|
|
|
Business News
Independence, MO —
In years past, this night signaled a final chance for the Fort Osage football team to see how it measures up against other teams before the official start of the season.
But this year, the Indians bucked tradition by electing to NOT participate in one of the area’s jamborees. Instead, they hosted a series of scrimmages between all of Fort Osage’s Pop Warner teams and high school squad. In between scrimmages, the pep band played and the cheerleaders and Indianettes performed.
While jamborees often feel businesslike with several teams rushing to get in the maximize amount of plays, things seemed festive at Fort as the community turned out in mass to celebrate the start of school and the return of football.
“For me, it was great for the community to all come out on a beautiful night and cheer on all our activities – not just football,” Fort Osage coach Ryan Schartz said. “... I thought it was a very positive thing for us, and it sure beat getting on a bus and going somewhere else and getting 18-19 plays and then coming home.”
The night started with the high school squad greeting the younger Pop Warner players as they strutted onto the field for their first taste of the Friday night lights.
“That was just awesome,” said Fort senior defensive back Darby Raines. “I think they loved it. They loved the environment. I think they thought playing on the field was just the coolest thing ever. They’re going to remember that for a while.”
There was also serious work for the Indians to attend to as the coaching staff drafted the varsity squad into two teams for the Red-White scrimmage. The White squad – sparked by a 19-yard touchdown run by junior Josh Patton and a 44-yard TD reception by senior tight end D’Vante Mosby – earned a 12-0 victory.
Mosby, who is returning after sitting out last year with an injured wrist, continued to emerge as a major preseason storyline by snaring two passes from freshman reserve quarterback Skylar Thompson for 61 yards.
“Obviously he has D-I size,” said Fort starting quarterback Steven McBee. “He can go out there and catch a ball and get a D-I offer – that’s how big he is. If you put how athletic he is with how big he is, it’s just an unbelievable matchup.”
McBee struggled a bit under center, losing a fumble on a botched handoff and throwing an interception on a pass he admitted he tried to do too much on after missing an open underneath route.
In years past, this night signaled a final chance for the Fort Osage football team to see how it measures up against other teams before the official start of the season.
But this year, the Indians bucked tradition by electing to NOT participate in one of the area’s jamborees. Instead, they hosted a series of scrimmages between all of Fort Osage’s Pop Warner teams and high school squad. In between scrimmages, the pep band played and the cheerleaders and Indianettes performed.
While jamborees often feel businesslike with several teams rushing to get in the maximize amount of plays, things seemed festive at Fort as the community turned out in mass to celebrate the start of school and the return of football.
“For me, it was great for the community to all come out on a beautiful night and cheer on all our activities – not just football,” Fort Osage coach Ryan Schartz said. “... I thought it was a very positive thing for us, and it sure beat getting on a bus and going somewhere else and getting 18-19 plays and then coming home.”
The night started with the high school squad greeting the younger Pop Warner players as they strutted onto the field for their first taste of the Friday night lights.
“That was just awesome,” said Fort senior defensive back Darby Raines. “I think they loved it. They loved the environment. I think they thought playing on the field was just the coolest thing ever. They’re going to remember that for a while.”
There was also serious work for the Indians to attend to as the coaching staff drafted the varsity squad into two teams for the Red-White scrimmage. The White squad – sparked by a 19-yard touchdown run by junior Josh Patton and a 44-yard TD reception by senior tight end D’Vante Mosby – earned a 12-0 victory.
Mosby, who is returning after sitting out last year with an injured wrist, continued to emerge as a major preseason storyline by snaring two passes from freshman reserve quarterback Skylar Thompson for 61 yards.
“Obviously he has D-I size,” said Fort starting quarterback Steven McBee. “He can go out there and catch a ball and get a D-I offer – that’s how big he is. If you put how athletic he is with how big he is, it’s just an unbelievable matchup.”
McBee struggled a bit under center, losing a fumble on a botched handoff and throwing an interception on a pass he admitted he tried to do too much on after missing an open underneath route.
But Schartz said that wasn’t a major concern, choosing instead to focus on the solid play of his defense. Raines and senior Sterling Place snared picks and junior defensive lineman Tauai Tuala registered a sack, a QB hurry and made a handful of tackles.
“I thought defensively there was some real solid play in the secondary,” said Schartz, whose team is coming off a 10-2 season that ended with a 7-6 loss to eventual state champ Staley in the Class 5 quarterfinals. “I thought our linebacking corps looked really good at times. Without looking at the film, it just seemed like defensively we were pretty fast to the ball. We made some plays on offense, but I felt like our defense was a little bit ahead.”
The Indians now have less than a week to prepare for their season opener at Park Hill South. The Panthers, who are playing their first season in the restructured Suburban Middle Six Conference, finished 4-6 in 2011 and lost 28-0 to Fort in their season finale.
“This early, you never feel like you’re completely ready,” Schartz said. “But I think if we work hard next week and put some things together we’ll be fine. ... But it’s just hard to say.”
