Last football season, Montezuma High School’s prolific offense was in an “are you kidding me?” category.
So was the defense at times – the other way. Four times during a 6-3 season, the Braves yielded 50 or more points, including 94 to New London.
At other times, the athletic Braves made stops and big plays.
Head Coach Pat O’Brien took responsibility for what didn’t work. “We need to stay in our base,” the coach said. “Sometimes I got ‘too cute’ with our calls.”
That’s when the Braves got burned.
O’Brien says the Braves will simplify their defense this year.
“Our offense was amazing,” O’Brien told KGRN’s Chris Varney.
Much of that unit returns.
Quarterback Eddie Burgess and wide receivers Cole Watts and Trey Shearer are back, as well as linemen like Kennen Roadcap and Brian Diaz, who blocked for them.
“Now, if only we could contain teams,” O’Brien said. So, that’s one of Montezuma’s main missions as the season nears.
Montezuma had its football camp the week of Aug. 3, and started practice on Monday, Aug. 10.
The season opener is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 28, at Twin Cedars, a new team in the re-aligned district.
The Braves will know how much improvement they’ve made by the end of their third week. Games two and three are against New London and WACO, respectively. Both have recent histories of putting up lots of points.
“We’re already excited about the kids getting a chance to compete against other people,” O’Brien told Varney.
“We are implementing our offense . . .and simplifying our defense,” the coach said.
The regular season consists of seven games, all in-district. Then, everyone will be included in the playoffs.
“The playoffs are going to be done by geography, so we’re excited to see who we might get to play,” O’Brien said.
“But with COVID-19, we have no idea what might happen,” he said.
O’Brien did salute the state for its general guidelines for play. “They didn’t want to back us into a corner with things we can’t control,” he said.
For example, if the Braves or an opponent have a positive virus test, “that’s 14 days off for both teams,” O’Brien said. “But that won’t eliminate either team from the playoffs.” Unless, of course, if it happens just before the playoffs.
Day to day, the differences include a lot of sanitizing and cleaning – but that’s something all athletic teams have to get used to.
UP FIRST – The Braves are at Twin Cedars on Friday, Aug. 28. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.