WO-S preparing for heat, repeat

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WO-S preparing for heat, repeat

Van Wade

The Orange Leader

High school football season is approaching in a hurry.

The first official day of Texas prep football practice cranks up Monday and without question, a lot of preparation has got to go into it.

At West Orange-Stark, equipment manager and assistant coach Ed Dyer along with trainer David Shaw are making sure that everything will go smoothly come Monday morning at 8 a.m. when the Mustangs report for the first time.

“That first Monday, everything is pretty hectic,†Dyer said. “You have to have all your ducks in a row, that’s for sure.â€

The Mustangs basically have two equipment rooms, a small one that basically has all the game-time things such as game jerseys. The massive equipment room has stuff ranging from shoulder pads, rib rolls and mouthpieces.

“When we issue out equipment, the kids usually get two different bags, a Monday-Wednesday-Thursday bag and a Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday bag,†Dyer said. “You have to do that, so that things can get washed up at the right time, you certainly don’t want a staph infection floating around the fieldhouse, that’s just bad news.â€

Being the main equipment man can certainly be a chore throughout the school year. Dyer has checklists and monitors an abundance of football gear including helmets, shoulder pads, thigh pads, knee pads, girdles, hip pads, butt pads, neck pads, rib rolls, arm pads, hand pads, practice pants, practice jerseys, game pads, game jerseys and game pants.

“Without a doubt, this is a job within itself,†Dyer said. “I learned from the best. Coach (Cornel) Thompson, I think, handled equipment for 40 years and he’s always right there for pointers. Once you find the right system, it all gets fairly easy.â€

So what equipment gets changed the most during the first several days of practice?

“It’s usually the helmets,†Dyer said. “You have to have a helmet that fits properly. That’s something you can’t have being too tight or too loose.â€

For head trainer Shaw, he has constantly had a busy summer.

“A lot of the supplies we order for the upcoming season comes in during the summer and I’m stocking it and arranging it all,†Shaw said. “We’re constantly getting tape and bandages and such.â€

Of course, the trainer is always worried about kids getting the right items to thim before school starts.

“Before school ends, I always preach to the kids about getting their physicals completed,†Shaw said. “Without a physical, you can’t do anything. I harp on kids to get it done as soon as possible and that way we’ll have everyone on file and in our system.â€

Shaw has also stayed busy with the summer recreational program.

“We’ve had a tremendous turnout all summer long and I like to be involved in everything,†Shaw said. “It’s getting to be that time of year when everything gets busy. Volleyball season starts next weak too and the cheerleaders come to me to be taped up as well. It’s a steady job that’s going to get a whole lot busier real soon.â€

The Mustangs will get equipment at 8 a.m. Monday and will also meet in the baseball stands for head coach Dan Hooks’ “State of the Union†address. They will also hit the weightroom and run the Mustang Mile until 10:30 a.m. They will show back up to practice from 4 p.m.-6:15 p.m. The rest of the first week practice will last from 4 p.m.-8:30 p.m. with a break in the middle.

WO-S has two scrimmage dates set. The Mustangs will travel to Mont Belvieu to face Barbers Hill Aug. 18 with the freshmen starting at 5 p.m. followed by the junior varsity and varsity. WO-S will play host to Vidor Aug. 25 with the freshmen starting at 5 p.m. followed by the junior varsity and varsity.

WO-S will open the regular season at home Aug. 31 against Dayton and will also face Little Cypress-Mauriceville and Bay City in non-district before opening its defense of the District 21-3A title at home Sept. 28 against the Hamshire-Fannett Longhorns.

The Mustangs have yet to drop a district game since they moved down to Class 3A three seasons ago. WO-S finished 11-1 last year and return four starters on offense and three on defense.