Football made its return to the Hill Wednesday.

Head Coach Jeff Brohm and the WKU Football team practiced inside L.T. Smith Stadium for the first time since the spring and 105 players took the field without pads for a day of route running, sled pushing and intensity.

“I liked the first day. I think our guys came out, worked hard and got a lot of good work in,” Brohm said. “I think we have good enthusiasm, we understand we have a lot of work to do and a long way to go. We have to take it step by step, but the first day was successful.”

Throughout the first practice of the 2015 Hilltoppers, plenty of returning players took the field. The likes of redshirt senior receiver Jared Dangerfield, senior cornerback Wonderful Terry and senior linebacker Nick Holt were all in full participation.

Redshirt senior quarterback Brandon Doughty ran the first team offense along with fellow senior running back Leon Allen. The two combined to break school records in passing and rushing yards last season, but are staying focused on the upcoming season.

“We’ve handled (expectations) pretty well,” Allen said. “We don’t really pay attention to the hype and everything. We come out and grind everyday, we don’t focus on all the talk—we try to get better everyday.”

Some new faces on the team included UAB transfer senior defensive tackle Jontavius Morris, senior tight end George Fant who is coming off four record setting seasons with the WKU basketball team, and a wealth of young talent. Morris, coming in at 6’2”, 305 lbs, has embraced the higher expectations for the season ahead.

“The mindset is championship. That’s all we preach,” Morris said. “It’s my last year, I’m trying to be a leader. I have a group of great guys, we have a lot of good chemistry, we’re starting to bond.”

The mix of old and new will continue for the next month before the Hilltoppers first game September 3 at Vanderbilt. WKU’s next practice is Thursday at 3:45 p.m. All practices for the first two weeks are open to the public.