The first day of camp will consist of an orientation. The team will work through the necessary facilities and the schedule for the next month. Players will be expected to be punctual throughout the camp, and the orientation insures that there are no excuses. It gives the staff time to lay down the law regarding any curfew, or ‘extra curricular’ activities the players may wish to partake in.

For the first few days the team’s practice will include mostly calisthenics and formation drills. The coaches will walk through the base system to insure a slightly more in-depth familiarity to the system than what was established during mini-camps. The coaches will also work with individual groups on the fundamentals during this time.

As camp progresses the coaches will go over the entire play book on both sides of the ball, they will run intense drills that will bring a heightened sense of awareness to the player’s role within the system. But one area the team will avoid is contact.

Morning practices under coach Mariucci are typically done in full pads, with limited contact. By the afternoon, players are out of their uniforms and into light clothing. The reason for this is two fold: The first reason is that the temperatures in Stockton regularly exceed 95 degrees Fahrenheit , wearing all those pads in temperatures like that is just plain cruel. The other reason is that the Mariucci feels it keeps his players fresher for the season (hence the minimal contact).

The result of Mariucci’s commonalities is that the players usually have to ‘learn to tackle’ during pre-season. The team thus looks typically less polished during these games as the players work on the angles to take, and where to hit. History has shown though that the four pre-season games are enough time to prefect this area.