The Troy State football newcomers returned to the practice field on Wednesday, working out for two hours in shorts and helmets in morning and afternoon sessions on a humid, sticky day at the Troy State practice fields.

Despite missing several players due to injuries, and others slowed by poor conditioning, head coach Larry Blakeney seemed pleased with the group’s second and final day of workouts.

"We got out and spread the field a little bit today and got some good work in," Blakeney said. "We had great execution for the most part. We are still battling through the conditioning problem, but that will take care of itself as we move along. We’ll work a little earlier in the morning and a little later at night from here on out, so that should help with the heat."

Wednesday’s morning session focused on fundamentals and basic offensive and defensive schemes, while the afternoon workout saw the unit work on one-on-one skeleton drills.

Blakeney highlighted the efforts of several players, including the two quarterbacks in camp ­ junior college transfer Matt Ray of Quincy, Calif., and Bragg Knott of Birmingham, Ala. Blakeney also noted the workouts by the group’s seven wide receivers.

"All of those guys are capable of helping us immediately," Blakeney said. "We’ll start to separate the group once we get the full team together on Thursday."

The team’s first full-squad workout is scheduled for Thursday morning at 7:30. The returning players spent the majority of Wednesday in meetings.

The Trojans open their season Aug. 31 against Nebraska in Lincoln. The Cornhuskers are ranked No. 8 in the preseason coaches poll.

In other news: The Trojans will hold their annual Fan Appreciation Day on Sunday, Aug. 25, at Memorial Stadium. The event, which will feature players, coaches, T-Roy and the TSU cheerleaders, will begin at 4 p.m.