There will be a full notebook later this evening but here are my initial notes and a few premium takeaways.
Braun non-committal on all position battles: defaulted back to listing depth charts and complimenting each player for QB, OL, MLB and nickel. QB competition is Lausch and Wright, they gave them even snaps during the open portion of practice
He did make it clear that he does not have an appetite for a dual-QB system so whoever wins by Miami (OH), expect to have a vast majority of the workload.
Quarterbacks: I talked to Jack Lausch and Mike Wright. A lot of platitudes but they seem to get along well and have a lot of respect for each other. Far from an empirical method but when questions were asked to both, Wright answered first.
Both like Lujan’s system and think they fit in well. Get ready to hear plenty of “players, not plays” from any player interview we do on offense this year.
Wright said he really likes how Lujan is flexible and talks with players about which play they like or think work best, and “calling the plays [you] love”. Wright has been up in Evanston since he graduated in May. Said it was made very clear that he’d be in a battle for the starting spot in his recruitment.
Administration: I was able to talk to Pat Goss, the interim senior deputy director for athletics, on the record for a couple minutes. He took on the role on July 1 and has served as the de facto AD since.
Dr. Derrick Gragg was not associated with the core NU party of administrators, coaches and players at Media Days. He was not present today.
Goss said that since July 1 he has been in charge of the day-to-day which has opened Gragg up to focus on strategy. Goss came across very well, as he did at Media Days, saying “as a Northwestern alum and someone who has been here their whole life, I’m just honored to be here and contribute how I can.”
I asked about an AD hire timeline and said that they are moving as fast as they can and hope to have someone in place “early this fall”.
I asked if he was a candidate and he gave a polite pause then asked Sean Dennison, the Associate AD for comms, what his answer was. The result after a brief conference? “We’re keeping search information private”.
Field sponsors: the news broke this morning, the Wildcats will play at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium for the next two seasons.
Marks declined to share a budget or give insight into what percentage of funds came from the university, athletics and new fundraising. He was effusive in his praise for Braun and Schill for making it possible.
Video boards: there will be two at midfield, each angled 10 degrees to slightly face a half of the field.
Capacity: I asked Jesse Marks if there was an exact capacity and he said not yet. It’s coming in a bit less than previously rumored, he said it will be 12,000+ with the chance to expand up to 15,000 in the corners.
Braun non-committal on all position battles: defaulted back to listing depth charts and complimenting each player for QB, OL, MLB and nickel. QB competition is Lausch and Wright, they gave them even snaps during the open portion of practice
He did make it clear that he does not have an appetite for a dual-QB system so whoever wins by Miami (OH), expect to have a vast majority of the workload.
Quarterbacks: I talked to Jack Lausch and Mike Wright. A lot of platitudes but they seem to get along well and have a lot of respect for each other. Far from an empirical method but when questions were asked to both, Wright answered first.
Both like Lujan’s system and think they fit in well. Get ready to hear plenty of “players, not plays” from any player interview we do on offense this year.
Wright said he really likes how Lujan is flexible and talks with players about which play they like or think work best, and “calling the plays [you] love”. Wright has been up in Evanston since he graduated in May. Said it was made very clear that he’d be in a battle for the starting spot in his recruitment.
Administration: I was able to talk to Pat Goss, the interim senior deputy director for athletics, on the record for a couple minutes. He took on the role on July 1 and has served as the de facto AD since.
Dr. Derrick Gragg was not associated with the core NU party of administrators, coaches and players at Media Days. He was not present today.
Goss said that since July 1 he has been in charge of the day-to-day which has opened Gragg up to focus on strategy. Goss came across very well, as he did at Media Days, saying “as a Northwestern alum and someone who has been here their whole life, I’m just honored to be here and contribute how I can.”
I asked about an AD hire timeline and said that they are moving as fast as they can and hope to have someone in place “early this fall”.
I asked if he was a candidate and he gave a polite pause then asked Sean Dennison, the Associate AD for comms, what his answer was. The result after a brief conference? “We’re keeping search information private”.
Field sponsors: the news broke this morning, the Wildcats will play at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium for the next two seasons.
Marks declined to share a budget or give insight into what percentage of funds came from the university, athletics and new fundraising. He was effusive in his praise for Braun and Schill for making it possible.
Video boards: there will be two at midfield, each angled 10 degrees to slightly face a half of the field.
Capacity: I asked Jesse Marks if there was an exact capacity and he said not yet. It’s coming in a bit less than previously rumored, he said it will be 12,000+ with the chance to expand up to 15,000 in the corners.
