Most high school football coaches will quickly tell you the summer is vital to preparation for the upcoming season.
Apalachee High School offensive coordinator Joel Miller would certainly agree.
“To me, the summer is possibly the most important time,” Miller said. “In the spring, we were successful in implementing our core plays, we use summer workout times to get numerous repetitions running those plays. The kids having a good grasp and understanding of the offense is important, especially this season when we will only have two weeks to prepare for our scrimmage, where in the past we have had three weeks.”
The AHS coaches typically attend clinics in the spring where they listen to other coaches speak on a variety of subjects.
“We are constantly looking for things to help our team and program,” Miller said.
With the Wildcats having run the Wing-T offense for several years, Miller — who is given plenty of freedom by head coach Shane Davis in overseeing the offense — is always looking for new wrinkles to add.
“We believe in our core plays and will always run those, but we also like to see how other teams are defending us and we try to implement other plays to counter a defense that has given us problems,” Miller said. “During the season, we always make adjustments in game planning based on the defensive alignment we think we will see that week. At the same time, we believe in our system and our players believe in the system, so our execution of our base plays will decide how successful we are, not how creative and innovative we are as coaches.”
The AHS offensive coordinator gives high marks to the offseason program this year.
“We have gotten stronger in the weight room and our coaches believe that the confidence gained by getting physically stronger will carry over to the field,” Miller said. “I think we have a great group of kids who truly care for their teammates and want to do right. There aren’t any egos on our team this year and that unselfishness will benefit us in the long run.”
Looking ahead to official preseason practice, Miller says the Wildcats will need to have a physical mindset.
“I think we lose that sometimes when we are practicing without pads, we have to be a physical and disciplined team,” the offensive coordinator said. “Then we just have to fine tune everything else from blocking assignments to timing on motions and all the other things that play a huge part in success on Friday nights.”
Miller sees plenty of potential for the Wildcats as they move into Region 8-AAAAA.
“We feel really good about our skill players,” he said. “We have great talent and experience at quarterback and wide receiver. We feel like we have four wing backs who can all play at a high level and we have a fullback who has also proven he can be a difference maker in this region.”
The key to any program’s offensive success often rests with the players up front. Miller likes the potential for that group.
“On the offensive line, we feel good about the talent we have, but our depth could be tested,” said Miller.
“We have a few positions up front that have yet to be in the fire on a Friday night and we are anxious to see how they will respond. The biggest thing I am excited about is the way the unselfishness of our kids has allowed them to totally buy into what we are doing. Our kids realize that we want to grind out long drives and wear opposing defenses down and that every play is not going to be a touchdown. We will fight for those tough yards and we will set out to play hard on every play for our teammates and that will be the difference in getting first downs, extending drives and winning football games.”
For Miller and the entire AHS coaching staff, summer has indeed been a busy time in terms of preparation.
While there has been plenty of work put in during the offseason, the work load is about to get even more hectic as official preseason practice begins and the Aug. 31 season opener approaches.
The work never stops for high school football coaches, summer “vacation” included. A look at what has been transpiring at AHS is proof of that. Let the countdown to the new season continue.
Chris Bridges is sports editor of the Barrow Journal. You can contact him at cbridges@barrowjournal.com.
