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Times reporter Bob Condotta keeps the news coming about the Montlake Dawgs.

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August 20, 2007 8:06 PM

Training in the rain

Bob Condotta's taking a couple of days off. The following note is from Times reporter Bud Withers:

After a light Sunday, the Huskies returned to the field for two practices today, coaches lamenting that the weather isn't helping them get a team ready for what could be warm September games.

"We always want it a little bit hotter," said offensive coordinator Tim Lappano. "It makes (players) fight through it. It tests you more mentally, and coaches like to see that."

Lappano has come to grips with the Seattle weather, maintaining that even on warmer days, the "air conditioner comes in the afternoon" â€" breezes that cool the air.

UW head coach Tyrone Willingham said he handed out no gold jersey â€" emblematic of standout performance â€" after the Saturday scrimmage.

Syracuse, the Huskies' opening opponent in New York in Aug. 31, lost a potential standout over the weekend when middle linebacker Jermaine Pierce was ruled out of football with a blood-clotting issue. Pierce, of Norristown, Pa., had attended prep school and was considered the Orange's best recruit.

Huskies defensive coordinator Kent Baer says he thinks linebacker Mason Foster â€" who has gotten heavy work lately with Donald Butler sitting out some with knee problems â€" "is going to be a tremendous football player someday."

Baer said Foster, of Seaside, Calif., had a productive scrimmage Saturday.
"He can run, and he's fairly physical," Baer said, before adding, "At that position, you've got a lot to learn."

One of the most competitive positions on the UW team remains at left tackle, where returning starter Ben Ossai is battling to hold off Cody Habben of Skyline High. The starter could be determined in a scrimmage Thursday.

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