Footballs are flying once again in the Triangle, and across the state. The three ACC schools in the area have all begun practicing for the upcoming college football season. UNC and Duke began drills last Friday while N.C. State took to the field on Saturday.
Longest second of a player's life: last second of last period of practice
— NC State Football (@PackFootball)
The Wolfpack is looking to improve on last year's three-win season. Duke will be trying for a second consecutive trip to the conference championship game.
Expectations are high in Chapel Hill. The preseason coaches poll ranks the Tar Heels 23rd in the nation. Head coach Larry Fedora says players have returned with a great attitude.
'Everybody's hopes are high and they're excited. They were all flying around.' - Coach Larry Fedora
"Everybody's hopes are high and they're excited," Fedora said. "They were all flying around. But, again it was all about the recall for the coaches, seeing how much they've done over the summer: What they knew, what they didn't know. And we were really pleased."
Fedora says even at this early stage, his experienced players are relishing their roles as leaders, and they are helping to guide the younger players.
"All the freshmen that came in for the month of July... We were really pleased with how much the older guys have done with them, how quickly they're picking things up. So we got quite a bit accomplished. We've got a long way to go," he said.
And the first group to arrive for the first practice of ? The specialists!
— NC State Football (@PackFootball)
Great shoot tonight w for our gameday entrance video! Stay tuned for more looks behind the scenes.
— Blue Devil Network (@DukeBDN)
Check out practice footage from UNC's first day of training camp -->
— InsideCarolina (@InsideCarolina)
The first games for all three schools are less than a month away on August 30th. UNC will host Liberty University. Elon will make a short bus trip to Durham to face Duke. N.C. State will take on Georgia Southern in its opener in Raleigh.
