Football squad kicks off spring practice

Though its first game is still many months away, the football team has already begun working hard to prepare for a season that it hopes will ultimately be more successful than the last. After ending three consecutive years with losing records, the squad is optimistic that the new leadership and fresh approach of head coach Bob Surace ’90, coupled with a renewed focus on the execution of assignments and techniques, will help to turn things around.

For his part, Surace, who took over the helm of the program from Roger Hughes, has found his feet in his new role after a few whirlwind months of recruiting trips and general adjustment.

“I’m feeling settled in,” Surace said. “I feel like when I got the job back in late December, it was a lot of putting together staff and recruiting and just getting to briefly know the guys — whether it was via phone call or when they first came back on campus [after winter break]. Now that I’ve been with the team and gotten to see them through the strength and conditioning program, it’s been terrific to get to know those guys and to get to know the graduating seniors, [even if] only on a limited basis.”

Having played on the team that won the 1989 Ivy League championship, Surace is perhaps uniquely positioned to help guide a team that has struggled in years past. Indeed, where others see disappointment, Surace sees the potential for tremendous growth and success, and he has a plan to get there.

“When I first got the job, the only game I had watched was the Princeton-Yale game,” Surace said. “Watching [senior] Jordan Culbreath on crutches with his uniform on as he’s overcoming an illness — and just seeing the spirit and enthusiasm that the team had even when the results were not where they wanted them to be — showed me all I needed to know. These are guys who care about the program and who want to be good. As we were fortunate to hire and retain the staff that we did, we think that we’re going to be able to build well upon that. I’m excited about the attitude, and I know that there are many things that we can fix as coaches, and if we have the good fortune of health, then we’ll be fine.”

In the next few weeks, the coaching staff and team will focus on a few key areas which they believe are vital to a successful fall campaign: execution, energy and toughness.

“We want to play with tempo,” Surace said. “We want our guys to play fast and physical. We want to set goals that way. I’ve talked to [the players] about the championship teams that I’ve been fortune to play on and coach, and I’ve emphasized how those kids played tough, smart and with discipline, and that they were team-oriented players.”

The spring preseason consists of 12 practices over the course of four weeks, culminating in an inter-squad game on April 24. After months of weight-lifting and indoor workouts, the team is eager to finally get the chance to play in Princeton Stadium once again.

“The team’s morale has been as high as I have seen it,” junior wide receiver Trey Peacock said. “The [winter] portion of our offseason is one of the toughest, with workouts regularly taking place at 6:30 in the morning, but it is also a time of strong bonding. We are all excited to get back on the field and put our training into action.”