Vols seemed to enjoy opening of practice

It may still only be July. It may have felt like 100 degrees out there. They may have only been in helmets, t-shirts and shorts.

That didn't keep the Starkville Academy Volunteers from opening 2019 preseason football camp.

One of the most successful programs in the area over the past two or three seasons didn't waste any time getting onto the practice field to start getting work in with a pair of sessions on Monday.

This gave head coach Chase Nicholson and his staff an opportunity to get a jump on some teaching moments with the Vols. They continue two-aday drills today.

While watching some of the afternoon practice, it certainly looked like some valuable areas were being addressed in just a few minutes.

After the special teams finished smoothing out some things, the offense was giving the defense some different looks and there were some adjustments being made on both sides.

It was warm, but it could have been worse. The players were taking water breaks and seemed eager to get right back in the mix to keep the learning going.

Starkville Academy won the state championship in 2017 and paying attention to detail was a very important part of what made that particular team so special. Getting off to a good start makes a difference and it appeared the Vols did that on Monday.

Starkville Academy has been very good on the defensive side of the football and that should not change this coming season.

Nicholson and his coaching staff know exactly what they are doing. That's why they have a state championship in their back pocket.

The Vols were back in their element on Monday and seemed to enjoy every minute of it.

Danny P. Smith is the sports editor and columnist for The Starkville Daily News. The opinions in this column are his and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SDN or its staff.