Spring football practice hit Day 9 Tuesday for the Lufkin Panthers as the team has a little more than a week to go before the spring game on Monday, May 13.
The Panthers, who are moving to a new district this year, are looking for a return to the post season and are using the spring practice to get ready for the fall.
“The biggest thing is making sure all the puzzle pieces are as close to being ready to go as possible,” Lufkin head coach Todd Quick said. “We have to answer our questions or at least get the majority of them answered.
“We’ve got 48 seniors, we’ve got a lot of kids that are upperclassmen and we’ve got to find spots for them, whether it be special teams or backup spots, we’ve got to find those guys and get them ready to go.”
Quick said at this point of the spring that every position is an open competition and an opportunity for players to step up and claim roles for next year’s squad.
“Every day they come out here they are competing for a spot, and they have to come out with that mentality that no spot is safe and you have to earn it every day you come out,” Quick said.
Quick said that so far he’s been pleased with what he’s seen from the defensive and offensive lines and that those groups are a big part of being successful.
“The defensive line is really coming on. We’ve got some pretty good size kids and they are really picking it up and controlling the line of scrimmage,” Quick said. “The offensive line is working hard and those two groups are really getting after each other. I think that’s going to be the meat of what we have with most of the guys coming back. That’s where the game is won or lost, in the offensive and defensive lines.”
With the other groups, including the skill positions, Quick said players have had a good offseason and put on some bulk and got bigger and stronger.
“They’re getting after it and they’ve got their jaws locked in and working hard,” Quick said. “We’ve got to fine tune it and they’ve got to relax and play, trust in each other and build that camaraderie with each. Each group has to work together.”
The Panthers’ have another week and a half of practice and the spring game is set for 6 p.m. Monday, May 13.
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The Panthers are still looking to schedule a game for Week 3 of the season, but the rest of the 2024 slate looks like this:
Aug. 23 — at Huntsville (scrimmage)
Aug. 30 — vs. Longview
Sept. 6 — vs. Nacogdoches
Sept. 20 — at Tyler
Sept. 27 — vs. Barbers Hill
Oct. 4 — at Beaumont West Brook
Oct. 11 — Open
Oct. 18 — vs. Baytown Sterling
Oct. 25 — at Port Arthur Memorial
Nov. 1 — vs. Beaumont United
Nov. 8 — at Galveston Ball
2024 Lufkin Panthers Baseball
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Lufkin 24-7 will now face McKinney North 19-5-1 in the AREA Round.