Football season is in full swing as the team closes out summer practice and begins preparations for their first scrimmage against the Panther Creek Panthers Friday at 7:00 p.m. at Panther Creek High School.

“Scrimmages are never about Us vs Them,” head football coach Matt Swinnea said. “Rather, it is Us vs Us.  Scrimmages are practices.  This is simply an opportunity to see ourselves compete against someone other than ourselves and to learn from both our successes and mistakes.  We will have some good and we will have some bad, but that’s why we scrimmage.  We are looking forward to it.”

After losing nearly half of their program at the end of last season due to seniors graduating and other various circumstances such as quarterback Keldric Luster transferring to McKinney High School, the team is in what Swinnea described as a “rebuilding year.”

“There is a really good attitude in the program and that is in no small part due to the progress made during the last three seasons, particularly with regards to competitiveness,” Swinnea said.

The team went 10-2 in 2021, losing only one game in the regular season against Frisco High School, sending them through to playoffs when they were knocked out in the second round.

“Our expectations are to compete for a playoff spot,” Swinnea said. “While we may be relatively inexperienced, we have the heart and will to turn challenges into opportunity.  We believe you get what you deserve, and we are working diligently to deserve good results.”

According to UIL regulations, teams are either allowed to hold 18 padded practices in the spring, or hold off until the fall and begin padded practice a week early, allowing for one extra scrimmage, making two scrimmages total.

With the Redhawks opting for an extra week in the fall, senior Will Jackson believes this choice will go a long way with his teammates.

“I think that if we had rushed ourselves into doing a bunch of stuff in the spring then we would have forgotten a bunch of stuff after the summer,” Jackson said. “With the extra time we have to refine everything now, I think now we are really ready to go, or as ready as we can be.”

Playing to their strengths will ultimately be the key to the season for the Redhawks.

“Our main goal is really just to use all of this time that we’ve had in practice and put it to work,” senior Alex Trevino said. “We’ve been working hard to memorize everything, work with our new players, and we’re all going to come out and play to the best of our ability.”