Spring has sprung for the Lights

It's been a long winter for everyone in Havre. But perhaps no one has had to wait longer for spring the new Montana State University-Northern head football coach Andrew Rolin.

Hired in December, Rolin has been working almost, round the clock, on recruiting, winter conditioning, assembling a staff, and so many different things a head coach does. But at the same time, he's been waiting - waiting to see his team on the football field.

That day finally arrived Monday when Rolin and the Lights hit the MSU-Northern practice fields for the first day of spring ball 2018. And it was a day Rolin said he couldn't have been more excited for.

"It was exciting to be out there with the team," Rolin said. "It was exciting to get there and execute and work and put forth the effort. It felt really good to see the guys get out there and put the pads and helmets on for the first time."

Indeed. With the Northern practice fields clear of snow, the Lights got to work for the first of what will be 15 practices leading up to Northern's spring game in April. And, while there was plenty of things that Rolin saw his team needed to work on, there was no lacking for something very important on Monday.

"The effort was there from start to finish," Rolin said. "Their effort was awesome all day. I was very pleased with the way the guys went out and worked from beginning to end. And that's something they control, it's not something the coaches control. So our overall effort was great and I'm excited about that."

The Lights' effort and enthusiasm was great on opening day of spring drills, and from there, they will work toward specific goals over the next month. Rolin said that one big thing will be just learning about his team on the field. But from there, the Lights have plenty of other objectives this spring.

"I think it starts with alignment, assignment and execution," Rolin said. "We need to make sure we work on those things day in and day out. Even our mistakes, we're going to make mistakes, but we need to make them with 100 percent effort. And then we'll go in and correct those things on film. We're going to work hard every day, and we're going to continue to work on things every day. But as long as we do it with great effort, we'll make progress."

Progress will be key for the Lights, as they head toward the spring game and fall camp. Northern's players are getting used to a new coaching staff and vice versa. Spring ball will also entail plenty of hard work, with fundamentals, as well as new schemes in all three phases being implemented. Those things will all take time, but for now, for the first day, Rolin couldn't have been happier to just be outside with his new team, doing what he loves to do, coaching.

"I'd practice and play games every day if I could," Rolin said. "Coaching is my passion. So it was a lot of fun and very exciting to get out there and get this started.

"We have a lot of work to do," he continued. "But this team has a great attitude. You could see it on the first day. They love to play football. They want to work hard and get better. They give great effort. So overall, it was a great first day. It was a beautiful day to be outside on the football field."

Northern spring ball will continue with practices Wednesday and Friday from 4 to 6 p.m., as well as Saturday from 12 to 2 p.m.