Corner Backs coach and Recruiting Coordinator, Holman Copeland
gave us a brief scouting report of the William and Mary offense
(run, run, play action pass). Based on the results of the game, we
knew what to expect!

Asked what does the staff look for when recruiting, Coach Cope
said, first and foremost, they look for players who love the game.
Certainly, all the measurables such as height, weight, and
position are important but the desire to succeed at the game they
love is the number one attraction for this staff. He also stated that
speed is very critical as UD’s defense is predicated on
aggressively flowing to get the ball.

The team is potentially losing many starters but Coach Cope
emphasized that the staff continually develops guys behind the
starters to provide depth and to create next year’s starters.

If you did not attend the lunch you missed a FASCINATING talk
by Christina Rasnake, the Director of Sports Science and
Analytics.

Chris came to the University with a background in
strength and conditioning but began to apply data gathered from
sports teams first at Dartmouth and then at Missouri State. She
holds a one of a kind position at Delaware in that her analytic data
is applied to all sports teams, not just football.

Chris, along with her 20 graduate/undergraduate interns, takes
data from the weight rooms to provide information to coaches
which they can make actionable. 62 gps devices worn by football
players measure speed, intensity and what she called
“fatigueability”. Trends can be used to map out practices and
empowering coaches to utilize data for conditioning purposes and
how that relates to game plans. She works in conjunction with
athletic training, strength and conditioning, and nutrition. No other
CAA schools utilize these methods. Data analytics is used
regularly in professional sports.