Written by: Kyle George

The Zips football team has completed winter workouts and four weeks of their spring practice schedule. This week is the fifth and last week of spring practice for the Zips. The team will conclude their spring season with the annual Blue and Gold Spring Game this Saturday at Infocision Stadium-Summa Field.

Since the hiring of Head Coach Terry Bowden in December, there has been plenty of optimism surrounding the football program. Bowden and his staff, which includes former NC State head coach and Florida State defensive coordinator Chuck Amato, have accepted the challenge of changing the culture of Zips football. The coaches are installing a new offense, a new defense and a new identity that the team seems to be adopting quickly.

The coaching staff has instilled a level of intensity in the players that is very evident in the way the team practices.

“It needs to be intense every day,” Bowden told Ohio.com. “We really want our players to know they have to be intense every day on that field. There shouldn’t be a different level.”

According to the coaching staff, the team has improved over the last few weeks, and Zips fans will get their first look at the team during the Spring Game.

Admission to the game is free for everyone. Spring Game festivities will begin with the Youth Clinic at 1 p.m. and Zipsfest, which starts at 2 p.m.