Troy Football Opens Spring Practice Tuesday

Troy Football Opens Spring Practice Tuesday

2/24/2020 2:50:00 PM | Football

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. – The wait is over. Football is back at Troy with the Trojans opening spring practice Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. on the practice fields behind Trojan Arena.

"We've had five good weeks in our winter conditioning program and have done a great job in laying the foundation for what we want to be in 2020," head coach Chip Lindsey said. "Spring practice is here pretty quick as we're starting earlier than we did last year, and I'm excited to get on the field."

Lindsey will guide the Trojans through 14 spring practices before Troy's annual T-Day Spring Game closes out the spring circuit on April 4.

"Spring is a great time of year where you can slow down and work on the fundamentals and get back to the basics," Lindsey said. "We have a lot of newcomers that I'm excited about, and I'm really looking forward to seeing them run around on the field."

The spring will be one of opportunity for many on Troy's roster with a quarterback battle set to unfold, three starting spots on the offensive line up for grabs and a defensive secondary that will feature some immense competition.

Building a "Trojan Tough" Culture
Culture is a word that is fully entrenched in the lexicon of collegiate athletics and especially college football, and for Chip Lindsey and Troy Football, that culture is going to be "Trojan Tough."

"We are developing a culture where guys don't make excuses, guys do what they are supposed to do all the time and guys are mentally, physically and emotionally tough," Lindsey said. "Some guys respond the right way and head in the right direction, and some guys don't, and they are not here with us anymore or are on their way out. For us, we have to continue to develop the 'Trojan Tough' culture – that means eating right, attacking weights, going to class and everything that goes along with playing college football, and I like the direction we're headed."

Reloaded Offensive Line
Troy lost three starters from its offensive line – J.L. Gaston, Kirk Kelley and Tristan Crowder – last season, but for Lindsey and offensive coordinator Ryan Pugh, it's hopefully reload and not rebuild up front.

"The offensive line is always going to be a storyline," Lindsey said. "While we lost three starters from last year, I feel really good about the guys we've got coming back. Dylan Bradshaw at center has played a lot of snaps, Jake Andrews has also played a lot of snaps for us and obviously Austin Stidham has been an anchor at left tackle for two years."

Lindsey and company addressed the offensive line with this year's signing class adding six overall offensive linemen including a pair from the JUCO ranks in Toryque Bateman and Jordan Chapman. Bateman was ranked the number three offensive tackle in the state of Alabama coming out of high school before signing with Louisville, and Chapman was rated as the No. 9 JUCO guard in the country following his career at Jones County CC.

"There is going to be a lot of competition for those three open spots, and our job is to find the best combination of five guys that we can and let them gel."

Quarterback Competition
Chip Lindsey has a long tradition of developing quarterbacks over his career with Nick Mullens, Jarrett Stidham and Manny Wilkins all on NFL rosters and Kaleb Barker coming off one of the best seasons at the position in Troy history.

A pair of returning veterans in Gunnar Watson and Jacob Free along with JUCO Offensive Player of the Year Parker McNeil will have a leg up heading into the spring, while Gavin Screws and Jacob Cendoya are a pair of younger guys will also earn some reps.

"We'll rotate them through and get them all reps early in the spring," Lindsey said of his quarterbacks. "We're not going to name a starter until the fall because we've got a freshman we're really excited about in Kyle Toole that will be here in May, but we do want to narrow this thing down. It will be a fun spring. The goal for the guys that are here will be who can separate themselves going into the summer."

Defensive Competition
No position in the secondary is safe heading into the spring where the Trojans welcome back a pair of players who missed 2019 and will have an influx of talent from the 2020 signing class.

"There is going to be a lot of competition in the secondary," Lindsey said. "Getting guys back like Terence Dunalp and Monte' McGary is big for this team in addition to working in the guys we signed. Who we can get to play at a high level in the secondary is going to be a big storyline this spring."

Buy Season Tickets, Get a T-Roy Bobblehead
Fans who purchase or renew their season tickets by May 1, will receive a free limited-edition T-Roy bobblehead. Season ticket packages start as low as $60 and can be purchased by visiting TroyTrojans.com

2020 Troy Football Spring Practice
Tuesday, Feb. 25
Thursday, Feb. 27
Saturday, Feb. 29
Tuesday, Mar. 3
Thursday, Mar. 5
Tuesday, Mar. 17
Thursday, Mar. 19
Saturday, Mar. 21
Tuesday, Mar. 24
Thursday, Mar. 26
Saturday, Mar. 28
Tuesday, Mar. 31
Thursday, Apr. 2
Friday, Apr. 3
Saturday, Apr. 4 – T-DAY

All practices are open to the public and are scheduled for 8:30-10:30 a.m.
Public access, dates and times are all subject to change.