SOUTH LAUREL CARDINALS FOOTBALL 2024(5) “….NEXT YEAR…”

 It is a few depressing weeks after football season ends, until the start of Christmas Vacation.  Everyone is torn between talking about the season that just ended, and the thing constantly talked about by all teams, …..”next year.”

The players have already put away the 2024 season, and are all quietly looking forward to “next year.” The current seniors are finally coming to grips with the fact that high school football is over forever for them.  Anyone that has gone through that, certainly understands the pain, during this time.  Once we return to school in January, its kind of like….”blast off!”  2025 will officially be underway.  

In that downtime, coaching never stops.  I have taken the opportunity to have “Exit Meetings” with each player and coach, one-on-one.  Those meetings are very productive.  It’s a chance to evaluate the past season on a personal level, and help steer them forward into 2025.  The players are all at a different level of development, thus a different level of personal goals for 2025.  Some players are returning starters.  Their goal is to improve to a new level.  Maybe to be All-District, or All-State level players.  Maybe even to earn a college scholarship.  Some players are pushing to be a starter next season.  To make that jump into the line-up for that first Friday in the fall.  Some young players are simply trying to make the team.  Which will be a tough task in the future, as our level of talent rises.  Whatever the goal for each player, it’s a time for me to help them crystalize what they need to do to achieve it.  It’s a process that moves through the Off-Season Training Program, into Spring Football Practice, Testing in the Weight Room, and into Summer Training Camp before it can be a reality.  It is a day-to-day process.  And each day is big.

Its also a time to meet with our coaching staff, review our depth chart (minus current seniors), and discuss moving certain players to a new position.  Our goal will always be to win every game, so to do that, we need to be able to put the best 11 players on the field.  It is time to meet as a staff, put changes we want to make into practice, and travel together to coaching clinics, so we can grow and improve as a staff.  It is also time for a series of meetings, to prepare for Spring Football.

The Cardinals WILL return for 2025, and if anything has been stated by the 2024 team, ….. it cries out….. “We are coming…..!”

“……Next year….” Is already underway.

#WeComing

#Team56 #Hunt.