Toe the line
O-lines adjusting despite lack of experience, time on the field
In asking high school football coaches prior to the preseason where their biggest area of on-the-field concern was, many responded that the offensive line was the one unit with the most question marks.
Having not played a game in nearly two years and with most players returning having never seen a varsity snap, you could understand why coaches would worry about a unit dependent on repetition and cohesion.
While quarterbacks, receivers, tight ends and running backs got to at least play 7-on-7, linemen were left attending linemen challenges which do little to replicate playing in a game.
“One of the challenges I have noticed and having talked to some other coaches, they are noticing too is that skill players got to do the 7-on-7s and got reps at their positions,” Newtown coach Bobby Pattison said. “It is the development of the line, both offensive and defensive, that is going to be the biggest challenge for a lot of teams. We are still sorting out who will be on our line, as I’m sure a lot of teams are. That’s a big factor for teams.”
Offensive lines work best when moving and functioning in concert and the best lines have practiced and played together for years, seeming to move as one entity.
Getting back to that level of unity will take time after the layoff endured by football due to the pandemic.
While the coaches worry about that, the players have found a stronger bond with their cohorts on the line this preseason because of the amount of time they spent together off the field working toward getting back.
“To be honest, it was not as hard as we thought it would be,” Trumbull right tackle Cooper Dayton said. “During the long break with COVID and the offseason, coach (Marce) Petroccio got us in the weight room and we got a lot of chemistry together in that time. Once we got on the field, it was all there.”
Trumbull is aided by the fact the offensive linemen have played together for years in youth football. Four of the five starters are seniors, with one junior.
Coaches have seen the copious time in the wight room translate on the practice field as well.
“The thing I have been the most impressed with this preseason has been our offensive line. I am really excited about those guys,” Danbury coach Augie Tieri said. “We worked really hard with those guys. During COVID early on we were very cohorted and limited in the number of guys we could work with. We sent a lot of the skill guys off to run track and we isolated and brought together our offensive line and devoted all our energy to those guys.”
Tieri said that while they could not play football, they could improve areas of themselves to make them better once they hit the field.
“Our main focus was developing their mental and physical toughness,” Tieri said. “We had them in the weight room and saw that as a place to build chemistry. Early on in camp, that work has shown. They came together and became a tight-knit group and you can see a lot of that translating to the field as far as the execution of the schemes and the energy they bring to practice.”
Norwalk senior guard Sebastien Pierre said he felt the same strong sense of the bond already existing amongst the line, despite the time not being on the field.
“We’ve all been in the weight room together and spending so much time together it wasn’t an issue for us to come out and
mesh together,” Pierre said. “As soon as the 2019 season ended and coach (Pat) Miller became our coach, we have been in the weight room since then.”
Pierre said the team’s first scrimmage was a major milestone for the players being back on the field against a team in different colored uniforms than their own.
“In our first scrimmage, we don’t have a lot of experience on varsity, so there were jitters. But after the first drive it all came back and felt so normal to be playing. We just locked in together,” Pierre said. “We are learning a new offensive system and then we need to focus on little things like getting used to the cadence and some of the run plays where we move more, but it has been great being out there.”
While the bond is there early on, the timing of certain plays is still being worked out.
“We needed to work on the little things like getting the ball out faster, screen plays and other quick, timing plays. That is where we have to do the most work,” New Canaan tackle Ned Brady said. “The timing stuff you can’t work on unless you are going full speed in pads. It’s an experience thing, too. We only have two players coming back that started varsity games. That timing and learning how to play varsity football fast is the biggest thing right now for us.”
East Haven coach Scott
Benoit said he had the same concerns of many coaches about the offensive line, especially with the school’s weight room closed for so long during the layoff.
East Haven was not alone with many schools keeping their weight rooms closed even once in-person learning returned last school year.
“None of them played in two years and we were out of our weight room for over a year. I wasn’t sure what to expect when they came back,” Benoit said. “The lack of experience and lack of varsity snaps is the biggest challenge. Once our kids could, they got back in the weight room and they did a great job over the summer working hard and forming a great bond.”
Benoit said despite all of that the offensive line has been impressive this preseason, but the only way for more improvement is to play in games.
“While the layoff was devastating here as it was in many places our offensive line has been the best unit on our team in the preseason. It’s great to see,” Benoit said. “Not having any varsity snaps among the groups is going to be tough. We went against some good teams in our scrimmages and it was good to see our guys compete. We played as much as we could in the preseason just to get guys more reps. They need games.”