By Blake Colston
Sports Editor
Mother Nature made Piedmont wait another week to have its first full scrimmage of the preseason.
The Wildcats traveled to Cache last week, but rain and lightning brought an abrupt end to the varsity scrimmage after just six plays.
“I liked what I saw in those six plays,” head coach Jeff Hall said. “But it’s hard to tell much from that.”
Piedmont will take another shot at hitting someone other than themselves Thursday evening at Millwood. The Falcons have won six state titles since 2000. They advanced to the second round of the Class 2A playoffs last season.
Hall said Piedmont, which will rely on a strong sophomore class this season, has had an excellent camp to this point.
“I feel like our culture is really good. The kids are hard workers and our chemistry is great,” he said. “This is probably one of the more positive camps we’ve had.”
The varsity should take the field about 6:45 Thursday night and will play one full quarter against Millwood’s varsity.
“Defensively, I want to see us be physical and show great effort. That’s something we really hang our hat on,” Hall said. “With what we do offensively, execution is the key for us, so I want to see good execution.”
NAMES TO WATCH
James MaGuire
A four-year starter, Maguire can wreak havoc along the defensive line for the Wildcats.
Glendon Barnes
A 6-foot-4, 270-pound right guard, Barnes is a key cog responsible for opening holes for Piedmont’s flexbone to run through.
Jacob Anglin
The junior will start at safety and running back for the ‘Cats, so he’ll have plenty of chances to be a playmaker this season.
Josh Mars
The younger brother of former Piedmont standout Joey Mars, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound sophomore is poised to take over the starting quarterback position this season.
COVID-19 STILL A CONCERN
With a spike in COVID cases around the state, Hall said the team is doing its best to follow all protocols to avoid having players miss practices or games due to quarantine.
“I think some people may have become a little complacent in regards to (COVID),” he said. “But we’re still doing everything we can to make sure players stay healthy. We will do what we can and control what we can control.”
Piedmont had three games canceled last season due to COVID protocol.
