CHADRON, Neb. - Football practice at Chadron State College has gotten off to a good start, head coach Bill O'Boyle said Tuesday. He said a bulk of the 115 players still on the roster reported in excellent condition and have been working hard to learn their assignments so they can help the Eagles have another great season.

"We're off to a good start," O'Boyle said. "We were really happy with the way the players had conditioned over the summer. That was huge for us. Now we won't have to take as much of our practice time for that. We ask a lot of our kids and they are responding well."

Four players who reported last Wednesday have left the team, O'Boyle said, but none of them were among the "blue chip" prospects that the coaching staff had signed.

"Our program's not for everyone," the coach said. "We demand a little more than they apparently were used to. It's OK that they didn't stay."

The coaches breathed a big sigh of relief on Monday, when doctors in his hometown of Colorado Springs gave senior inside receiver Isaac Stockton the green light to join the team.

Stockton, who caught 69 passes for 739 yards and 10 touchdowns while earning all-conference honors last fall, is considered to be an All-America candidate this season. During his physical, he was found to have an irregular heartbeat, but after the condition was monitored closely for several days, he was cleared to play this fall.

O'Boyle said several players have been slowed by tight hamstrings and minor knee injuries that occurred in the early workouts, but nothing major had cropped up through Monday's session when the Eagles were in full pads for the first time. He added the coaches are happy with the way a number of the redshirt freshmen are developing.

"They are stepping up and competing for starting jobs," O'Boyle said. "This is particularly true on special teams. Often the way to make the travel squad is to get on a special team and then be ready to play a position when we need you."

The coach added that redshirts are being counted on to supply much of the depth, which is needed to help take up the slack for the 19 seniors who were on last year's 11-2 team.

"We don't have much experienced depth right now, but I think our young kids will be able to fill in before long. We've got a lot of good young players who just need experience."

One of the positions with an abundance of depth is running back.

Nine running backs who were on last year's team have returned to go with six freshmen who are in the mix.

"Getting them all enough repetitions is kind of a concern," O'Boyle noted. "It's a talented group. We've not only got good speed at the position, but we've also got some power backs this year. With so much competition, the players know every repetition they get counts. We hope to have the top three determined in about a week so they'll be ready for the first game."

All of this year's freshmen may redshirt, O'Boyle said. An exception could be in the defensive secondary or at quarterback, he added.

The Eagles' final full-fledged scrimmage before they start focusing on the season opener against the University of Mary will take place Sunday afternoon at about 1:15 p.m.