Football preview: Chaffee football team expects to rebound after winless season

High school football has evolved over the years into a commitment that begins following the last game of one season and continues through opening night of the next when preparation collides with execution. This introduction and team breakdown are part of the Southeast Missourian high school football preview, which examines how teams spent the year preparing for Friday night's season openers.

Chaffee High School football practice Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

Remember the offseason?

High school football teams across the country take the field for three to four months every year, but as the product has grown in popularity over time, preparation has redefined the rest of the year.

From the last game of the season to the start of opening night, high school football players hardly ever stop working.

It's a process that begins in the weight room and ends on the field, and Central coach Nathan Norman is one of many people who understands the demands of the yearlong grind.

"It's so demanding now for a high school student," said Norman, who guided the Tigers to their first-ever Class 4 state championship appearance last season. "You're asking a lot for them to be involved with a sport like that because it's year-round, and that's tough."

A 1996 graduate of Jackson High School, Norman helped lead the Indians to a pair of state title game appearances before competing at the college level with Arkansas. Bob Sink and Van Hitt both coached Norman in high school and now serve as assistant coaches on his current staff.

"We'll all tell you that it's definitely changed," Norman said. "We were encouraged to weight lift, condition and train, and we did. I feel like that aspect of it probably hasn't changed as much as the number of practices, obviously. I remember when I was in high school, you got two weeks to practice, and that was it."

Jackson coach Brent Eckley began his coaching career in 1995 at Hickman Mills High School, where he coached quarterbacks for two years before serving three years as offensive coordinator at Warrensburg High School. Eckley landed his first head coaching job in 2000 at Montgomery County High School before moving on to Union High School in 2005, and he amassed a 101-32 record during his time at the two schools.

Chaffee coach Charlie Vickery directs a practice on Aug. 5. (Glenn Landberg)

Eckley has seen the demands of high school football evolve over the years and believes there have been a number of factors that have contributed to it.

"I think sometimes as a coach, you want to try to control as much as you can," he said. "You want to have an influence on as many things as possible. I think that's what happens is in us trying to make sure our team is as well prepared as they can be, we'll spend as much time in the offseason as we can getting them ready for their season so things move smoother."

There's also a demand that's required from coaches, one that Perryville coach Mike Wojtczuk understands.

"It's a grind, but you've got to love the game," Wojtczuk said. "It's like my dad told me a long time ago, 'If you find a job you love, then you never have to work another day for the rest of your life.' Being a football coach is like that."

As for the players, focus and commitment go hand in hand.

Teams tend to carry the mindset that games are won in the offseason, and execution is only a part of the arduous process of high school football.

"It's very important that they buy in and want to be a part of it," Norman said. "It's easy to give up on something that you don't invest much time in. That aspect of it helps. If we've got a kid who makes it with the football program, they're dedicated because they have to be. There are just too many days they're required to be here.

"It's got to mean something to them."

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Chaffee Red Devils Preview

Chaffee's Kendale Eads applies a knee wrap before performing a set of squats during a weight lifting class at Chaffee High School Wednesday morning, April 8, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- The Chaffee football team is well aware of how grueling a season can be.

The Red Devils claimed their first SEMO South Conference title in more than 30 years in 2013, but a plethora of key departures and an injury-plagued season sent Chaffee spiraling to a winless 2014 campaign.

Red Devils coach Charlie Vickery is hoping a year of experience coupled with a resurgence of youth can steer his squad back to its winning ways.

"At one time, we had eight or nine kids that missed the game because of injuries. It was the worst year of injuries that I can ever remember," said the Chaffee graduate, who's entering his 11th season as the Red Devils' coach. "It hurts you in a big school, but it really hurts you in a small school. We lost a lot of seniors off the 2013 team, and we had a lot of new kids in there. But we got the experience, and hopefully that'll pay off."

Chaffee finished 0-9 last year, averaging just shy of six points per game. The Red Devils mustered more than one touchdown in only one contest and gave up a little more than 40 points per game.

But Vickery has been pleased with his team's commitment throughout the offseason. Chaffee will field more than 40 players this season, including 12 freshmen, and Vickery said the team has its first junior varsity squad in four years.

"I know we're much stronger from what we were, and our kids showed up all summer long. We had between 35-40 kids every day in the summer," Vickery said. "... I just think we have a chance to really improve this year. I think everybody's at that point right now, but I like so far what we're doing and the attitude."

Spring

Chaffee's Lane Henson performs a set of squats during a weight lifting class at Chaffee High School Wednesday morning, April 8, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

Chaffee players lift weights at 6:30 a.m. before each school day, and Vickery believes its important for his players to continue to compete in other spring sports, such as baseball and track and field.

"You always want your kids to play other sports, so we're able to get the weights in and still have them go to the afternoon practices and not worry about having them come in," Vickery said.

Vickery said about 90 percent of his roster is involved with spring sports.

Weight lifting class at Chaffee High School Wednesday morning, April 8, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

"We always try to get stronger and quicker, and I think those are the two big things that pretty much everybody does," Vickery said. "We were pretty young last year, so our strength level has a long way to go. I think we've made great strides in the offseason with that."

The Red Devils were winless a year ago, so establishing a competitive edge is vital for Vickery's squad.

"I think the biggest thing is that they're competing against somebody," Vickery said. "... You're able to compete against another team or person, so I think that's really big."

Summer

Chaffee's Brennan Miller secures weights before performing a set of squats during a weight lifting class at Chaffee High School Wednesday morning, April 8, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

Vickery believes in the value of exposing his team to good competition, so the Red Devils traveled to Southeast Missouri State and Southern Illinois to compete in 7-on-7s.

"We had a really good summer from June through July. We kind of spread it out as far as our football days, but we had camps just like everybody else. We did some 7-on-7s, did a lot of conditioning with them as well, some weight lifting," said Vickery, whose team also hosted Class 5 Jackson for a 7-on-7. "... We didn't do actually any contact camps because we're pretty thin, but just doing 7-on-7s with different teams gives us a chance to have competition against really good people. It really helps us out doing that."

Chaffee players mostly add power in the weight room through core lifting, which includes power cleans, push presses and squats. He said auxiliary lifting isn't a priority because of time restraints.

Vickery believes team bonding isn't an issue because his players are together throughout the summer.

"We lift all at the same time. ... We come in at 6:30, and everybody's here together," Vickery said. "They do all their stuff together, and that's probably the only thing we do as far as getting them all together."

Offense

Chaffee High School football practice Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

A new quarterback will be under center this season for the Red Devils.

Either junior Brennan Miller or freshman Landon Tenkhoff will replace last season's starter, Jordan Wilburn, who will move to wide receiver for his senior year after tearing his ACL at the start of basketball season.

"Brennan Miller played some last year. He played a little bit of everything. He's a smart kid who can play a lot of different places," Vickery said. "I think we'll just wait and see how it plays out. They both have some strengths we like."

Senior Devon Nanney leads a host of running backs who will contribute in Chaffee's backfield this season. Vickery said juniors Ryan Holderfield, Uzziah Beggs and Josh Medrano, a Poplar Bluff transfer, will also see playing time at running back.

Wilburn leads the way at wide receiver, while sophomore Tyler Whistler, junior CJ Beier, sophomore Ramzy Gideon, sophomore Ethan Dockins, sophomore Jaxon Van Pelt and junior Alex Burch are also expected to contribute.

The bulk of the Red Devils' returning experience rests on the offensive line. Senior Brandon Ivester, juniors Augie Knutson and Andrew Jobe and sophomore Devon Foulk were each starters a year ago. They'll be joined by senior Aaron DeRossett and junior Kendall Eads, who will start at center after playing in the backfield last season.

Vickery said one of the biggest challenges as a coach is getting his players to believe they can win.

"They've got to expect to win," Vickery said. "I told them, 'If you didn't put in the work in the summer, then you can't expect to win because you don't deserve to win. But you've put in the time that it takes, so you're at the point now where you should expect to win.'

"We were able to do more 7-on-7s this summer, and I think that helps us out because we needed the competition. We needed to get competitive."

Defense

Chaffee High School football practice Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2015. (Glenn Landberg)

Chaffee enters the season without the presence of defensive/offensive lineman Trevor Morehead, an Austin Peay signee who piled up 26 tackles and four sacks last season before tearing his ACL in the team's fourth game.

Vickery has high hopes for Knutson to step up in Morehead's absence.

"Augie's played there for two years. He's started there for two years on and off," Vickery said. "He should be the leader there."

Foulk, Jobe and senior Bradyn Swinford will also contribute to what Vickery believes is his most solid unit.

"It has to be a strength for us because, No. 1, we've got good size up there, and they know what they're doing," Vickery said about the team's defensive line. "We've got good experience there, so there's no reason for us not to be pretty good up front."

Miller, Nanney, Holderfield, Eads and Ivester will rotate at linebacker, another unit Vickery is pleased to have experience carried over from last year.

Wilburn brings limited experience to the Red Devils' secondary, while Medrano and Tenkhoff will get their first taste of varsity experience at cornerback.

Special teams

Wilburn will resume his punting duties, and Nanney, Medrano and Miller are several of Vickery's options to rotate as return specialists.

Vickery didn't identify a kicker, and the team will likely attempt two-point conversions after touchdown scores.