Spring football focuses on fundamentals
The kids knelt in the end zone near the crossbars as a coach explained to them on a whiteboard one of the defenses they were going to run, and the responsibilities of each player.
You wouldn’t ordinarily see this during the fall, as time is too precious. But this is spring, where the game scores are written in the sand, washed away with the first rain.
They are the North Fort Myers Crusaders football organization, who play in an 11-man spring league with four teams spread throughout kids age 5-14.
The team is part of coach Ron Kelly’s organization called In The Zone, which also holds a football camp in the summer and is not affiliated with Pop Warner.
The teams are comprised of kids who play football year round, or those who may be thinking about it and want to see what it’s like before taking the big plunge.
“It’s a league designed to go over the fundamentals and start a process toward the regular season. We try to get first-year players here and those who are getting ready for the next level,” said Christopher Reeves, one of the coaches.
The practices are less intense and slowed down so the basics can be taught and the kids can grasp them. With few rainouts, the coaches can go over footwork, hand and body placement and conditioning, things they may not have time to review in the fall.
That doesn’t mean they don’t tackle. The Mitey-Mites spent most of practice in full contact drills.
Reeves’ players are getting ready for the junior midget level. He said his team is a hybrid of current junior midget players and pee-wee players. Those players will be going back down to pee wee come the fall, so the competition against bigger and better foes will hopefully pay dividends.
Rudy Mack, in his third year playing football, said spring football helps get him more prepared for the fall, when he will be a receiver.
“I like to think of it as being just as competitive as the fall. I use it to get myself stronger, build my skills and teamwork,”
Mack said, who also plays basketball and soccer. “I want a better understanding of how the game is played.”
Logan Manley, 11, a running back, is one of the pee wees moving up. He said the adjustment has been difficult.
“I want to get stronger and better shape. I learned we need to work better as a team to win,” Manley said. “Most of the kids are bigger than me, but the coaches help me through it. This will give me more confidence when we play bigger kids.”
The games are quicker than Pop Warner. They play four 10-minute quarters with a running clock except the last two minutes of each half. There are no special teams.
Reeves said spring football gives teams an edge come fall. His teams have reached the Peace River Conference championship game in the previous two seasons he coached.
“It sharpens their skills and gives them an idea what they will come into in the fall. The coaches in the fall are out here for us. The other teams we play do not,” Reeves said.