Cal Poly Football Opens Fall Camp Thursday
7/31/2024 4:04:00 PM | Football
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Cal Poly football will officially begin preparations for the 2024 season Thursday morning when it kicks off its fall training camp starting at 9 a.m. inside Mustang Memorial Field at Spanos Stadium.
Thursday will be the first of 20 fall camp practices before regular season practices get underway prior to the Mustangs’ first game of the 2024 season Aug. 31 at 5 p.m. on the road at the University of San Diego. Practices during camp will take place Monday-Saturday at Mustang Memorial Field primarily at 9 a.m. There will be two scrimmages: Aug. 17 at 4 p.m. and Aug. 23 at 2:30 p.m. Fans and media are welcome to attend all practices.
It will be the second fall camp under head coach Paul Wulff, who has brought in four new assistant coaches on staff. He brought in former NFL quarterback and longtime coach Timm Rosenbach to serve as Co-Offensive Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach. Quarterbacks Coach Erik Meyer, who was recently inducted into the Big Sky Hall of Fame, will join Rosenbach as Co-Offensive Coordinator after being elevated during the offseason. Former NFL running back Steve Broussard has been brought in as Running Backs Coach, veteran coach Kevin Clune joins the staff as Inside Linebackers Coach, and Joey Muscarella returns to the Mustangs’ coaching staff as Tight Ends Coach after a brief stint at Arizona State.
Adding Coach Rosenbach and Coach Broussard, both guys who played college fooball at a very high level and were first round NFL draft picks and who have decades of coaching experience is going to give us a great amount of maturity on the offensive side of the ball. And on the defensive side adding a guy like Coach Klune to bolster that group is a huge addition as well.Head Coach Paul Wulff
The Mustangs are returning 74 players who were on last year’s roster, including several who were key contributors on both sides of the ball. All-American and All-Conference defensive end Elijah Ponder, who is ranked as one of the top defensive players in the nation and was recently named to the Preseason Buck Buchanan Award watchlist which goes to the best defensive player in the FCS, is back for his final season.
Others back include last year’s leading receiver Giancarlo Woods and two other receivers who were top five on the team in receiving yards in Tyrece Fairly-Diyem and Evan Burkhart.
On the defensive side, including Ponder, Cal Poly brings back four of its top five leading tacklers and four of its top five leaders in pass breakups from a year ago.
Overall, the Mustangs bring back nine consistent starters on the defensive side of the ball, seven on the offensive side, and three specialists.
Cal Poly will also see the return of several guys who were injured all or most of last season that are expected to contribute greatly this season. Those players include running back Shakobe Harper, offensive lineman Kavika Fitisemanu, running back Aiden Ramos, safety Jake East, linebacker Kenny Olson, and wide receiver Reed Shumpert among others.
On the watchlist for the Buck Buchanan Award for National Defensive Player of the Year: Elijah Ponder! ????#RideHigh pic.twitter.com/YHx5scS2Em
— Cal Poly Football (@calpolyfootball) July 31, 2024
We’re going to have several players back that are going to be able to help us who couldn’t participate last year so that’s going to help our football teamHead Coach Paul Wulff
The Mustangs brings in 45 newcomers to this year’s team, 35 true freshmen and 10 transfers. This is all part of Cal Poly’s recruiting class that was ranked No. 3 in the FCS. There are also 20 guys that were freshmen last season who preserved their redshirt year.
“Between the returners and the newcomers, there’s a lot of depth on this team,” said Wulff. “Guys are truly going to have to compete to play more here and earn their playing time.”
Knowing that 80 of the 119 guys on the roster have been on campus for 18 months or less excites Coach Wulff and says fans should be equally as excited for the future of Cal Poly football.
“This team keeps evolving and we are by no means close to our ceiling so I’m excited to watch them continue to grow and get better,” Wulff said
