As his team chases a fourth-straight District 11 title, Tri-Valley coach Jeff Sampson is looking forward to taking the field with a big senior class that’s ready to lead by example and with their voices.
“These early practices allow us to mold the younger freshmen and sophomores and be led by the seniors, and overall that’ll help every Friday night,” Sampson said. “These practices help us get in shape much faster with two-a-days, and we have the opportunity to slow things down and see the whole field.”
Highlighting the senior class are quarterback Trey Porter, wide receiver Doyle Flory, tight end Lukas Schwartz and fullback Donovan Keeth.
Porter is preparing for his first full season as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback. He will be joined in the backfield by junior running back Parker Hatter.
“Offensively, our pass game will do really well because we have Lukas and Doyle out wide, Parker is a dog and Donnie (Keeth) can run the ball well too,” Porter said. “Our run game will be great, and we’ll be able to surprise teams with our pass game with our size and strength.”
Defensively, Schwartz and Keeth are keyed in on setting the edge of the line of scrimmage to stuff the run, and Porter on covering deep and getting hands-on at cornerback.
Flory and Schwartz spent the first week of practice working to get the younger kids acclimated in defensive coverages, and building familiarity with the playbook and concepts on both sides of the ball.
“These practices are best for getting the younger kids to understand everything and getting everyone on the same page,” Schwartz said. “You can just tell everyone is feeling good and we can see how guys are doing after a full week of practice.”
The work the Bulldogs are putting in now will be crucial down the road.
“Coach says we have to pay the fee so we have to make sacrifices and practice hard now to get where we were last year in November — still playing while everyone else is at home,” Flory said. “My favorite part of this first week is watching everyone get better as a team.”
Tri-Valley will go up against Pine Grove and Executive Education at “Scrimmage Saturday” on Aug. 22 before opening the season at home against Line Mountain on Aug. 28.