Ruffin McNeill: I was like a ninja today

East Carolina opened practice on Friday under second-year head coach Ruffin McNeill.

After off-season hip replacement surgery and gastric-bypass surgery, McNeill moved around better than any time last season. In fact, the former Texas Tech defensive coordinator has lost 120 pounds.

He recently joked, "My brother told me, 'You've lost a fourth-grader.'?I told him, 'I'm trying to lose a sixth-grader.'?"

Last season was really tough on McNeill as he constantly used a golf cart to move around on the practice field.

But on Friday, he joked, “I was like a ninja today. The kids couldn't hear me coming up on them. The cart is there and sometimes I might need it. But today was good. I felt good and I've been walking every day. I walked before practice today and I feel great conditioning wise, but it's still a process.”

Here’s part of his post-practice media session with reporters: