3afan
08-07-2007, 07:06 AM
Celina football team plans to 'Finish it'
State tournament loss still fresh in minds of players, coaches
11:07 PM CDT on Monday, August 6, 2007
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/08-07/0807celina.jpg
CELINA – For many high school football teams, Monday was a start. But at Celina, the first day of practice was about finishing.
"Our motto this year is, 'Finish it,'" senior offensive lineman C.J. Nielson said before the team started its morning workout. "And that's what we aim to do."
Celina's aim was true most of last season, when it rolled 15 opponents to arrive in the Class 3A Division II state title game at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco. But Liberty Hill kicked a field goal with six seconds left to win, 22-19, and end Celina's 31-game winning streak and deny it an eighth state championship.
That was more than seven months ago and more than 100 miles away. But as the Celina players put their orange helmets back on Monday, the memory of losing hadn't faded.
"It's pretty fresh in my mind," senior offensive lineman Adam Thomas said.
Any loss is memorable for Celina, which has fallen only five times since 1999. But coach Butch Ford wants to make sure his players don't dwell on the loss to Liberty Hill. He talked to the players about it early in practice.
"And we won't talk about it again," he said. "We're simply going to finish everything that we do now."
That meant getting started fast as the sun shined over Bobcat Stadium.
After 8 a.m. stretching and a talk with the coaches, players took part in agility drills, worked on schemes and dived into conditioning – lots of conditioning.
Getting players into shape is a staple of the first week of practice, much like the stomach-turning site of them getting sick on the sidelines. By 8:45 a.m., wind sprints had turned one player queasy.
Senior linebacker Austin Wyatt said he has learned to like the dreaded conditioning.
"Last year, I really didn't look forward to it," he said. "But this year, I got up here and I was really kind of excited for it."
It's possible Wyatt was more excited about the start of football than the start of shrieking whistles urging the players to run harder. But that's the starting point for "Finish it."
The conclusion, the Celina players and coaches hope, will be in another state championship game, with a different result and a different memory to take back to Football Town.
Celina seems to have the players to make it happen. It returns half of its starters, including the trio of quarterback Seth Davis and running backs Charley Waldrep and Troy McCartney, who combined for more than 3,000 yards rushing last season. The offensive line is all seniors, and the defensive line and linebackers are solid.
"We're going to have to do a lot of work in the secondary, but I think we've got some kids who can do that," Ford said. "We're pretty excited about somebody stepping up that we're not really counting on."
What Celina can count on is high expectations from its fans, who fill the 2,500-seat Bobcat Stadium on Friday nights.
But every season brings a new set of players, Ford pointed out, and each team comes together differently.
"You never know exactly how it's going to go," he said. "Just because you've got a few kids back, doesn't mean there's going to be success."
That may be true, but if there's one place where success is the norm, it's Celina. Winning is drilled into the players, and losing, well...
"If you lose," Wyatt said, "that's not Celina."
State tournament loss still fresh in minds of players, coaches
11:07 PM CDT on Monday, August 6, 2007
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/08-07/0807celina.jpg
CELINA – For many high school football teams, Monday was a start. But at Celina, the first day of practice was about finishing.
"Our motto this year is, 'Finish it,'" senior offensive lineman C.J. Nielson said before the team started its morning workout. "And that's what we aim to do."
Celina's aim was true most of last season, when it rolled 15 opponents to arrive in the Class 3A Division II state title game at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco. But Liberty Hill kicked a field goal with six seconds left to win, 22-19, and end Celina's 31-game winning streak and deny it an eighth state championship.
That was more than seven months ago and more than 100 miles away. But as the Celina players put their orange helmets back on Monday, the memory of losing hadn't faded.
"It's pretty fresh in my mind," senior offensive lineman Adam Thomas said.
Any loss is memorable for Celina, which has fallen only five times since 1999. But coach Butch Ford wants to make sure his players don't dwell on the loss to Liberty Hill. He talked to the players about it early in practice.
"And we won't talk about it again," he said. "We're simply going to finish everything that we do now."
That meant getting started fast as the sun shined over Bobcat Stadium.
After 8 a.m. stretching and a talk with the coaches, players took part in agility drills, worked on schemes and dived into conditioning – lots of conditioning.
Getting players into shape is a staple of the first week of practice, much like the stomach-turning site of them getting sick on the sidelines. By 8:45 a.m., wind sprints had turned one player queasy.
Senior linebacker Austin Wyatt said he has learned to like the dreaded conditioning.
"Last year, I really didn't look forward to it," he said. "But this year, I got up here and I was really kind of excited for it."
It's possible Wyatt was more excited about the start of football than the start of shrieking whistles urging the players to run harder. But that's the starting point for "Finish it."
The conclusion, the Celina players and coaches hope, will be in another state championship game, with a different result and a different memory to take back to Football Town.
Celina seems to have the players to make it happen. It returns half of its starters, including the trio of quarterback Seth Davis and running backs Charley Waldrep and Troy McCartney, who combined for more than 3,000 yards rushing last season. The offensive line is all seniors, and the defensive line and linebackers are solid.
"We're going to have to do a lot of work in the secondary, but I think we've got some kids who can do that," Ford said. "We're pretty excited about somebody stepping up that we're not really counting on."
What Celina can count on is high expectations from its fans, who fill the 2,500-seat Bobcat Stadium on Friday nights.
But every season brings a new set of players, Ford pointed out, and each team comes together differently.
"You never know exactly how it's going to go," he said. "Just because you've got a few kids back, doesn't mean there's going to be success."
That may be true, but if there's one place where success is the norm, it's Celina. Winning is drilled into the players, and losing, well...
"If you lose," Wyatt said, "that's not Celina."