Burnet Bulldogs start off rainy football camp with ‘good energy’
New Burnet High School offensive line coach Eddy Parker puts his players through footwork drills on the first day of fall training camp Aug. 7. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro
STAFF WRITER JENNIFER FIERRO
BURNET — The Burnet High School football team had a wet start to fall training camp Aug. 7.
The Bulldogs had their first practice at 9:30 a.m., two and a half hours later than what head coach Kurt Jones had originally scheduled.
Coaches had to make sure lightning strikes weren’t in the forecast before allowing the players to take the turf at Bulldog Field, even though the players arrived at the fieldhouse at 6 a.m. to receive their lockers, equipment, and other necessities. Since the weather didn’t allow them to practice when they were supposed to, coaches held position meetings with their players.
“We had to be flexible and adjusted,” Jones said. “With the storms being where they were, we were delayed for awhile.”
Jones said 100 players in grades 9-12 practiced, but he believes it would have been more if low-water crossings allowed players living farther out of the city to safely drive in.
The number might have been lower than in past years, but Jones was enthusiastic about what he saw from the athletes.
He noted most arrived in shape, which allowed coaches to spend more time teaching and correcting and less time getting athletes ready to play.
“The energy level was pretty good,” Jones said. “With a few delays, it bombs down a little bit, but we had good energy levels. We certainly couldn’t complain about the temperature.”
Once the Bulldogs stretched, they broke into position drills that included individual correcting and position-specific training.
“That’s everything from the basics of alignment to assignment and technique,” Jones said. “Those are our big things throughout the year we’ll be working on. These are the first days of doing it.”
The other thing coaches looked for was effort, and Jones said the staff was pleased with that, too.
While the Bulldogs will have new starters in most skill positions, the coach noted one area the team will have experience in is at offensive line.
“You want to have great offensive line play if you want to be good, whether you’re running the ball or pass protecting,” he said. “We feel like we have experienced guys there. We’re trying to find that seventh or eighth offensive lineman who can rotate in. I feel like we have good big bodies up front who played significant downs.”
Senior Sterling Galban, who decommitted from Iowa State University during the summer, will lead the receivers, and the linebackers will have experienced players there, too.
“We feel like we got some good work in,” Jones said. “Some kids made mistakes, but the energy level was good.”
The Bulldogs begin the preseason against Austin Reagan at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, at Nelson Field, 7105 Berkman Drive in Austin. You can tune in to the Bulldogs games all season at KMPN 95.9 powered by KBEY or online at KBEYFM.com.