It’s not about winning ... until the season begins

During the summer, occasionally, football players can get out of shape, so throughout the summer, high school coaches will organize 7-on-7 camps to get their players back in shape ahead of the season.

Some 7-on-7 camps focus on competition, awarding teams with trophies, T-shirts and other memorabilia.

But Northside head coach Kevin Kinsler wanted things to be different for his 7-on-7 camp Thursday.

“Everybody here, all the teams, it’s about getting reps and getting better,” Kinsler said. “If you do it right, you can get reps and get better at your craft out here if you’re not worried about scores and trophies.”

That’s the philosophy of all the teams that were invited. Dooly County, John Milledge, Howard and Central were among the teams at the camp.

Another added advantage to the camp is that it gives the coaches a chance to evaluate their players ahead of the preseason. Howard head coach Barney Hester said he was appreciative of the chance to further evaluate his players. He has a lot of young players who will need to step up in key positions.

“Our thing is we’re out here trying to get better,” Hester said. “You’re in the weight room, and you’re going against yourselves all summer, but when you get the opportunity to go against somebody else, those juices start flowing, and you want to compete.”

Hester is just happy to be able to get his players, especially at the skill positions, some competition against other teams. As his program continues to grow, Hester appreciates all the time he can get to continue to see what players fit where in his scheme.

John Milledge head coach J.T. Wall is losing 11 starters from last season, but he doesn’t see this year as a rebuilding year. And he welcomes the opportunity to evaluate his players on a competitive scale.

“You look at a small private school, we don’t get the same looks as some of these guys,” Wall said. “With depth being an issue, it is great to come to these things and see some speed that you’re probably not going to see all year long and try to pick some things up.”

No one really focused on who won the most games in the camp. The most important thing is winning on Friday nights, and this camp is just a starting point.

“On Friday night in the fall, how many 7-on-7 trophies you got doesn’t mean a thing,” Kinsler said. “It’s what you do on Friday night during the season, and that to us is why we do it.”

This story was originally published July 21, 2016 at 9:50 PM with the headline "It’s not about winning ... until the season begins."