Day after day, C.J. Fritz glances toward the practice field by the Tennessee River.
As a true freshman cornerback for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team in 2014, Fritz was in the mix for one of the starting positions, but that was cut short when he tore an ACL three weeks before the Mocs' season opener.
It's been a long process back, but the former McCallie standout feels he is close to returning to one of UTC's deepest positions. So during spring practices at Scrappy Moore Field, Fritz does all the noncontact drills in his yellow jersey, then returns to the sideline to watch his teammates.
"I'm just taking it one day at a time," he said after Monday's practice. "I'm making sure it's stabilized and stronger, so I can get back out there for contact. Last season was heartbreaking, for sure, but I know the injury happened for a reason, and I hope I can come back stronger this year and make an impact."
Sophomore Trevor Wright and junior Dee Virgin are returning cornerbacks for the Mocs. It was Wright who was in a battle with Fritz for playing time, and he had 50 tackles and five pass breakups and made the Southern Conference all-freshman team.
It helped that last season's team had a dominant defensive line that led to more pressure on quarterbacks, which helped a young secondary grow. That won't be the case this season, as the defensive backs will be looked upon as a strength.
"I feel good about them," UTC coach Russ Huesman said. "C.J. had an unbelievable camp before he got hurt, so we're hoping he comes back and gets in the same type of place he was at before he got hurt. It just adds another piece, which is always nice."
Fritz has been working hard to return, admitting Monday that after being cleared to work out some, he "thought about" the injury, but he said he doesn't think about it nearly as much anymore.
"You start to feel more comfortable with it," he said. "The training staff lets me do a little more stuff every day. There's no contact, but I know they're telling me the right thing to do."
Fourth-down conversions
Monday's practice was the seventh of the Mocs' spring session. They'll practice again Wednesday before taking the weekend off for the Easter holiday. ... Running backs Derrick Craine and Richardre Bagley both missed Monday's practice with nagging injuries. Sophomore transfer Shaqualm McCoy, who had 92 yards rushing in Saturday's scrimmage, did most of the work at tailback.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.