ORONO – Defensive players on the University of Maine football team have long been forced to lay off the players wearing the red mesh practice vests.

In the past, Black Bear quarterbacks donned the vests as an obvious reminder that those players weren’t to be hit or tackled.

This season, the red “pinnies” are nowhere to be seen on the practice field.

With UMaine having converted from a multiple I-formation offense to a spread scheme, the quarterbacks have become more active participants in the run game. As a result, they’re now fair game.

“You can’t have them in red shirts if you want the quarterbacks to be factors in your run game,” UMaine coach Jack Cosgrove said after Friday afternoon’s scrimmage, the Bears’ second of the preseason, on Morse Field at Alfond Stadium.

“What we’re doing on offense, they’re going to run the football at times in straight run play calls and you just can’t trade that scrimmage/game run situation for a tag-off,” he explained.

Starter Ron Whitcomb, backup Michael Brusko and understudy Adam Farkes all took their share of licks during Friday’s scrimmage. And while the players are probably sporting more bruises than usual and are feeling more of the daily aches and pains most football players endure, they don’t seem to mind.

“In the first game, we’re going to be live,” said Whitcomb, who has trimmed down his weight to become more agile. “They’re [opponents] going to be hitting me and I’ve got to be used to having the ball hit, me getting hit, running those plays.”

In spite of the increased level of contact during live drills, UMaine’s quarterbacks appear to be perfectly healthy.

Previously, UMaine quarterbacks ran only occasionally on called plays or were forced to run when flushed out of the pocket. Now, they must me able to execute more plays, including option, on which they are expected to be a legitimate run threat.

“They’ve got to be able to take hits if they’re going to be in our offense being called on to run the ball,” Cosgrove said. “It all fits in with them being treated like a regular football player in a scrimmage.”

The offense continued Friday to search for continuity with the new system and a personnel overhaul. The emphasis was on executing mostly out of a no-huddle format and keeping the game moving quickly.

“We got a lot of plays in at a really fast pace,” said Cosgrove, who pointed out the Bears worked on some red-zone situations to put some pressure on the defense.

Whitcomb completed four of nine passes for 50 yards, including a 4-yard scoring toss to H-back Anthony Cotrone and a 17-yard TD hookup with speedy running back Arel Gordon. Whitcomb carried five times for 18 yards.

Farkes played seven series, some with the second string. He wound up 5-for-12 for 112 yards, including a 61-yard scoring pass to freshman Jhamal Fluellen. He was intercepted once and rushed twice for three yards.

Brusko had five carries for minus-five yards and completed only one of six passes.

“We had less turnovers, less penalties, more points,” Whitcomb said. “As guys work more, especially these rookies who have been getting a lot of time, we’ll see a cleaner, more efficient offense.”

Cosgrove keeping an eye on Bears

Cosgrove has been sporting a somewhat different look the last couple of days, wearing glasses instead of his customary contact lenses.

The switch is out of necessity, since the Bears’ boss is recovering from a scratched cornea and an infection in his right eye.

The injury was self-inflicted, coming as the result of the long days and dry eyes that come with countless hours of preseason preparations with the team and coaching staff.

“It happened the other night watching video,” Cosgrove explained. “I guess I had a little allergy going and I rubbed my eye and scratched my cornea, as a result, with my contact.”

Cosgrove has seen significant improvement the last two days after taking an antibiotic and going with the glasses. He continues to like what he sees out of the Bears as they prepare for their Sept. 9 season opener at Youngstown State (Ohio).

Bears grooming kickers

UMaine is again experiencing an overhaul in its kicking game. Junior place-kicker Bobby Donnelly of Portland returns, but is being pushed by freshman Luigi Sebastiani Jr.

Sebastiani split the uprights on a 41-yard field goal late in the scrimmage.

“Luigi’s competing for it and that’s what we brought him in here for,” Cosgrove said. “That was good to see.”

Sophomore Kash Kiefer, a transfer from the University of West Virginia, is the leading candidate to take over the punting chores. He is backed up by fellow sophomore Andrew Downey, one of the Bears’ starting linebackers.