starting position, and competition will be strong everywhere on offense.
Fuente said this year will have particular strong fights for position.
"We'll have great competition on the offensive line," Fuente said. "Now, it will be young competition. There will be some guys competing who haven't played Division I football who are pretty hungry. I think they have made the older guys better, and they have stepped up their game a little bit. It will be interesting to see how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together."
The team also returns eight starters on defense from a unit that ranked 44th nationally, limiting teams to 24.6 points per game.
The front of the defense, namely the defensive line and linebackers, is an extremely experienced group of players.
Freshman quarterback Paxton Lynch started every game of his debut season. He threw for just over 2000 yards and completed 58.2 percent of his passes.
Still with room for improvement, Fuente hopes his quarterback will benefit from the extended number of reps in the spring, but he knows it's not only about his quarterback.
"I certainly expect him to continue to progress," the second-year coach said. "I expect him to continue to master the concepts of decision making, progression and the leadership skills it takes to play. I also expect us to play better around him. I think we have to take onus on ourselves at every position to continue to improve to help him out. I know he is anxious to get out there."
Their first spring practice was on Sunday, but the thunder and imminent winter storms cut the two-hour practice short. The team is scheduled to practice on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday this week before spring break.
After the break, the team plans to resume drills and hold the Blue-Gray Spring Game on April 11 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.
For Fuente, the spring session may be the best time for his team to begin building much needed team chemistry.
"We have to do a great job as a team," Fuente said. "One of the main things we need to get across is we need to continue to meld as a unit - a selfless group of guys who want to take the next step in this mission we undertook a couple of years ago. Our team leadership; our team accountability; what our team needs to do to get better will determine our long-term fate."
