Playing on both sides of the ball?

More intense practice sessions the past few days have Raider coaches assessing depth questions.

Randell Owens and staff are trying to decipher the situations where Madison County is better suited to using two-way players or limiting a player to just offense or defense.

“We’ve got a lot of two-way players and how do we create depth?” said Owens of the questions that are arising in practice.
The team moved to full-pad practices last Thursday (Aug. 7).

Owens said he hopes he can limit the number of guys having to play both sides of the ball this year. From a conditioning standpoint, it means a world of difference early in the season. Owens noted that Madison County had an edge over Franklin County and Elbert County last year because it could bring fresh bodies in the game.

There’s also less of a learning curve if players are just learning one position.

Plus, eliminating as many two-way players as possible puts more guys on the field, “which helps morale,” Owens said.

The competition in practice appears to be heated thus far.

For more the rest of the story, see this week’s print edition of The Madison County Journal.