WILLIAMSBURG, VA - (Wednesday, August 17, 2005) - The conclusion of Wednesday's afternoon practice will mark the end of the ninth day of fall drills (and the team's third two-a-day session) for the College of William and Mary's ninth-ranked football program. The preseason camp officially ends on Saturday and the team will get a much-needed day of rest on Sunday. Monday will bring the start of more specific game preparations for the season opener at Marshall on Thursday, Sept. 1st.

Despite the high heat and various thunderstorms, the team has been able to make every scheduled practice session. The squad has been in full-pads once a day since the start of this week, but has had only limited contact in controlled scrimmages.

With the opening kick just over two weeks away, no significant injuries have been reported.

The following are some general comments from William and Mary Head Coach Jimmye Laycock on the squad's progress to this point in camp.

Q: What has been the overall attitude of the team during the opening days of preseason camp?

Laycock: I thought our players have come in with a very positive attitude, worked very hard and given a very consistent effort. We seemed to be practicing with a lot of enthusiasm and working very hard to get better.

Q: How is the battle for the starting QB position playing out to this point?

Laycock: Right now, we are splitting reps between [redshirt sophomore] Mike Potts and [redshirt freshman] Jake Phillips. We are trying to get both as many snaps as possible, but we aren't in a position where we able to evaluate one over the other, yet. We are concentrating on teaching both of them our offense and trying to get them both better. The decision on who gets the starting job will play out as we get into more scrimmage situations later in pre-season. Right now, both are doing just fine.

Q: Comment on the tailback situation. The team appears to have a lot of depth at the position.

Laycock: The tailbacks look to be very solid. We have [juniors] Trevor McLaurin and Delmus Coley [the team's leading rusher in 2003 with 488 yards on 101 carries) returning from serious knee surgery [this past off-season], but both look to be at, or near, full speed. [Junior] Elijah Brooks [the team's leading rusher from 2004; 661 yards on 159 attempts] came to camp in excellent shape and has looked extremely good. [Redshirt freshman] DeBrian Holmes has also looked very good; he had an outstanding spring game for us and has picked up right where he left off.

Q: How is the team adjusting to the loss of Dominique Thompson (1,585 yards and 13 TDs on 79 receptions) and John Pitts (528 yards and 3 TDs on 42 catches) at the receiver position?

Laycock: We return to solid veterans in [senior team quad-captain] Josh Lustig and [sophomore] Joe Nicholas [the team's leading returning receiver with 799 yards on 66 grabs in 2004], who are both having good camps. But, past them, we are looking to develop some depth with our younger players. There is talent, but we still need to continue working on improving in that area.

Q: With four of the five starters returning with significant experience on the offensive front, what is this unit's focus in the preseason?

Laycock: The offensive line has looked fine to this point. We are still working hard to improve our run blocking. We are solid in our pass protections, but we need to be better run blockers and [offensive line coach] Bob Solderitch and his players are putting in the effort every day to get better.

Q: Is first-year defensive coordinator Matt McLeod making any significant changes to the defense?

Laycock: Matt isn't changing a whole lot of things scheme wise. He is emphasizing better execution and working very hard on maximizing the potential of the available personnel. He and his staff are doing well and I expect continued improvement as the camp continues. We will continue to evaluate as we get into more scrimmage situations.

Q: Senior team quad-captain and starting middle linebacker Travis McLaurin missed the last four games of 2004 and all of the spring with a knee injury, what is his status coming into this fall?

Laycock: As far as Travis' situation is concerned, right now he is unable to practice as he rehabs the knee that he had surgery on in January. His availability for the season is yet to be determined. I am pretty certain he will not be ready for Marshall and might not be available at all this year.

Q: The defensive backfield enters the season as one of the most experienced units in the conference, what are your expectations for the unit?

Laycock: We return all four starters from last season in the defensive backfield. We are going to look for them to play much more consistently this season. They have the capability to make big plays for us and we'll be counting on that for us to be successful this year.