This past Saturday, July 31, 2010, I took the MCA Football team to Jackson, TN to take part in a two part practice/scrimmage day with the Sacred Heart Knights. We have been preparing for our inaugural season since May 1, 2010 and the boys' have put in countless hours of hard work and this was our first opportunity to see it unfold and in action.
It was one of the hottest days we have faced all year and the boys' pushed through a two hour positions practice where they worked on agilities, drill, technique, and toughness. I was very impressed with our hard work and performance during this session. The boys' stayed confident and focused on the task at hand, even though they were competing against a team full of upper classmen. (Our team is made up of 1 fifth grader, 2 sixth graders, 2 seventh graders, 6 eighth graders, 2 ninth graders, 2 tenth graders, and 1 senior.) They kept the gap very close during this session.
In the afternoon session everyone strapped on their pads and we went through a coaches scrimmage. During this time each team would run ten plays on offense, then switch to defense for ten plays. With a team as small as ours is, we have never had the opportunity of seeing our offense or defense face a squad that could provide a game-like situation. It was a huge learning experience for me as a coach and my team as a whole. This was when the other teams age, size, and strength really began to show, but this never demoralized the boys'. They kept pushing forward and fighting with all they had!
This was a great experience for me, because I was able to see where players needed to play, and who was going to step up when it got tough! It was amazing to see the boys' step up and take ownership of the team and this paid off about half way through the scrimmage. We began to get some pressure up the middle on their offensive line and break up numerous plays in the backfield. The confidence kept building and we became the team that was setting the tone and playing our game. As a coach this was all I could ask for! They gave me 100% and focused on their jobs regardless of what the other team was doing.
A lot of people have asked the question, "did you win?" Well, this was about more than winning and losing. If you would have kept the score, no we would not have won... But if you would have measured heart and determination, we won! I was very happy with what they accomplished and I can't wait to hit the practice field this afternoon!
Our goal is build strong-young men, in doing so we are Building Warriors here at MCA!
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