Written by BY KEVIN DUKE Monday, 29 June 2009 03:11

7Man Passing League Gains Value

CELINA,TX -- Never has there been a more relaxed group of coaches on the sidelines of a football game than those that were in attendance at the recent 7-on-7 state qualifier at Old Celina Park. On one sideline Pilot Point's quarterback's coach, Rob Best, talked with Bearcat fans as his team played in the semifinal, while on the other, Melissa's new coach, Seth Stinton, and his staff were sitting in lawn chairs enjoying the action as was Aubrey head coach G.A. Moore. The coaches were relegated to observer status because UIL rules do not allow them to coach their teams during the summer tourney. According to Best, the tournament developed out of drills used by coaches during the season, that allow for the skill position players to work on routes and catching the football. "It was a way to practice the offense and help the skill players to get better," he said. "Then they fashioned the league and the state tournament out of it." The Bearcats have been playing 7-on-7 since the beginning of June, participating in a Tuesday night league in Denton. "The kids like playing down there because they're playing some of the bigger schools," Best explained. "It's a little tougher, but they like the competition." The Bearcats are using the summer to improve their offense for the upcoming season, actually practicing routes they will use in the fall. "Some schools that are run-oriented, like Gunter and Celina, will put together plays here that they probably won't use during the season," Best said, "but they still get the benefit of the competition and getting in some extra practice on the passing game." Stinton has his first head coaching position at Melissa and agrees that the competition is the greatest benefit for his players as two-a-days draw ever closer. He also believes the 7-on-7 format gives his players the more concrete benefits of working on offensive and defensive schemes. "The offense gets some good work in, but I really like what it does for the defense," he said. "The kids get to see different routes, use different zones and man-to-man coverage, so our linebackers and secondary learn a lot about what area they're supposed to be in and the different coverage packages we might run." Moore, who is the all-time winningest coach in Texas High School football history, is taking over at Aubrey after sitting out the past four seasons. He thinks the main benefit to the kids is the chance for them to be together and get to know one another better before practice begins in the fall, but that assessing their skills is difficult in a touch football setting. "We really won't know how they're going to do until we put on the pads and start hitting," Moore said. "That's when we'll find out about them more as players."

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