The Seminole football team blitzes into the season as they begin to reap the merits of their preseason work. Those two months over the summer are paying off as they held the lead in the preseason game prior to cancellation at halftime and won 32-14 in the first game of the season. The physical training isn’t the only thing the team had to worry about during the summer; the mindset of athletes is as important as the hard work they put in on the field.

Coach Kerry Wiggins says, “It’s effectively all repetitions. If we’re repeating physically and mentally the same things over and over, that allows it to be easier for our guys to comprehend and achieve whatever goals they’re working towards.”

The few weeks separating the preseason and the regular season differentiate two different forms of practice. The importance of the preseason game is to give the team more time to practice without having to worry about games every week. Because of this, they can focus much more on all the fundamentals, which like in any sport is what leads to the high level of play the athletes can achieve.

Varsity junior Steele Conlin says that their state of mind is extremely important while they practice. “[It’s] all about getting your mind right. You just have to think about your goals for the actual season. Win for [both] yourself and your team.”

The team has another reason to practice hard this season as they mourn the loss of beloved assistant coach Ronald Moore. Moore sadly passed away early after the 2014-2015 school year, and members of the Seminole community are mourning the loss of such an intrinsic part of the football team.

“[Coach Ron] was a big part of the team. He was my defensive line coach, and without him on the team, it’s just going to be kinda different,” says Conlin.

Even with the loss of their coach, the team continued to push on into the season. They worked that much harder, in order to honor the memory of Coach Moore in the team he spent so much time helping out.

Varsity senior Daravious Perkins adds, “This season was dedicated to Coach Ron. We just work hard every day in practice, like he would have wanted.”

As Coach Wiggins says, “Our team motto is one day at a time. We just want to be successful each day, and take every opportunity to be good and get better than we were the day before.”

With all the hard work the team has put in already, getting in the proper mindset will surely allow the Fighting ‘Noles to take this season, one day at a time.