Injuries have forced coach Charlie Sadler to pull the reins on football practice, but he said the team will be at full speed against Fresno State.

As of Wednesday, 13 players could not practice due to injuries.

“We’ve been fortunate that none of these injuries have been serious,” Sadler said.

The only player projected to miss the Sept. 7 opening game against Fresno State is starting nose tackle Eric White, who is expected to be out for six weeks with a knee injury.

The hardest hit has been the offensive line “where we’re already pretty thin,” said Sadler.

Guards Drew Riley, Dagan Lutjen, and center Mike McShane are not practicing because of minor injuries. Sadler declined to disclose the extent of the injuries because he’s concerned Fresno State will go after his players’ wounds.

“With the exception of Drew Riley, who’s going to be real close, everyone should be ready to go against Fresno State,” Sadler said.

“Compared to the years past, we have had a few more muscle strains and pulls,” head trainer Mike Braid said.

Players playing hurt have also led to recurring injuries, Braid said.

“Playing hurt is a part of football,” senior fullback Adam Dach said. “I play hurt everyday, but none of our coaches are going to risk losing a player in practice.”

The football team started practice Aug. 13, having two-a-days for nine straight days until Sunday. They have not had a day off since.

“Every day during the two-a-days is hectic for me,” Braid said. “There’s always going to be injuries during fall practice.”

Even though no injury is desirable, Dach prefers a pull or strain rather than a broken bone.

“I think we did a lot more hitting with coach (Jerry) Pettibone,” Dach said. “With coach Sadler we do a lot more conditioning which lead to pulls and strains. I’d rather have the pulls than have contact injuries like a separated shoulder.”

Sadler said practice has been much less vigorous since the injuries. “We started backing off right after two-a-days,” Sadler said. “We’ll keep the same tempo until next Monday, then we’ll really back off, so they can get their legs back underneath them.”

The Huskies are now holding practices on the grass field behind Huskie stadium which should alleviate some pain.