As the Western Kentucky football team inches its way closer to the dog days of fall camp, the amount of work that must be done on both sides of the ball can seem staggering.

But learning to do it all as a team is just as important.

Whether in the meeting room, during wind sprints or at the breakfast table, the WKU players and coaches put just as much emphasis on jelling as a unit as they put on game plans.

“The first couple days of fall camp is when the team really comes together,” senior defensive end Dan Cline said. “It really just sets a cohesiveness amongst all of us on the gridiron. We get to see what the young guys can do and bring to the table, and they get to see what kind of attitude the older guys have.

“It’s more of a learning process when it comes to teamwork, and you realize who’s going to be there to support you.”

Though there are far more returning players than incoming freshmen, many players are in new roles - changing last season’s huddle culture.

So when a season ends and a new one begins, the challenge of becoming a team again is critical.

“It’s not just practices, it’s the locker room, it’s eating meals together, we do things during team meetings where we have a picture of every person that’s in the program on a PowerPoint presentation and when we call someone’s name, they have to get up and tell us about themselves,” WKU coach David Elson said. “There’s 105 players, a full coaching staff, trainers, managers and everybody’s a part of it - and we’re really trying to build that family culture and atmosphere.

“It’s really 24/7 looking out for each other.”

Elson said that during his tenure as head coach, he has tried to make the team-building concept something that never stops.

“I think it’s year-round, to be honest with you,” Elson said. “It comes with adversity - we’re going to have some tough practices and that will bring them together. But you also look to the summer time with our workouts, and that’s one of the most important times because it’s just them.

“And I’ll tell you right now, our guys really improved on some techniques over the summer and were out here getting work done, so they were really holding each other accountable and being there for each other.”

Perhaps the biggest challenge in all of this is with the incoming freshmen, who usually enter camp without recognizing many faces.

WKU’s veterans take it upon themselves to correct that situation as soon as possible.

“When the young guys come in, we don’t want to leave them out,” junior running back Tyrell Hayden said. “We want to show them that Western is all about family, about being together and if we go somewhere, we’ll call them and ask them if they want to go.

“We want to show them what being a college football athlete is all about, and what being a student at Western is all about - it’s about being a big family and reaching out to everybody.”

So while it appears the team concept is part of the squad’s everyday life, the first few weeks of fall practice are truly a critical time.

“It’s vital during those first couple of weeks, because if you don’t have a close team, you’re going to fall apart,” Cline said. “If you’re a strong team, you’ll look to the guy next to you and play your heart out for him.

“And team success is really built on family, and pushing for the guy next to you.”

The emphasis on making everyone feel involved seems to be working. Cline said this current group - freshmen included - might be one of the closest teams he’s ever played on.

“It’s going great,” Cline said. “I feel like this year’s team is closer than any team I’ve ever been a part of over the past five years.

“The young guys aren’t intimidated to ask the older guys questions, and you don’t see that too much throughout the landscape of college football, but we know if we want to be successful this season, we have to do it together as a team.”

On the Web

--Read WKU beat writer Nick Baumgarder’s blog about the second day of the Hilltoppers’ preseason camp at

http://bgdailynews.wordpress.com.