The UAB football team opened fall camp Monday in Birmingham and is now a full week into preseason practice while continuing to battle high temperatures, oppressive humidity and seasonal thunderstorms.

The Blazers are 24 days away from opening the 2023 season against North Carolina A&T at Protective Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+.

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Here are some observations from the first week of fall camp:

— UAB head coach Trent Dilfer is running fall camp a bit differently from his predecessors and is swapping up practice schedules to create reactionary variables and breaks in routine for the upcoming season. Dilfer did not provide an assessment of his team in terms of improvement from spring to fall but did say he would give an analysis once the Blazers move into full padded practices.

“The night practice was great. There was some thumping going on and there was really good physicality. There’s nice energy. Our guys did a good job after a tough stretch picking it back up. They didn’t spiral and didn’t let things snowball so that was encouraging. What the guys have done in the offseason is evident and they’re bigger, they’re faster, they’re stronger and they’re playing faster.”

— The Blazers had to reschedule Friday practice after a round of thunderstorms threatened morning practice. Dilfer mentioned earlier in the week that UAB’s night practice was an exercise in reacting to uncontrollable variables and the storms granted another in postponing practice to the afternoon. UAB practiced Saturday following Fan Fest and took in another night practice Sunday.

“I didn’t like there was a huge storm coming but it forced us to react to something out of our control, or I should say respond to something outside. That’s what a football game is, you have all these plans, and the stadium is full and you walk out there and the ball gets kicked off, and it’s totally different every week than what you expect it to be. You have to teach your players how to respond in those situations or coaches, and the more things that come up like this, I think it’s better for our preparation.”

— The Blazers brought in a slew of freshmen in the offseason and there are a few that could work their way into a contributing role this season. Dilfer did not mention any player by name this week, with the exception of safety Chris Bracy, but those that could make an early name for themselves are wide receiver Amare Thomas, linebacker Everett Roussaw and cornerback Ricky Lee III — the latter two being former high school teammates. The defensive line could see one or two freshmen make the rotation cut and Tyler Thomas was spotted working with the outside linebackers after arriving as a lineman.

“I wouldn’t say we need any of them to play but they just happen to perform at a very high level at a young age. I would say right now there are four or five that are in the rotation, they’re getting rotation reps. I’m not willing to say starter, backup, or whatever, but they’re getting rotational reps.”

— Running back Jermaine Brown Jr. was named to another preseason award watch list, the Paul Hornung Award, and Brady Wilson was named to the Rimington Trophy watch list. Additionally, linebacker Jackson Bratton was selected to the Wyerffel Trophy watch list, an award presented for community service. The Blazers were picked to finish eighth in the AAC preseason media poll.

— Defensive lineman Drew Tuazama announced his intention to transfer on social media Saturday and it should raise concerns considering the redshirt senior took part in practice last week before graduating Saturday. Since Tuazama took the JUCO route from Syracuse to UAB, the North Carolina native would not technically be required to be a graduate transfer and could use the one-time transfer rule since he never transferred immediately between FBS programs. Tuazama is no longer listed on UAB’s online roster.

— The Blazers will hold closed evening practices Monday and Tuesday before returning to open morning sessions Wednesday through Friday