Patton High School will have a varsity football team this year.
Head coach Billy Whisenant said the program has seen a steady group of about 30-35 players coming to summer workouts through June and July. He believes that will be enough to field both a JV and varsity team.
“Our plan is to do both,†Whisenant said. “Injuries and things could happen along the way that disrupt us being able to run two teams. But our plan is to run, particularly a varsity season all year.â€
Patton football coach Billy Whisenant, center, watches his team practice last summer in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥.
Even if injuries do disrupt the JV season, Whisenant said is committed to providing his upperclassmen with the opportunity to play varsity this fall. He said his players need that challenge after a year with only JV football.
“I have five or six, seven juniors on this year’s squad,†Whisnant said. “There’s going to be a jump, we recognize that, but I feel they are ready to compete. They want the challenge.â€
People are also reading…
Patton didn’t have a varsity team last fall due to low numbers, particularly in the senior and junior classes.
Patton football players run a passing drill during a practice last summer at Patton High School in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥.
“My junior class last year, I had one (player),†Whisenant said. “That one class sets back everything. When they arrived here, they only had three or four who had played and by the time I got here, it was down to one.â€
He said he tried to recruit some upperclassmen, but it’s hard to bring in someone at the varsity level who hasn’t played before.
“It’s difficult once they get that far along and haven’t played,†Whisenant said. “Football is difficult to jump into. It is hot in the summer. They’re teenagers and they’re going to be seniors and it’s the first time they’ve ever done it. They don’t know what they’re getting into.â€
Whisenant said calling off the varsity season last year was a tough call, but he believes it was the right one.
Patton head football coach Billy Whisenant, center, encourages a player during a practice last summer in ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥.
“It is very, very hard for a ninth grader to jump in,†he said. “There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, most of them, their bodies have just not matured.â€
Even fielding a JV team was a struggle last year. Whisenant said he had 14 players who suited up for the first JV game. A few more joined the team throughout the season.
“They’ve had a year to develop,†Whisenant said. “They got a lot of reps last year. We played eight games and the majority of them pretty much played every snap.â€
Whisenant said the team is still young. He has three seniors this year and will still likely start a significant number of ninth and 10th graders even at positions on the line. However, he said the program is in a better position than it was last summer. He also said his team has a few other things going for them.
“The one thing you’ll see with my team, is they fight,†he said. “They fight to the bitter end, and they hate to lose. Those middle school coaches, before I got here, didn’t lose a lot and so losing, to (these kids), is disappointing. They don’t like to do it.â€
That hate-to-lose mindset showed on the JV field last season. Those 14 ninth and 10th graders who suited up for the first game, ended up leading the squad to a 5-3 season.
