MIAMI (March 29, 2016) – Week Three of FIU's 2016 Spring Camp is underway and the Panthers took the field Tuesday morning for practice number seven.
 
Feeling like summer here in South Florida, the FIU football team battled a hot and humid morning at Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium, continuing preparations for the 2016 season.
 
FIUSports.com caught up with Wide Receivers/Quarterbacks Coach Kort Shankweiler and quarterback Alex McGough after practice.
 

Wide Receivers/Quarterbacks Coach Kort Shankweiler On Spring Practice I think practice is going well. The team has had pretty good energy through the seven practices we've had and a lot of that is because they are confident. A lot of the guys have been in the system now for multiple years which builds confidence. With that confidence, you can now play a little bit looser and you can have a little bit more fun because you're not paranoid about making mistakes. So, I think there's been great energy when we've been out here.   On the Quarterbacks I think they're doing pretty well. Our defense has given them a lot to handle, mentally, as far as mixing up coverages and defensive fronts. So, they've handled that pretty well; Alex (McGough) probably a little bit better than the other two just because he's been in the system longer. He's been in games and has seen all types of different looks. So, he's probably the most comfortable, which you would expect, but the other two are coming along very nice. Christian (Alexander) was here this time last spring and he's a completely different person. Mentally, physically, everything from last spring which has been good.   On the Progression of the Wide Receivers Again, I've been happy with it. They come to work every day. As far as mental assignments, they've been sharp. Part of that has been the off-season. The guys have worked hard. Another part of it is that most of these guys were here in the fall, so it's not entirely new to them. They're able to carry over from fall to spring which has helped tremendously.   On the Depth on the Offense What's been the biggest help is it's not just the coaches that can coach now. These guys have been here so they understand, from a coaching standpoint, what we want and they're able to coach themselves as much as anything, which is nice you know. You don't have to turn around and always go find somebody coach something up, the guy that's behind them is able to, telling them "hey, you did this on this play, you should've done that". That's been the biggest help and that's part of the experience of the guys coming back. They know what to look for when we're out here at practice, helping each other to get better, to coach each other up.

 

Quarterback Alex McGough On the Team's Energy through Seven Practices You know, coach always comments on our energy and that practice was better than the last. And our energy been high, especially today, I thought it was really good. As far as the offensive side of the ball, we were coming out, flying around and making plays. If we keep that up for the rest of the spring, we should be good.   On the Humidity on Tuesday Friday was real humid too, but today we just came out here and we said this is where we live, we have got to use this to our advantage. And I think we fought through it. We got tired early but, our guys kept running as fast as we can, doing the best that we can. I just commend them for giving it all out there.   On Being a Spring Ball Veteran I'm teaching now. Don't get me wrong, I'm still learning, trust me, but I'm helping others get through it. You know, the young quarterbacks, they need help and I'm right there to help them. The receivers, they've got questions and I'm there to answer instead of going to someone else. It really builds confidence in me as a team leader.   On the Quarterbacks "The Alexanders", that's what we call ourselves in the meeting room. I think we have got a good bond. We all trust each other. I trust Christian (Alexander), I trust Maurice (Alexander) and I believe they trust me too. Whoever goes out there, we're always helping each other. I'm entering my third year in the program and I'm using my experiences to help them.

Previous Reports
Monday, March 7 – Day One / Photo Gallery
Tuesday, March 8 –  Photo Gallery
Thursday, March 10 – Day Three / Photo Gallery
Tuesday, March 22 – Day Four / Photo Gallery
Thursday, March 24 – Day Five / Photo Gallery
Friday, March 25 – Day Six / Photo Gallery
 
Remaining FIU Football Spring Practice Schedule
Thursday, March 31             9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Saturday, April 2                  9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 5                   9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, April 7                 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Saturday, April 9                  9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 12                9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, April 14               9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Friday, April 15                  (7:00 p.m. – Spring Game)
 
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The 2016 FIU football season will kick off on Thursday, Sept. 1, when the Panthers host the Indiana Hoosiers.

FIU's 2016 schedule is highlighted with games against Miami Beach Bowl and 2016 C-USA champion WKU, R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl champion Louisiana Tech, St. Petersburg Bowl champion Marshall, Popeyes Bahama Bowl participant Middle Tennessee, and New Era Pinstripe Bowl participant Indiana. In addition, the Panthers will face Maryland, Massachusetts, UCF, Florida Atlantic, UTEP, Charlotte and Old Dominion. 
 
For FIU football ticket information, contact the University Credit Union Box Office at 305-FIU-GAME (348-4263).
 
For the latest information on Panthers football, follow us on Twitter, @FIUFootball, and check out Pete Pelegrin's in-depth coverage of FIU Athletics on his official blog, The Prowl, at www.FIUSports.com.

 
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $8.9 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.