MONTGOMERY—The Alabama State University Hornets moved into their fourth day of practice and second day in shoulder pads, and what head coach Reggie Barlow as seen so far has pleased him.

“Our practices have been going good so far,” Barlow said.  “The guys have been practicing hard and showing a lot of energy.  They have also been competing hard and that excites me.”

The team continued to open practice working on their special teams.  ASU also worked with seven-on-seven drills and did a lot of passing drills featuring one-on-one man coverage.

Last season the Hornets defensive only allowed 3.4 yards per rush.  This year the coaching staff wants that number to be even lower, and the play of the defensive line is where that will start.

“Our whole defensive line has been doing some good things,” Barlow said.  “Sejean Hart is one of the defensive linemen that has worked hard and shown some improvement over last season.  The line is looking as if they are coming together and playing as a team.”

“I also like what receiver Charles Payne has done so far.  He is showing some potential to make some plays this season.”

Tomorrow the Hornets will be visiting one of the area church services as a team.  They will then return to the film room and participate in position meetings in the afternoon before returning to the practice field at 7:30 p.m.  Tomorrow's practice will be the final acclimation practice as two-a-days are scheduled to begin on Monday.