In his final meeting with former boss and Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr, Brady Hoke, now head coach for the Ball State football team, was told he would learn more about the responsibilities and administrative duties of head coaching than he ever thought possible in his first year as a head skipper.
Hoke called Carr back two months into the job and explained he didn't need a year.
Along with the added duties of becoming head coach for the first time, Hoke also has the responsibility of shaping a team back to championship status.
The task, one that Hoke said is a must in a program with great "football tradition," began late last month as the Cardinals held their first spring practice sessions outside.
In that one week of outside practice, Hoke seems pleased with what he's seen so far.
"As far as the football end of it, we are already starting to make some progress," Hoke said Wednesday. "We are establishing what we need to do offensively and defensively and what kind of effort and toughness we will need to build a program."
Hoke said both toughness and effort will be keys to success throughout the year, but also mentioned leadership as a key piece to his puzzle.
"We have to establish our leadership," the first-year coach said. "The seniors have to be the leaders. We are trying to figure out who the leaders are and if they are going to come to the front."
Some of that leadership will come from one of the most important positions on the field -- quarterback.
After some changes in the quarterback position last season, Hoke said the decision as to who will get the starting nod this season will wait until fall practice. He explained that there has been good competition between Andy Roesch, Talmadge Hill and even the two redshirt freshmen, Joey Lynch and Todd Racine. Last season it was Roesch who finished the campaign out as the starter.
"It may not be the guy that throws the best ball," Hoke said. "It's going to be the guy that puts the ball in the end zone and who can lead the team."
Hoke went on to explain that he enjoys and encourages the tough competition among players, as it will create they type of practices he is looking for.
"We are going to put as much pressure on our players as we can during practice," Hoke said. "Therefore the games will be a little slower and easy if you want to call it that.
"Overall I think they understand the pace that we want to practice at. If you practice at a fast pace then it keeps them in those pressure situations," Hoke said.
Once the quarterback is chosen, he will have a wide range of targets to look for. Hoke explained that the pool of wide receivers on this year's team is one of strongest aspects.
"It's early to tell, but I think we have some talent out at the wide receiver position with (Dante) Ridgeway, (Larry) Bostic and (Ryan) Hahaj," Hoke said.
Last season Ridgeway had 556 yards and four touchdowns receiving. Bostic had five TD catches. All three are sophomores.
Along with it being Hoke's first year as a head coach, there is another challenge he will face -- replacing Marcus Merriweather.
Merriweather, Ball State's all-time leading rusher with 4,002 yards, averaged 134 yards a game on 1,618 rushing yards last season. That total also marked Ball State's single-season record.
This season, like the quarterback position, the running back slot is also up for grabs.
"We have to do a good job and develop a couple of running backs," Hoke said. "Marcus was an outstanding running back and he did an awful lot for this university and this football program.
One player who may find himself lined up behind the quarterback in the fall is junior Scott Blair. Blair rushed for 180 yards on 63 attempts (2.9 average) last season.
Another player Hoke mentioned was sophomore Charles Wynn, who rushed 22 times for 76 yards.
"Right now it's a dog fight," Hoke said. "I don't know who that guy will be. It's a position where we don't have a lot of bodies."
Overall, Hoke will have a pool of 44 returning lettermen to work with. He will put those and the rest of his players to the test at the end of this month.
After the entire spring schedule was moved back a week because of weather, the annual Cardinal and White spring football game will be on April 26 at 1 p.m.
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