Hawks eager to fly
Enthusiasm abounds on the football field as Shorter gets ready for its season opener.
The start of Zach Morrison’s first preseason camp as Shorter head football coach has had one thing he has been pleased to see — competition.
The Hawks’ coaching staff has been hammering it home over the first week since players returned to school, and the team seems to be getting the message as the Hawks inch closer to their season opener against the Samford Bulldogs.
“It’s been great. It’s been fantastic,” Morrison said. “They’re competing every play, and we’ve got some positions that are showing some major competition. Competition breeds success, and that’s what they’re doing. They’re focusing on getting better every day.”
The young team will get tested early as the Hawks will face the Division I Bulldogs on Aug. 30 in Birmingham, Alabama. Samford finished 8-4 last season, losing to Kennesaw State in the FCS playoffs.
“They are a great football team and have established themselves as an elite program at the FCS level,” Morrison said. “I’m excited to play them and show them what our new culture is all about.”
Morrison said the position that’s seen the most competition is at running back. Weldrin Ford, a 5-8, 217-pound sophomore from Opelika, Alabama, was the starting back coming into the spring, but Morrison said a duo of freshmen — Tupac Lanier and Dante Franklin Jr. — have been making their cases.
“We had a scrimmage this past Satur- day and they were really pushing each other,” Morrison said. “They encourage each other.”
While Morrison has been trying to implement a new culture at Shorter following back-to-back winless seasons, some things won’t change. One of the things Morrison wants to hold on to is an atmosphere of encouragement and support — a quality Morrison says was promoted when Phil Jones first coached the program in 2005.
“That’s huge for us,” Morrison said. “That’s the cornerstone of this program. That’s what Coach Jones built this on.”
Along with camaraderie, Morrison said he still needs his team to get up to speed as the season gets closer. The Hawks, who play in the Gulf South Conference, will have their hands full playing against conference opponents.
Shorter will begin its GSC schedule the third week of the season on the road against West Florida, which finished with an 11-4 record last season and advanced to the NCAA Division II national championship game, losing 37-27 to Texas A&M-Commerce. Shorter’s first three conference opponents — the Argonauts, West Georgia and Valdosta State — finished last season with a combined record of 25-12.
“We’re going to have a lot of freshman and sophomores starting, so we need those guys to pick it up quickly and adapt to college speed,” Morrison said. “It’s a tough conference, and there’s going to be challenges, but if they trust each other they’ll build something sustainable.”