AZUSA, Calif. – Just 3 weeks away from its 2009 season-opener, Azusa Pacific welcomed 120 players to its “Fall Camp” which opened Friday (Aug. 7) with the first of 9 two-a-day practices.

The Cougars, who return 32 players and 16 redshirts from last year’s team, will also hold 3 scrimmages in the initial weeks of camp before moving into game-week practice Aug. 24 in preparation for the season-opener Saturday, Aug. 29, at Carroll College in Helena, Mont.

"I love the enthusiasm and the intensity the guys have brought to camp," said fourth-year Cougar head coach Victor Santa Cruz. "As a coach, you can demand it, but if they don’t bring that internal fire, I can’t throw a couple of logs on their heart and light that fire."

Just 7 starters are back from last year, and Azusa Pacific features a roster with more newcomers than returnees.

"At this point, we’re focusing on becoming a fundamentally-sound football team," said Santa Cruz. "We have yet to make any assumptions of what we will become, so we’re going to work each day and challenge our fundamentals to be the best we can be."

Back for the Cougars are true-sophomore quarterback John van den Raadt, a 7-game starter as a rookie last year, leading rusher Chris Brown and the team’s top tackler of a year ago, junior linebacker Jay York.

"We have only 12 seniors on the roster," said Santa Cruz. "This is a team primarily made up of freshmen and sophomores, but they’re good and they bring a high level of excitement and energy."

Click here to view the current 2009 Azusa Pacific football roster.