Lamar sports information

BEAUMONT — A 2017 spring practice schedule that has been filled with beautiful weather came to an end Tuesday as Mother Nature forced the Lamar football team to cancel a planned workout.

The threat of poor weather conditions Saturday has forced the coaching staff to move the annual spring game to Friday at 11 a.m. from Provost Umphrey Stadium. The annual scrimmage was originally slated to be played on Saturday.

The scrimmage provides Cardinal fans a glimpse of what LU will look like under first-year head coach Mike Schultz. A former offensive coordinator for Gary Patterson at TCU, Schultz was named the program’s second head coach since its resurrection prior to the 2010 season.

The scrimmage will be an offense-versus-defense format that will have the first-team offense facing the first-team defense and second team against the second team.

Schultz hit the ground running from the moment he was hired meeting with the current LU players, hiring a new coaching staff and hitting the recruiting trail. By the end of National Signing Day, the Cardinals incoming class was ranked as the second-best group in the Southland Conference by 247Sports.com.

The incoming class of recruits – which consists of five transfers – will be competing for playing time early. The 2017 version of the Cardinals entered the spring with a very young squad.  Big Red returns only 14 starters from the 2016 campaign which includes seven on offense, five defensively and two special teamers.

Schultz has injected a change of pace into the Cardinals’ offense. It has been a tempo that all of the players have had to adjust to but one he feels is moving in the right direction.

“We are still taking steps in the right direction, but now we need to start taking bigger steps,” said Schultz. “We are becoming a more physical football team which is good to see. We were not very physical early on but we’ve gotten better in that area as we have developed more of the culture.

“Not only have these guys had to adjust to new schemes, but each player is having to adjust to new position coaches. That is never an easy situation, but the process is going well. I think the kids have done a good job adjusting to their respective coaches,” added Schultz.

In addition to the scrimmage, LU will also be hosting a Delete Blood Cancer blood drive. Delete Blood Cancer is a part of the national Students vs. Blood Cancer campaign. Stations will be set up at football and softball on Friday and baseball on Saturday for fans to register to be a life-saving match to a blood cancer patient. The station will be set up from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at football, and from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the LU Softball Complex. The set up at baseball will begin at 1:30 p.m. at Vincent-Beck Stadium.