Prep Football Training Camps: Excitement and sadness for Milan
MILAN − William Gaskell V couldn't sleep Sunday night.
Jesse Hoskins felt a pang of sadness.
And both were excited for what the next day would bring.
Under a cool, gray sky, Milan's football team met on the field Monday for the first day of practice and the official start of the 2023 season. It was both a new beginning and an ending.
“It's a little bit of a mourning period," Hoskins said. "Just because, I love what I do and I'm so excited to get it going, but we know as a family that once this day hits until hopefully until Thanksgiving, you're fully immersed in it. It's not just me, but my wife, my kids, my family, and everything in our lives has to revolve around putting a lot of effort into this.
"And it's totally worth it."
The excitement and the nerves were palpable as the Big Reds got right to work at 9 a.m. sharp with little pomp or fanfare sometimes befitting of the day. Under dark clouds, the team dug into a review of defensive formations and system install that started earlier this summer.
Milan had two camps over the summer, including team camp at Hillsdale College in July. That process laid down the foundation and the expectations for this year's group that is replacing quite a few starters on both sides of the ball, especially along the offensive and defensive lines.
“Like eight or nine of our starters last year were seniors. Most of our line were seniors,” Gaskell said. “So, we have a lot of young kids and only seven seniors. A lot of young kids need to step up, but I think we’re ready.”
Gaskell is one of those seniors and has taken a leadership role early on. He is the first on the field and the last one off during two-a-day practices.
“I’m focused on being a good leader,” he said. “Me and other seniors are just trying to be all-around good people and good human beings. We know the younger kids are going to look up to us.”
Defensive drills and special teams work dominated the first part of Monday’s practice. Breaks came in short waves that allowed the action to move at a nearly nonstop pace. Hoskins and his assistant coaches always had at least one player under the wings at any time.
After two hours, both varsity and junior varsity players came huddled together to hear from their coach. It was the first day, Hoskins said, but not really their first day. Hoskins was pleased with how much they retained and how quickly they fell into the flow of practice.
“Don’t be afraid to make mistakes,” Hoskins told them. “What I want you to be afraid of is to mentally not be engaged and to make a stupid mental mistake, or to make the same mistake over again, or to not be giving full effort. That’s the stuff you should be afraid to do.
“… Know what you’re supposed to do, go as hard as you can, and learn.”
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Hoskins said that his philosophy is that by the time the team hits two-a-days, it is the third time they’re installing the system. There has been a lot of focus on being mentally prepared as the Big Reds have revamped their entire defensive game plan with so many new faces.
“I thought it was a really good start,” Hoskins said. “Starts are always bumpy, a little messy. We try to be as prepared as possible, but inevitably just teaching the kids how to practice and the tempo and the way we want things done is part of the early challenge.”
Milan’s practice was filmed almost entirely by a drone. It is not the first time Hoskins has used such technology to his advantage, but it has been a few years since they’ve done it. A few times during practice, Hoskins promised a player he would be able to review a mistake later on that video.
It’s phenomenal,” Hoskins said. “We like to film from a couple of different angles every single practice. Tomorrow we’ll watch it. … It’s a big part of the process. The kids have to learn from mistakes on film.”
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Prep Football Training Camps: Excitement and sadness for Milan
