Last year, the Archbishop Murphy Wildcats football team came up one game short of advancing to the 2A state championship game. This year, as they go through their summer football program, they look to take the steps to improve on that finish.
The Wildcats spent much of the month of June practicing and attending football camps, scrimmaging many of the local teams.
Archbishop Murphy started the scrimmaging June 11 at Snohomish stadium, going up against Snohomish and Glacier Peak. Coach Dave Ward said the teams scrimmaged for about three hours.
“It was a good strategy session, it was fun,” Ward said.
The following week the Wildcats backed off their practice schedule a bit as classes concluded at Archbishop Murphy for the school year. They then traveled to Bellevue for a scrimmage on June 18.
Ward said that the scrimmage at Bellevue gave him and the rest of the coaching staff a look at some of the things the Wildcats need to do to improve.
After each summer scrimmage the coaching staff would review film and go over it with the players individually in hopes of improving on mistakes they had made.
“It was a great learning environment,” Ward said.
The Wildcats also traveled to King’s the last weekend of June for another scrimmage. At the King’s camp, King’s, Shorecrest, Jackson, Lynnwood and Meridian were all on hand to get work in and take a look at the other teams.
Ward said he and the coaching staff got a chance to get a look at a lot of the younger kids in the program because many of the kids missed some of the scrimmages due to other activities.
“We can’t get enough of the experience that they gain from the scrimmaging,” Ward said. The seniors that are returning are really good athletes and they have been starters for two years now. They need the younger guys to be able to step up and play well too.”
The Wildcats travel to the Wenatchee football camp July 18-22. The Wenatchee camp features about 15 teams that will give the Wildcats a chance to see where they stack up against other teams in the state.
Aside from getting a look at some of the younger kids in the program, Ward has been impressed with some of his returning players as well. He said running back Randy Gordon “has been a force running the ball,” and quarterback Austin VanderWel has been “throwing the ball well and finding receivers down field.”
So far, Ward sees the summer as a success.
“We are pleased with their progress coming out of these scrimmages. We think we got a lot accomplished in June,” Ward said. “We still have a lot of work to do to get better.”
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