GRAMBLING---With the season opening kickoff less than two weeks away, the Grambling Tigers were back out on the football practice field Tuesday after taking Monday off.

 

The Tigers began the transition of moving into game planning for that Sept. 3 contest against Alcorn State. Things didn't go smoothly, but that didn't worry head coach Doug Williams.

 

“To tell you the truth, it was kind of ragged,” Williams said. “But that's to be expected this time of year. It was our first day of starting to do preparing for Alcorn, and that meant getting scout teams into position.

 

“That always takes a little time to get going because first they have to find out what we want from them. Hopefully now that we have the scout team up to speed a little bit, it will be a better practice (Wednesday).”

 

Williams said the pace and intensity of workouts should continue to increase as the season opener draws nearer.

 

“Spring was a slow roll,” Williams, who returned to his alma mater in February for his second stint as head coach. “That was the players having to learn a new system. But the speed has been picking up the past couple of weeks. These first two weeks of preseason were about getting into shape, fundamentals and technique. But now we start throwing game planning into the mix as we continue evaluating positions to come up with our depth chart. And that pace, and number of reps, will continue picking up until opening kickoff.

 

“The thing is, I think the players now know what we're looking for and hopefully now the scout team does too about their role in helping us get ready for Alcorn.”

 

Grambling opens the season against the Braves on Sept. 3 in the Port City Classic at 6 p.m. in Independence Stadium in Shreveport.