April 7, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - On a blustery Tuesday morning, the UCF football team took to the Nicholson Fieldhouse for its 12th practice of the spring.
The offense continued to install its many new schemes, while the defense had newly appointed defensive backs coach Sean Beckton taking the reigns for the first time today. The former UCF standout was met by a throng of media members after practice.
UCF will hold its conclusion to spring practice with its annual Spring Game on Saturday, April 11 at Bright House Networks Stadium. The scrimmage begins at 2 p.m. and general admission tickets can be purchased in advance by contacting the UCF Ticket Office at (407) 823-1000, online at UCFAthletics.com, or in-person at Bright House Networks Stadium.
After practice, UCFAthletics.com caught up with fifth-year senior linebacker Cory Hogue. The Naples native is returning to the field for the first time since a leg injury prematurely ended his 2008 campaign. Hogue is happy to be back on the field leading the linebacking corps.
On being back with the team
"It feels great. I have been waiting to get back since UTEP. I don't feel a thing in my legs. I feel 100 percent running around."
On getting a second chance on his senior season
"When it first happened I didn't know anything about how many games I had played (when it came to a medical redshirt) and I thought that was it. When I heard at the end of the year that I had another year, it just sparked a lot of excitement in me. I just focused on rehabbing and now I am full go."
On being able to help others who have the same rare condition, compartment syndrome
"It is neat to see that it is a rare story and that it could help somebody. Just recently on Facebook I had a kid message me who I didn't even know and he said that he recently had it. He asked me how it was and what I did, so it felt good to help him out."
On the funniest story explaining the scars on his legs
"We had this girl going thinking that a 20-foot gator had bit my leg and that we caught it and kept it in a cage in our backyard. Sometimes I use a shark story, or being mauled by a tiger. It is hard to keep a straight face, but sometimes I keep a real straight face and I see how far I can take it."
On being back on the field alongside his teammates
"Being a fifth-year senior, I just have so much experience and just helping guys out. I think that football should be fun, so I try and make it fun. I get the guys amped up and get them motivated. As long as you keep it fun and the guys are doing what they are supposed to do, then it is a good time."
On his mohawk haircut
"It is just something I did a couple years back and I just stuck with it. Brian Watters cuts it for me. I have always gone to Brian for my hair. I don't know how (Darin) Baldwin is with the hair. I don't know if I would trust him cutting my hair."