Gators concentrate on fundamentals

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on July 28, 2016 1:48 PM

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SEVEN SPRINGS -- In the far corner of the field, Spring Creek defensive linemen tested their reactions to snap counts.

In the middle of the field were the skill players, competing in a seven-on-seven scrimmage.

For Gators' head coach Aaron Sanders and his players, these drills served one main purpose -- cementing the fundamentals.

Sanders said the week before the first day of practice has been used for instruction and comprehension as opposed to conditioning. This includes getting a good grasp of the base offense and base defense.

"We use this week as a purely teaching segment," Sanders said. "We do that every year with our mini-camp. Obviously, you can't have any contact out here, so what we try do every year the week before practice is making sure everyone is on the same page."

Wednesday was the third and final installment of the Gators' mini-camp. Each practice was tightly structured in order to prevent heat exhaustion.

During a non-contact scrimmage, the team ran a handful of plays, followed by a one-minute water break. This process was repeated until the scrimmage was completed.

Sanders noted that team is much farther along than they were earlier in the week.

"We looked like we had a couple of weeks off," Sanders said. "We looked like that on Monday and we looked like that on Tuesday. We looked pretty good today. I would say at this point, this early, we definitely look better than we did last year at this time."

One reason for the improvement may be the chemistry among teammates. With several light-hearted jabs sprinkled into the sessions, players constantly challenged each other to get better, and applauded each other when great effort was shown.

Sanders explained that when players spend so much time together during a season, it's important that they develop sound relationships.

"A lot of these kids have played together the last two or three years," Sanders said. "This group of kids specifically, they got a lot of playing time together last year. They're comfortable around one another. We want them to enjoy their football experience."

As of right now, Sanders said the team's understanding of the playbook is coming along. He likes where the team is at, but knows the Gators are far from where they need to be for the first game of the season.

So until that time, the young Gators will continue to concentrate on the nitty-gritty details.

"I realize that we have a lot of work to do," Sanders said. "When I say I like where we stand, I'm not saying we've accomplished everything we need to accomplish. We still have a lot of work left. But I feel like the kids have a fairly good grasp of what we're trying to do."