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Football team takes early-bird approach

March 23, 2000
By Jimmy Robertson

Ernest Wilford thought he had left the military behind.

The waking up early. The rigorous workouts. The yelling.

He thought he had left all of that at Fork Union Military Academy, where he spent a year preparing for college before coming to Virginia Tech.

But Wilford, a sensational freshman receiver with a bright future, is once again getting a dose of the military lifestyle. Only this time, the setting is Rector Fieldhouse, where he and his teammates have been going through the annual 6 a.m. workouts.

"I've done nothing in my entire life like this," Wilford said after a workout on Friday, the third day of the morning routine.

After spring break, Mike Gentry, Tech's assistant AD for athletic performance, his staff and the Tech coaching staff conduct the 6 a.m. workouts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. These workouts only last for two to three weeks until spring practice starts. But for most, that's two or three weeks too long.

"It's survival of the fittest," muttered more than one player.

Gentry, though, looked at it a different way.

"It's the price of winning," he said.

Conventional wisdom sees this as the training for the war, which begins Aug. 27 against Georgia Tech. And in part, that stands true. The workouts help the players prepare physically for the upcoming season.

But physically, the players already are in great shape, having worked out in the weight room and the speed and agility room since the Sugar Bowl. Therefore, these drills work on the other part of the battle - the mental aspect.

"It's an opportunity to evaluate players under stress and see how they respond," Gentry said. "We can develop that mental toughness while conditioning them for spring practice. We also develop team cohesion and unity through shared sacrifice and by working hard together."

Every member of Tech's team must show up, even those with injuries. Reveille sounds at 5 a.m. as most of the players hit snooze on their alarm clocks a few times before crawling out of their cozy beds and heading to campus.

At 6 a.m., the workouts begin. The players divide up into groups of eight, usually by position. And there are four stations where the Hokies work on an assortment of drills. Each station period lasts 10-12 minutes a piece, but the effect lasts much longer.

Think the military's obstacle courses are tough? Well, try this one.

The dreaded "mat" drill, conducted by sergeants Bud Foster, Charley Wiles and Bryan Stinespring, earned consensus honors as the toughest of the drills. These drills - part of station 4 - improve foot quickness, refine those change-of-direction skills and helps the explosion of an athlete. And if a player slacks off a little on this drill or messes up, he and his group (two other players) get to make an encore performance.

"The key is not to get sent back," offensive tackle Matt Wincek said. "I used to get sent back some when I was a freshman and that's a killer. You need to get in a good group and hustle. If you do that, you'll be fine."

In station 1, there's a series of drills designed to improve foot quickness and plyometrics. This station features the torturous "box drill" conducted by Jim Cavanaugh. In this drill, a row of metal boxes are placed in a straight line and a player jumps from the box to the ground to the next box to the ground until he reaches the end. Then he does it again until the end of that period of time elapses. This too improves the vertical jump and explosion of an athlete. Also in station 1 is a rope-jumping session with Gentry and a ladder drill with Danny Pearman designed to improve footwork.

In station 2, a player gets a series of running drills with Billy Hite; assistant strength coach Sonny Sano and graduate assistant Billy Houseright. These drills improve flexibility and help an athlete run more efficiently, enabling that athlete to get the maximum out of his/her running strides.

In station 3, players go through a series of drills to improve footwork and agility. The list of drills includes a cone drill with Lorenzo Ward; a grueling cone drill with Rickey Bustle; and a backpedaling and sliding drill with Tony Ball; and yet another cone drill with graduate assistant Chris Malone.

And as if these drills aren't tough enough, the players get an earful from coaches, who act like sergeants, constantly yelling at the players to move faster.

"It's tough," said Deon Provitt, another freshman going through his first such workouts. "But it makes you a better player and that's what I like. It tests your skill and your heart and it gets you in shape. If you can mentally endure the yelling and the pressure, you'll be fine."

"It's not easy for anyone," said fullback Jarrett Ferguson, himself a phenomenal athlete. "Your legs get very tired and it's hard to make it through all the drills. You really have to push yourself mentally to get through it."

Even the ones with injuries don't get a break. Those with injuries ride the bike or jog around the building for the entire time under the supervision of Tech football trainer Mike Goforth. And remember, this goes on with the sun barely shining. While most athletes in all sports come in at these times to lift weights because of conflicts with class schedules, they rarely go through any workout which resembles this.

But surprisingly, most of Tech's players don't seem to mind the early-morning routine.

"I got up early at Fork Union," Wilford said matter-of-factly. "So this isn't any different."

"When we had two-a-days in high school, we would start them at 6 a.m.," added defensive end Nathaniel Adibi, yet another freshman going through the workouts. "And I get up early and lift anyway, so the getting up early part really doesn't bother me that much. You can sleep during the day."

Wincek agreed.

"I'd rather sleep a few hours at night and get up early than to sleep all night," he said. "It's great because you can take a nap in the afternoon. You don't have any more workouts and you don't have to lift [on the afternoons of the workouts], so you have everything done in the morning."

The workouts end shortly after 7 a.m. with the players doing a set of push-ups and sit-ups. Afterwards, they head to the locker room for a quick shower and then to the dining halls for breakfast. And then it's on to class.

But on Aug. 27, it will be on to battle. The actual war begins.

"This is getting us ready to win another Big East championship," Wilford said. "That's what it's all about."

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Jimmy Robertson is the editor of the Hokie Huddler at Virginia Tech. The Hokie Huddler is the athletics department newspaper that is printed 33 times a year - weekly during football and basketball seasons and bi-monthly during the spring.

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