Quarterback Nate Ketteringham is adjusting to the weather this week, with temperatures in the 70s at Memorial Stadium.
Ketteringham played his past two seasons at Sacramento State, where he said practices were routinely played at more than 100 degrees.
It's one of many adjustments for the transfer in his first few practices in Grand Forks.
Ketteringham will sit out one season, per NCAA transfer rules, then be eligible for the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
"It has been fun," Ketteringham said. "The guys have been welcoming. It's an adjustment to a different kind of offense."
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Ketteringham is easy to notice among the more than 100 players at fall camp. He's 6-foot-3, 210 pounds and has a strong arm.
On Thursday and Friday, the first two days of fall practice, he connected on a couple of perfect spirals deep down the sideline.
He started 16 games at Sacramento State and threw for 3,391 yards and 24 touchdowns with the Hornets. He completed 54.7 percent of his passes and also rushed for 237 yards and four touchdowns.
"The first thing you notice is that he has a live arm," UND offensive coordinator Paul Rudolph said. "The second thing, he's been in a college system before. He has a concept on a number of different things."
Ketteringham said he's noticed a difference in UND's mentality and toughness, as opposed to Sacramento State, which struggled in the Big Sky Conference in his time there.
"Football is a different animal up here," Ketteringham said. "It's a lot more intense and driven. At Sacramento, there was a little more go-with-the-flow. They're more determined here to win Big Sky championships. It's definitely an exciting thing. Look at this program, they're on the up and ups. It's a lot of fun to be part of."
Ketteringham said he thinks sitting out one season will be a good thing. He wants to master the playbook and terminology.
With UND starting quarterback Keaton Studsrud playing out his senior year in 2017, Ketteringham will have as good of a chance as anyone to grab a starting spot in 2018.
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But Rudolph said Ketteringham's biggest challenge right now is in the adjustment from playing a majority of snaps in the shotgun at Sacramento State to playing much more under center with the Fighting Hawks.
"What I watched on film is he really needs to work on getting away from the center," Rudolph said. "(Thursday), he was real deliberate. He needs to get away and get his feet under him."
Away from the field, there'll be one more adjustment.
"The first winter is going to kick my (butt)," he said. "I'm from San Diego."
