Local favorites like Talladega County Central, BB Comer, Sylacauga, Fayetteville and Lincoln participated in the passing camp.
Comer head coach Anthony Jacks said the camp was a great opportunity to see where his team is athletically.
“You know, we do all this stuff against each other and you get into habits,” Jacks said. “It’s good to finally get out against other teams and show our stuff.”
Jacks said he hopes his players were able to see some of their strengths and weaknesses during play.
“We’ve got a couple of passing plays we can go to, but we’re not going to come out and pass the ball like this all the time,” Jacks said. “We’re a running team. Defensively, we just need to hit our assignments better and learn some discipline on that side of the ball. We’re getting there.”
Sylacauga head coach and host of the camp, Matt Griffith, said it’s hard to judge his team with both of his starting safeties out for the past two weeks.
“You got some kids banged up and kids gone to AAU,” Griffith said. “It’s just hard. You’re ready for fall to finally get here to get your whole team together.”
The Aggies coach said one of his biggest concerns going into the season is how his team will handle stress.
“The main thing we need is we got to learn how to hustle and how to face adversity,” Griffith said. “When things go bad, you just got to pick it up and do something. Until we do that, it’s just one of those things you have to get used to.”
Last season, the Aggies went 5-5 averaging 26 points per game and beat BB Comer 48-8.
Entering his seventh season coaching at Sylacauga, he said the skill level his school is used to might not be there this year, but he has parts of his team to lean on.
“The biggest thing for us is, we’re so used to having a lot of skill,” Griffith said. “We’re probably a little better up front and we don’t have as many skill kids as we’ve had in the past. Our defense and offensive fronts are really going to have to carry us this year.”
In 2011, the BB Comer Tigers had a record of 2-8 averaging just shy of 15 points per game. They open up the season against Childersburg, a game they lost last season 33-22.
Jacks said even though he has his job cut out for him, he likes the confidence boost his team gets at camps.
“It gives us a chance to say if you run these plays and you execute them correctly, they’re going to work,” Jacks said.
As a coach, the passing camp gave him the chance to see some of his brightest stars in action.
“Trey Ragland is going to be really good for us; he’s our tight end,” Jacks said. “I think he’s going to be a really good player for us. Our quarterback Tyler Holmes had some good throws and some bad throws, but more good than bad. We’re really pleased with them and with our receivers. We’ve got a couple of guys who can really catch the ball.”
Griffith said his team has a long way to go, but he’s thankful football isn’t played with touch all the time.
“There’s a lot of teams that look good playing 7-on-7 that can’t play very good football,” he said. “Hopefully, we’re one of those teams that plays well in pads.”
Sylacauga opens the season against Hayden, the first ever meeting between the two schools.
The Aggies coach said he is more than ready to go full pads next month.
“The game is played in the trenches and the game is played with pads on,” Griffith said. “Kids that like to hit usually win games.”
The same was said from Comer’s head coach.
“They’re ready to go and chomping at the bit,” Jacks said. “It’s been a long summer and it’s hot. You get bored of doing the same things over and over. They’re ready to put the pads on and see what we can do.”
