After wrapping up their team camp last week, the Iola Mustangs will put their progress to the test as part of an eight-team joint practice at the Humboldt Sports Complex Friday.
The Mustangs used Wednesday evening as a bit of a refresher course as they enter the season with a few familiar faces in new places while also looking to make a strong first impression on area programs.
“It should be a good time, and we should see a lot of different looks, a lot of different defenses and offenses,” Iola coach David Daugharthy said. “It should be fun. I feel pretty good. In four days, we covered a lot of stuff. Offensively, we are miles ahead of where we were last year.”
Doug Kerr will take over the head defensive duties this season after former defensive coordinator Trey Howard took over head coaching duties at Uniontown. With that, the Mustangs will implement a 42-style defense, which Coach Daugharthy said does not differ too much from last season other than some verbiage and assignments.
“Defensively, we have our base defense installed. And we still have a couple of other wrinkles we need to iron out,” Daugharthy said. “We’re probably also further ahead there than we were last year. A big part of that is the kids’ commitment. We had 37 of them out here last Wednesday. Last year, we had 25 — maybe.”
After taking over starting duties midway through last season, incoming junior Reed Clift took most of the snaps Wednesday. The Mustangs come loaded with talent in the skill positions, returning most of last season’s starters.
“I’ve been putting a lot of work in, especially at the quarterback position, so I’m excited to test my skillset against other defenses, making my reads and making good, confident throws,” Clift said.
For Clift, taking so many snaps this early on is a blessing. Last season, the Mustangs only had four seniors on the roster. This season, that number could more than triple and Clift is excited to see how they compete against another program.
“Our skillset is going to be up there with the best of the best in 3A,” Clift said. “If we can put the pieces together, commit and hit the ground running, I think we’re going to have a lot of eyes on us this year. I think we can have one of the best years in this program’s history.”
