Chargers camp is always a treat for fans, but Saturday is going to take it to a whole new level as the team will hold its first ever blue-white scrimmage at Jack Hammett Sports Complex.
Basically, it will be the closest you can get to real football outside of an actual game.
As a bonus, this will all take place a stone’s throw away from the fans on the field closest to the stands, making the scrimmage a marquee event of training camp.
"It's a warmup for the first game to be honest with you," said Head Coach Anthony Lynn. "We'll go through our warm-up routine, the whole thing, just like it's game day. So, when the guys take the field the following week in Arizona, they've done it…It will be ones against ones, twos against twos, threes against threes, and we might switch up — ones against twos, twos against ones, and threes against threes. We'll throw some special teams in there and we'll have one live segment and just go at it."
Truth be told, Anthony Lynn wanted to hold the scrimmage last year, but felt the timing just wasn't right.
"I've always done it," he explained. "Last year, there were so many changes, I just wanted to get through camp the best we could, install our offense and our new defense. This year, I feel a little more comfortable. I'm going to put the guys in game situations…We're trying to see who can make plays. No more installing right now. Just seeing who can line up, who can execute and try to make it like (as much of a) game day as possible."
There will clearly be even more on the line than usual when the Bolts take the field on Saturday.
So, what exactly will Lynn be looking for out of his players?
"I want to see who's going to make plays," he said. "I want to see who's going to execute. Sometimes, in practice you have your coach back there and you have your script. You can look at your script and you know what the play is, but I want to simulate the game. Call it from the sideline. Guys will have to hear in the huddle, go up to the line of scrimmage, and they'll have seven seconds to make decisions. That's really football."
Knowing Saturday would be a physical day at the office, Lynn took the pads off on Friday to keep the players fresher for the scrimmage.
"Coach Lynn really took care of us today and it's just going to be a good day tomorrow," said Hayes Pullard. "I'm excited to get the young guys out there and show them how it's done."
Pullard isn't the only one.
In fact, the entire team has had Saturday's scrimmage circled on their calendar for quite some time as they're eager to put on a show in front of the fans.
"I'm really excited about it (because) it's like game day for me," said Denzel Perryman, who feeds off the physical nature of the game. "It's an opportunity for everyone to go out there and make plays. I'm pretty sure that's what coaches are wanting to see and what I want to see, too, so we figure out who can make the plays."
"I'm definitely excited," said Dan Feeney. "It's good to be out here and getting back to work. Obviously, the scrimmage is going to show what we've been working on all of camp and all summer, so it's going to be a good one."
Chargers Training Camp has kicked off! **Click here** for information on attending one of the several open practices between July 28 and August 23. To celebrate football being back, we're giving away two 2018 season tickets! **Click here** to enter for your chance to win.
Click through some of the best moments from Day 6 at Training Camp!
