It will be a couple of months before Greg Manior and the South Effingham High football coaching staff can get their young charges back on the field. That means the work they were able to do in spring practice bears even more weight.
The Mustangs capped their two weeks of spring drills with a scrimmage Thursday night at The Corral.
“There’s still a lot we’ve got to work on,” Manior said. “Some questions we had answered, but there are some things we’ve got to work on. There’s going to be no question as to who can make a run, who can block and who can tackle.”
For some of the Mustangs, the two weeks of spring was the most time they’ve spent at certain positions. Robbie Collum took the majority of snaps at quarterback as South Effingham looks to replace longtime starter Jeff Hamilton.
Collum, a backup quarterback a year ago and also a linebacker, is expected to compete with rising sophomore Ian Byrd when preseason camp begins. Byrd is with the baseball team as it takes part in the Class AAA state playoffs.
Collum scored on a 42-yard run on a quarterback draw, and Michael Woodward added a run of 70 yards.
“Robbie’s a hard-nosed kid,” Manior said, referring to the third-place finisher in the 145-pound class at the state wrestling tournament. “Once he learns what to do and learns the concept of the offense, he’s going to be all right.”
As Collum tries to get a grasp on a position he hasn’t played much since his freshman season, the same could be said across the field for South Effingham.
“We’re trying to fit guys in the right positions,” Manior said.
In watching the final scrimmage of spring, Manior was looking to see if they knew their assignments and where they were going. It was difficult for the offense to establish a rhythm as four of the first seven plays resulted in fumbles.
The Mustangs lost more than 20 seniors off last year’s team, so there are a lot of younger and less experienced players having to fill those spots.
“It’s important they understand the rules of what we’re trying to do,” Manior said. “It’s a good opportunity for a lot of these guys to show. A lot of times, they don’t get the repetitions, but they got a whole bunch this spring.”
