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TAMPA, Fla. - The University of South Florida football team had its final workout at the Vero Beach Sports Village on Wednesday after spending parts of 12 days in the eastern Florida complex. The Bulls returned to Tampa after a tough, two-hour practice in pads. They will continue fall camp at the Frank Morsani Practice Facility on Thursday and Friday in preparation for USF's Fan Fest on Saturday at Raymond James Stadium.
For the second consecutive year, USF took a portion of its fall training off campus and the familiarity with the Village and their hosts allowed the Bulls to maximize productivity, while building the team camaraderie head coach Skip Holtz hopes for.
"Our time here at Vero Beach has been outstanding for us as a team," Holtz explained, "not only what we've gotten done on the field as an offense and defense, but what we've gotten together as a team, the team bonding, the unity that we've gotten out of this. We've done a lot of class sessions by seniors, juniors, sophomores, freshmen. We've done a lot of position meeting stuff that's not football and obviously we have our team meeting every night.
"I just think we've made a lot of strides. We've gotten a lot done in our 11 days here. I'm very grateful to the administration for giving us the opportunity to be here and I'm very grateful to all the people here at Vero Beach that have made this such an outstanding trip for us."
Last year, the members of the Bulls roster weren't quite sure what to think of leaving their homes in Tampa for fall camp, but the success of last year had everyone looking forward to Vero this season. With the team aware of what to expect, they were free to focus on their growth as a unit.
"Vero Beach is a great place to come train and get away from distractions," said senior OL Jeremiah Warren. "I think we got a lot done, coming together as a team. We've been jelling, getting more team-oriented and getting that family bond."
With the Vero Beach phase of fall camp in the rear-view mirror, the Bulls are looking forward to the opportunity to reunite with their fans in Tampa. After on-campus practices the next two days, they'll conduct a closed scrimmage on Saturday at Raymond James Stadium, which will be followed by the annual Fan Fest from 4-6 p.m.
In addition to getting to meet the 2011 USF Bulls, fans will have the opportunity to pick up posters, schedule cards, magnets and an all-new preseason guide. Coke, Beef O'Brady's and Tijuana Flats will be providing free samples, while Muvico, Dunkin' Donuts, AAA and Verizon will give fans the chance to win prizes. The younger Bulls will have the opportunity to dress like their favorite USF players as helmets and shoulder pads will be available to try on.
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