The Nicholls State football team has two main objectives this spring: to be healthy and fundamentally sound.

After going 1-10 last season, the Colonels began spring practice last week, as the club goes under its third season under head coach Charlie Stubbs.

“This year will probably be the most productive,” Stubbs said.

Stubbs is referring to the fact that Nicholls has 84 players this spring, rather than the 56 who tried out for the team when Stubbs first arrived in 2010.

Stubbs believes that the team will get better with their schemes, assignments and get better fundamentally, but he also wants the team to create a bond that is unbreakable.

“I just want these guys to care about each other so much that in tough games they won’t give up,” Stubbs said. “I want them to count on their teammates and not let their teammates down. All great teams that I’ve been associated with, that’s what they had.”

He said that the biggest difference in last year’s 1-10 season and the team in 2009, was they won three conference games, it had nothing to do with a difference in talent, but it was because of all of the injuries the team sustained.

Because of this, Stubbs and the coaching staff will limit the physicality of this spring, because Stubbs said they “have to stay healthy.”

Among the injuries this spring is redshirt sophomore quarterback Beaux Hebert, who will not be participating in spring ball due to a shoulder injury, and Stubbs decided to shake things up at the quarterback position.

This spring he is making a big move by switching senior quarterback LaQuintin Caston to wide receiver, so junior quarterback Landry Klann will get most of the reps at quarterback with Hebert not participating.

“LaQuintin is such a good athlete that I want to make sure he’s on the field,” Stubbs said. “You know as coaching, you always evaluate your best players, and if I were to evaluate our 10 best offensive players, I know clearly that he’s one of them. When I would take him out at quarterback, I was missing one of my best players on the field.”

With Klann and Hebert taking the quarterback duties now, Stubbs can run the offense that he has always wanted to.

“I wanted to throw it a little bit more and stay in the pocket and stretch the defense,” Stubbs said.

Caston posted more of a threat with his legs, as he was third in the Southland Conference in rushing yards last season with 707 yards. Because of this, Stubbs will bring in a wildcat formation in different situations, where Caston will be playing the quarterback.

“It gives your opponent more to worry about,” Stubbs said. “LaQuintin is still a good passer. Maybe not down after down, but he’s not like some wildcat quarterbacks where all he’s going to do is run the football. LaQuintin is still good enough to throw the football and make them play us honestly.”

The team will scrimmage one time this spring and it will be April 21. Stubbs said that the practices are open, and people are welcome to come watch.