Sept. 5, 2003

Charleston, SC - The oft-maligned NCAA got one right with its new practice rules, Citadel football coach Ellis Johnson said.

"I personally think it's the best rule to be passed in college football in a long time," said Johnson, whose upperclassmen will report to campus today as the Bulldogs prepare to begin fall practice Wednesday.

In an effort to cut down on injuries and heat-related problems, the NCAA has changed its rules on how traditional "two-a-day" preseason practices are conducted. August practices now must begin with a five-day "acclimatization period", during which two-a-days are not allowed. Following that period, two-a-day practices can be held only every other day.

The new rules also eliminate early practices for freshmen; in the past, Citadel freshmen had practiced a couple of times before upperclassmen reported.

Teams still are allowed 29 practice sessions before their opening games, but they are spread out over a longer period of time.

Some coaches don't like the changes, but Johnson is not one of them.

"It's going to cause some adjustments," the Bulldogs' third-year coach said. "Dealing with the heat, that's really what all the changes are aimed at, and we've been in that routine a little bit already.

"We probably haven't had two full weeks of two-a-days since I've been here, so we're used to that part of it."

The new rules will help players deal physically with the wear and tear of practice, and also should help them retain what they are being taught, Johnson said.

"It will help avoid tearing the players down physically, and then having to build them back up at some point," he said. "In the past, we were always trying to figure out if we were doing too much or too little.

"Also, I think we have a chance for more retention of what they are learning. As we put all these schemes in and everything, it's spread out over more days.

"We have more teaching time, more walk-through time, more video time and the same amount of field time."

NCAA statistics reveal that football injuries were occurring four times as often in the preseason as in the regular season. Louisiana State coach Nick Saban instituted a "2-1-2" practice schedule in 2000, a routine which also is used by many NFL teams. The NCAA was intrigued by the way LSU reduced preseason injuries and the need for intravenous fluids by spreading out two-a-day practices.

"I think it's fantastic," Johnson said.

"And it could help level the playing field for us. Our players have a lot of conflicts as we get closer to game time that other people at other schools don't have to deal with. I think this fits right in for us."