Natalie Boydston / Staff Photographer / nb397205@ohiou.edu

With only 15 NCAA-sanctioned practices allowed for the spring, the Ohio football team wastes no time while preparing for April 21’s Green and White game.

Fresh off its first winning season since 1997 and first bowl game appearance since 1968, the Ohio football team held its first practice of the spring yesterday at Peden Stadium.NCAA regulations allow the Bobcats only 15 practices during the spring. They will meet three to four times a week until the Green and White game Saturday, April 21.

Because of the limited opportunities to take the field before two-a-day practices in August, coach Frank Solich said that the team could not afford to take it easy the first day out.

“We only got 15, so you’ve got to make them all count,” Solich said. “This is our third spring now, so those guys that have been around for a few years should have things down pretty good, and hopefully they’ll help bring those younger guys along.”

With nearly three months separating yesterday from the last time the team met on the field, rust was expected and, afterward, acknowledged.

“It was kind of sluggish with it being the first day back,” tailback and co-captain Kalvin McRae said. “We accomplished a lot but we’ve just got a few things we need to clean up.”

Expectations are at an all-time high for this group of players following last season’s surprising success. For the first time since divisional play was introduced, the Bobcats won their first Mid-American Conference East Division Championship last season, going 7-1 in conference play.

“Our attitude is different,” safety Todd Koenig said. “Last year it was uncertain how much we could win. Now that we’ve been there, we know what it takes to get there.”

Despite their regular season triumphs, the Bobcats struggled in the postseason. They were outscored a combined 63-17 in their losses in the MAC Championship game and GMAC Bowl game—something that is still festering in McRae’s mind.

“There’s a lot more motivation than normal,” McRae said. “We’re still hungry because we didn’t win the MAC Championship or our bowl game.”Aside from McRae, most Bobcat players will be using spring practice to attempt to move up on the depth chart at their respective position.“Everything is pretty much open,” Koenig said. “Even if you think you’re in a position to think that you’ll be starting, there’s always someone there to push you.”QB sidelined

Quarterback Brad Bower did not participate in most of yesterday’s drills at practice because of a bone bruise in his leg.

Solich said that he is unsure when Bower will return, but hopes to have him back for some practices this spring.

Bower is one of five players vying for the open starting quarterback spot left by graduating starter Austen Everson.