ROCKINGHAM — Richmond Senior High School’s football practice fields were buzzing early Thursday morning as the first official day of the 2019 football season got underway.
Always “an exciting time of year” according to third-year head coach Bryan Till, the Raiders continued their busy summer regimen starting at 8 a.m. with both the varsity and junior varsity programs participating in practice.
It’s no secret that football season never really stops for Till and the Raiders, but Thursday marked the countdown to kickoff for the upcoming season. Under the guidelines of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association, Richmond can now practice six days a week and will be in full pads and tackling starting next Wednesday.
“The first day went really well, it was really exciting out there today,” Till smiled. “The older guys set a good tempo for the younger guys, who are starting to respond. There’s so much energy on the first day and the key is to corral that energy and do the most you can with it.
“And we did do that — we had great energy,” he continued. “What we wanted to establish today with the guys is we want to be able to do that day in and day out so it doesn’t get old. It’s a lot more fun when we foster that type of environment.”
The Raiders have kept busy over the summer, participating in numerous camps, home 7-on-7 scrimmages, as well as two premiere 7-on-7s, one at UNC Chapel Hill and the other being the Powerade Invitational in mid July.
As the team prepares to enter its third season under Till, a lot of the building blocks of the program are already in place. That makes the transition into another season less dependent on learning the basics and more beneficial in perfecting more specific goals.
“The first two seasons saw a lot of install,” Till explained of changing schemes. “Now from a coaching standpoint, we’re looking at taking the next step. Our kids know the system and we’re trying to perfect the little things and get better situationally.”
He added that the maturity level of the program is much greater, and that the team is still “fundamentally driven” despite having success the past two seasons.
The Raiders worked on an assortment of drills Thursday, turning the focus from the summer’s 7-on-7 format to a more total team dynamic. Till explained that 7-on-7s focus primarily on the passing game, so the coming weeks will see more whole team concepts, including the running game and special teams.
The team broke into position groups halfway through practice, seeing position coaches work on speed, agility and position-specific skills with players. Special teams and two-minute drills were also run, something Till added as being key to getting ready for the start of the season.
With the clock ticking closer to the Raiders’ season opener on Friday, Aug. 23, at home against Clayton High School, the primary focus over the next three weeks for Till and company will be simple: progression.
“Between now and the beginning of the season we’re looking for progress,” Till explained. “We want to see growth from scrimmage to scrimmage and game to game. It’s an old coaching adage, but the most growth comes between the first and second game.
“For us to get better and make it past the third round (of the playoffs), we need to see growth and progression all season,” he added. “It’s tough when your opposition changes week to week, but we’re working on getting better.”
Richmond will continue practice on Friday, its second of two required days in helmets only. Saturday, Monday and Tuesday will see helmets and shoulder pads before full contact and tackling will begin on Wednesday.
The Raiders will participate in their first preseason scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 10, at Lee County High School starting at 9 a.m.
