Saints focus on character during spring drills
Published 12:21 am Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Selma High School fullback Maurice Averhart, left, looks for daylight during a scrimmage on Tuesday. The Saints are preparing for the upcoming season as well as a jamboree game against local foe Keith High School on May 18. -- Robert Hudson
Spring practices for the Selma High School Saints haven’t just been about X’s and O’s.
Saints’ head football Leroy Miles and his staff have been focusing on something just as important — character.
A quick glimpse at the Saints’ practice field on Tuesday revealed a stark contrast from last year’s team, with a smaller group of players participating in drills, and for Miles, that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
It’s a sign of dedication and a commitment to doing things the right way within the program.
“We’re just trying to work on character,” Miles said, “getting guys to show up and be dedicated to the program, and that’s important. The numbers are down a little bit. We’ve got around 50 guys. Last year we finished with around 70 guys. We’re losing some because they don’t want to be dedicated to the program and show up for workouts, and I’m not going to let them play. If they can’t show up and be a part of the offseason program, then they’re not going to be any good for us in the fall.”
Discipline, dedication and commitment on the field and in the classroom, Miles said, are just as important to a team’s success, which is why the Saints have been emphasizing that all spring.
However, Miles knows there will be challenges that come with having fewer players, but the Saints are already preparing to meet those challenges head on.
“The toughest thing that we’re having to deal with now is that we’re going to have to play both ways because the numbers are down,” Miles said. “You want to put the best 11 on offense and the best 11 on defense, and this requires some of us — maybe about seven or eight guys — to play both ways. That’s challenging for kids, they have to be in a little bit better shape than they’ve been in the past, and we’re going to get there. They’re doing it everywhere else playing both ways. Demopolis has one or two kids playing both ways, and Keith’s whole team plays both ways, Southside’s kids play both ways, and we’ll play both ways also.”
The Saints will play in a jamboree against Keith High School and St. Jude, Friday May, 18 in Orrville starting at 6 p.m.
