Looking for depth, Rockies still ready for the new season
PLYMOUTH — To say the least, Plymouth’s Rockies want to erase their memories of a COVID plagued season.
A return to the classroom and the field has helped that process, especially for head coach John Barron.
“It’s a complete 180,” he said. “Just getting back to school and see kids’ faces in the hallway it’s totally different. Sometimes I have to double-take because I don’t recognize them without a mask. It’s a world of difference.”
Another big difference-maker for the Rockies was having a regular off-season. Team’s use that critical time to improve physically in the weight room and to take part in activities designed for team bonding. The Rockies are happy to have that back.
“We learn a lot about our seniors on our senior trip,” said Barron. “It’s just a few of us coaches and them, camping for a few days. You get to really know who your kids are as more than just football players. They get to know their teammates as more than just teammates. I think it’s a very important time for our program.”
When the Rockies hit the field for the summer, the offense was a pleasant surprise. After last week’s scrimmage, Barron is leaning towards the defense being a little bit ahead of their counterparts.
“I would have said the offense was ahead of our defense a week ago but there is no question that our defense played better (in the scrimmage),” said Barron. “There’s a number
of reasons why. One thing is that we see a lot of different schemes in the teams we scrimmage and you don’t take time to prepare for each one of them on offense and defense in the summer.”
“We’d seen Adams before and we knew the kind of offense LaPorte runs so you can’t make excuses that you’d never seen any of it before,” he said. “You just want your kids to compete. You can see competitive kids and the ones that are locked in.”
The Rockies also have made a slight adjustment in the defensive alignment, that hand forced by circumstances out of their control.
“We started in a three-man front and we had some injuries,” said Barron. “To run a 3-4 you need some really, really good guys upfront because it’s three on five and they get tired. You need at least three other guys, that are just as good to bring in because they are getting double- teamed most of the time.”
“We didn’t have enough guys,” he said. “That fourman front is what we will play to start but the three-man is still something that we will do.
The Rockies also have five starters back on that defense, including a newcomer that will be a big help on the defensive front.
“Joey Garcia is a guy you
are going to talk about a lot,” said Barron. “He’s a powerful, explosive, and tenacious player. He’s a hard worker, a tough kid, and very likable. And he will get after you.”
“The problem we have right now is finding some depth,” said Barron. “We will probably have more guys playing on both sides of the ball than
we ever have before. We have some injuries that are causing us some problems depthwise.”
Interestingly another difference-maker — especially with the football in his hands — is another Garcia. Veteran Rockie Devante Garcia will see time on both sides of the ball.
They aren’t related but they are both very good,” said Barron. “He’s (Devante) very explosive. He is a difference-maker. He is a competitor. He’s not going to back down from anyone. He’s the guy we want to get the ball to in space.”
“Everybody talks about the quarterback and Lennon
Creighbaum is our quarterback,” said Barron. “He has to stay healthy, he has had a great summer for us. He is a big strong kid. He can run. He can throw. But this will be his first time as a starting quarterback.”
Some injuries are also clouding the rotation at another key spot — running back.
“Kwintin Heiny is the guy,” said Barron. “It’s a position that will be under a microscope our offense won’t function unless we have a tough, hard-nosed running back giving everything on every play whether they have the ball or not.”
“We’ve had a ton of injuries there, Kwinton has dealt with some injuries over the years too. Hopefully, we can sort that out.”
The Rockies open with East Noble and Kokomo at home then hit the road for NLC contest number one, visiting Warsaw.