Panthers Continue to Practice at a High Level

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – With three practices under their belts, the Prairie View A&M Panthers moved towards the next phase of camp as they donned shoulder pads for the first time on Wednesday evening.

The Panthers have had three solid practices as the players continue to fly around the field at full speed. In addition, each and every repetition has become important for the players as the team features a tremendous amount of depth on both sides of the ball.

“We constantly talk about practicing like a champion and last night was a good start as we put the shoulder pads on and kept the same tempo,” said head coach Henry Frazier III. “Once the season starts, we only wear full gear once or twice a week but we’re still going to maintain our level of intensity. Having on pads or not shouldn’t have an impact on how we practice.”

The 2010 edition of the Panther football team features a solid core of veteran players in addition to a variety of newcomers. Frazier said he’s pleased with the way the veterans and newcomers have handled themselves through the first few days of camp.

“I want to see maximum effort from the upperclassmen and that’s what they’re doing as we’re able to cut workouts short in the morning as a result,” stated Frazier. “As for the youngsters, I just want them to learn their assignments and get into their playbooks as that’s all they have to do since there are no classes now. We have some good athletes but once they learn the system, they can play fast as a lot of them are tipping at practice because they’re thinking so much.

“Specifically, (running back) Christian Johnson tipped a lot last year trying to figure things out as a freshman but is now flying because he knows where to go. The same thing applies to (quarterback) Andrew McGlory as he can now drop back and pass the ball where it needs to be thrown because he has been in the system for quite some time. It takes about two years to learn the system and it’s not going to change so you have to be play with confidence.“

This season marks the seventh training camp at Prairie View A&M for Frazier. When asked to compare his first camp in 2004 to now, Frazier mentioned administrative support as the major difference.

There’s no difference in how I approach the game but every training camp is new, every team is new and different. However, coming into training camp as a champion is something we’ve done a lot of research on and we have come to realize we’ve been preparing like champions all along. Also, we’ve received a lot of support from the administration as there are fewer distractions now in terms of problems with housing, equipment and personnel. Having a good support staff available makes all the difference in the world.”

The Panthers will practice at 2:30 p.m. on Friday before hitting the gridiron on Saturday for their first round of two-a-days beginning at 8:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

Season tickets are currently on sale with the team’s opener scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 5 versus Texas Southern at 4 p.m. in Reliant Stadium for the 26th edition of the Labor Day Classic.