Eagles vow effort will honor late coach

Stoneman Douglas holds 1st spring practice

PARKLAND — The Stoneman Douglas football team held spring drills for the first time on Monday, which also meant it was the first Eagles practice without longtime assistant coach Aaron Feis.

But the memory of the offensive line and junior varsity coach who was killed in the Feb. 14 shooting at the Parkland school lives on.

Some players wore black a shirt that read “Never Forget” on the back with “Faith, Family, Football” under Feis’ name and “1980-2018.”

In the Eagles’ weight room, a banner hangs with an image of Feis and his surname spelling out an acronym – “Fearless Enthusiasm Intensity Sacrifice.” It has become a ritual for players to rub Feis’ belly on the image to get prepared for workouts, which have gone on for a month and a half, and Monday’s practice.

This fall season, the offensive lineman that has the best week of practice will wear No. 73, Feis’ jersey number when he played for the Eagles, on game day. After the season, the jersey will never be worn again, and his number will be retired, coach Willis May said.

Of the various ways Douglas will honor Feis, who has been heralded as a hero for shielding students from gunfire on Feb. 14, the best way the team feels it can do it is by playing and working as hard as Feis would’ve wanted.

“We have a saying, ‘Feis Up,’ ” May said. “It just means to man up, give your best effort, do what he would want you to do, what he would expect of you.”

It will inspire the players this