UMD football kicks off Day 1 of practice, wide receiver weapon Carmickle returns

The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) football team returned to Malosky Stadium Monday to kick off their first official fall practice of 2022.

The Bulldogs are fresh off a 9-3 run last fall that took them into the NCAA tournament. Their success was thanks in-part to then senior wide receiver Armani Carmickle who managed to click with all three rotating quarterbacks to average 109 yards a game.

“You build chemistry with each one of them, and the next guy up you have chemistry with,” Carmickle explained. “I think just splitting reps evenly with each one of them, just talking through every single route, talking defenses with them, ‘hey if I see this here what are you doing’, just a lot of communication with them on the field.”

Now a graduate student and captain Carmickle, along with all the Bulldogs, will look to build on that success ahead of their September 1 season opener.

“For me what gets you excited for the season is seeing 101 guys check in yesterday,” head coach Curt Wiese, entering his 10th season, said on Monday. “To be able to see their excitement level, their anxiety, their preparation, all come to a head here this afternoon at practice,” he added was great with three weeks until action.

The team also welcomed for his first practice, new offensive line coach Loren Endsley.

“I am really excited, we have a really good group of guys up front. A really good team overall, but the culture in the O-line room is really strong. They are a really talented group, but also a group that works extremely hard. I’m excited to see their work all summer come out, and now we have pads on, so seeing them hit some guys,” said Endsley.

Team captain Brad Dati was also a subject of discussion on Monday. Having been named the NSIC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.

“It feels good but it is more so a post-season recognition from last year. We all know that it means nothing moving forward. So take it with a grain of salt, put your head down, and just forget about it because pre-season doesn’t mean anything,” claimed Dati.

UMD kicks off the 2022 season on a Thursday, September 1, hosting Southwest Minnesota State University at 6pm at Malosky Stadium.