Mobile, Ala. — The weather was cold and damp, with the temperature in the mid-40s, during the South squad's practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in preparation for today's Under Armour Senior Bowl.

One would have thought that University of Hawai'i quarterback Colt Brennan, presumably spoiled by the pleasant weather in Honolulu, would have been affected by the miserable conditions.

Not on your life — especially if you dealt with identical conditions in other parts of the country.

"It was a little thick out there today, but the good thing is I once played football in Boston (Worcester Academy) and once played football in Colorado (redshirt in 2003)," he said. "So I know what it's like to play in this weather.

"In fact, today (Thursday), which was the coldest day, was my best day out there, so that was a good thing. Basically, I had a great week. I really felt like I came out here and accepted the challenge and I'm really excited trying to go out there and making something happen."

Brennan comes into today's game — scheduled for a 11 a.m. (Hawai'i time) kickoff — with some mind-blowing career numbers — a 70.4 percent completion rate, 14,193 passing yards, 131 touchdown passes and 373.5 yards a game.

In his senior year alone, he had 38 touchdown passes and 4,343 yards in passing yards and finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Can those lofty numbers translate into success in today's game, and eventually into the pro ranks? Brennan hopes it can, especially after having to learn about being in a pro environment in less than a week and working with talented receivers such as Alabama's DJ Hall, LSU's Early Doucet, and Florida's Andre Caldwell.

"Every day (during the practice sessions) I've gotten a little bit better than the day before," he said. "I feel that I'm starting to get a grasp of the offense and starting to understand things. If everything falls together, I hopefully will go out there and have a good day, do some good things and impress some scouts and coaches."

Brennan had praise for the San Francisco 49ers coaching staff, which is coaching the South squad.

"Offensive coordinator Mike Martz has been doing the hands-on work, while head coach Mike Nolan's a cool coach," he said. "I really like the way he addresses his team and talks to us. I also like the way he coaches a little bit of everybody out there at practice."

Brennan said that although he's feeling relaxed, he hopes the Senior Bowl will give him a chance to redeem himself after a tough outing against Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Although he completed 22 of 38 passes in the 41-10 loss, he had only 169 passing yards and was intercepted three times.

"I didn't really come in here (to the Senior Bowl) under a whole lot of pressure or anxiety," he said. "I really came here to meet people and to have as much fun as possible. Obviously, you're always judged by your last game. It (the Sugar Bowl) was a tough game for us, and I battled through it and I wished that things had gone a little different.

"This game will give me an opportunity to bounce back and come out here. I could have had a great game and there would still have been all those questions. This week, I get to learn a new offense, and get to answer all those questions — hopefully in a positive way."

NOTES

The game will be shown on the NFL Network, a cable channel not carried by Oceanic Time Warner Cable in Hawai'i. It can be seen on satellite systems. Establishments who have satellite — such as Eastside Grill and Red Lions on University — will telecast the game.

Other quarterbacks in the South squad with Brennan are Andre Woodson of Kentucky and Erik Ainge of Tennessee. Quarterbacks for the North are Joe Flacco of Delaware, Chad Henne of Michigan and John David Booty of USC.

Game officials announced Thursday night that all 40,646 tickets had been sold, marking the game's 14th consecutive sellout.