Feb. 28, 2000

Players Working Out: The players are in the off-season strengthand conditioning program supervised by coach Marc Hill, assistant ScottBrincks, and graduate assistants Keith Comeforo and Jamie Givens.

Coaches in Mix of Activities: The coaching staff is in a mix ofactivities during the next five weeks. The coaches are speaking atclinics, preparing for spring practice, and taking some time off.

Spring Practice Dates Set: Spring practice begins Mon. March 27and ends with the Blue/White Spring Game on Sat. April 22. Game timewill be 6 p.m. at Commonwealth Stadium. The Wildcats may practice 15days during the spring stint.

Whalen to Write Draft Diary for CNN/SI: Former UK tight endJames Whalen has agreed to write a draft diary for the CNN/SI websiteduring the weeks leading up to the NFL Draft, which is April 15. Wewill release details when they become available.

From 1997-99, Whalen went from unknown walk-on to first-teamAll-America. He caught 90 passes for 1,019 yards and 10 touchdowns as asenior, leading the nation’s tight ends in all three categories. He setNCAA records for most receptions in a season by a tight end and mostreceptions per game (8.2) by a tight end. His 90 catches also brokeUK’s single-season record for receptions, eclipsing Craig Yeast’s markof 85 set a year ago.