I think more schools are following the model Surratt laid out. Stop worrying about going 10-0. Play tough teams. Find out who your players are. Get the guys experience against top competition. The trick that I think some teams might not be smart enough to except is to use pre-district as a learning experience. Don’t be afraid to lose games. And DO NOT get your best players hurt. Your proven weapons need about a half of hard play a game. At the max 3 quarters a couple of times. You cannot play all out to win in pre-district for 5 straight games. Does Surratt try to win every game. Yes! But he will not risk his best players to do it. Plus he finds the best role players, who will be his next stars in years to come. Rarely do the players that start the season, finish as the starters. By the time district rolls around, the team will look totally different than the team that started the 1st game.