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Guthrie BlueJay football is officially underway with
practice and the season opener is less then a month away.
Friday was the first day of full pads something that the players really
look forward to mainly because the conditioning part is not as hectic as
it is with helmets and shorts only.
Of course, you get to hit each other and that does not always bother
some. Perhaps,
unless you are a sophomore or freshmen in your first varsity practice. |
Here are some of my random thoughts after the first week of BlueJay
Camp.
New Coach on the Offense
I got to meet the new BlueJay assistant coach Randy Wilson this week, who will
help Offensive Coordinator Scott Mick with the offensive line. Wilson has over 30
years of coaching experience, including head coaching jobs at places like Putnam
City West, Westmoore, Centennial, and Purcell.
A good coach, but a good coach with experience and that will benefit the Jays
offense and a coach with that type of experience never hurts. Wilson replaces Jason Rice, who is the new
head coach for the Junior High's seventh grade team after the retirement from
Terry Bennett, Sr.
However, retirement could not keep Bennett from the practice field this week as
he was spotted, on Thursday, watching.
Plenty of races to be won
I got to speak with Rafe Watkins for a solid 30-minutes and he seems very upbeat
about the upcoming season and the challenges, that are in front of him and the
staff that includes
finding a starting quarterback, wide receivers, and running backs, and depth to
the secondary.
It appears the possible four man race for the signal caller is now down to three
with Kentrell Brothers being valuable at the wide receiver spot and his
defensive duties. Christian Lamb, Haden Seifert, and Bryan Dutton will each have
their shot in upcoming practices, scrimmages, and perhaps the first three games
of the year.
Watkins said the team will have their quarterback for the rest of the year when
they step on the field September 25th against Durant barring any injuries.
Alfonzo Wilcox, an Edmond North transfer, has open the eyes of the coaching
staff at running back. Wilcox, who will be a junior, suffered a broken ankle for
the Huskies after just four snaps and 28-yards into his sophomore year.
"He’s a good compliment. He’s a big kid and runs hard and is
going to be our power back. I really like what I see so far," Watkins
said.
J.P. Bruner is still the front runner to land that running back spot as he
showed us some great play when he was called to duty when Clayton Smith went
down with a knee injury in Week 3.
"I think we have 2-3 guys that can push JP, but he’s going to
get his fair share of snaps," Watkins said.
Secondary is another concern for the Jays when it comes to adding some depth.
Devin Williams, a Guthrie kid that grew up in Guthrie, but moved to and played
for Stillwater High last year, has moved back and will have add some depth along
with Luke Davis, who got valuable time as a freshmen at safety.
Dustin Bohanon "Little Bo" also returns with varsity experience. Marcus Ware got
some playing time at the free safety spot as well. Ben Schwartz could add some
depth to the position.
Add another cousin to the roster
Corbin Crockett joined cousin Jaden Chappell, Landry Chappell, Uncle Jon
Chappell, and the football team for his senior season.
Crockett, who is the starting shortstop and lead-off hitter for the Guthrie
Baseball team, has ridiculous speed and will give the Jays some options both
offensively, defensively, and special teams.
Crockett, who before coming to Guthrie was a running back for Oklahoma Christian
School, made a great run out of the "Oklahoma Drill" on the first day of full
pads. This will be fun to watch.
Booster Club Golf Tournament
The Guthrie Football Booster Club will hold their annual Golf Tournament,
September 12th, with all proceeds going to BlueJay Football.
The money raised will help go toward a much needed underground sprinkler system at the GHS
practice and soccer field behind the high school.
The sprinkler system will benefit football, junior high football, and especially
the soccer program as the bermuda grass tries to pop up in early spring, but the
ground is generally to hard to thicken.
The Booster Club meets every Tuesday evening, 7:00, at Guthrie High School.
For more information on the tournament and the form to be a hole sponsor, or to
play please
click here.
GSP 2009 Fall Preview
The very first edition of the Guthrie Sports Page Fall Preview hit the streets this week and
has gotten a very nice reaction from the public.
The advertisers are what make it happen as they allow them to be free for all of us to
read and enjoy.
Coaches, players, and parents do a great job on and off the field, and so does the community of
Guthrie with their support of BlueJay Athletics. Hope to have more GSP
Books throughout the year...stay tuned.
Scrimmage at Ponca City will be aired
Guthrie Sports Page will have the call of the Guthrie BlueJays and Ponca City
Wildcats scrimmage on August 21st and the home scrimmage with Ada on August
27th. GSP will have an interactive page to go along with the broadcasts.
If you plan on attending the scrimmages and games, this season, you can listen
to the Jays (home or away) inside the stadium's on 105.1 FM with your radio head
set.
What did it sound like?
Each BlueJay Football game will be played back on the following Sunday and
Wednesday night on GSP Radio, at 7:00 p.m.
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