Other spring practice tidbits

Ben Mauk practiced as he continues to pursue his NCAA appeal for another year of elibility.
Brian Kelly said he liked what he saw of Connor Barwin at defensive end.

"He looked fairly natural," Kelly said. "It didn’t look like it took him a long time to get lined up and get off the ball. Early indications are that he's got that innate ability to play the position, which is what we were hoping to see today.

Marcus Barnett, who has surgery after breaking his leg in the bowl game last December, is practicing but on a limited basis. So far, he's pretty much restricted to running some routes.

Overall, Kelly said he liked what he saw today.

"I thought the tempo was pretty good for the first day. If you remember last year, I had blood running out of my ears and my eyes from screaming. They understand the tempo necessary to be a championship football team. For a first day, what I look at from a head coach’s perspective is the tempo and how kids are moving around on the field and I was pleased with that."