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WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – A lot of tongues were dragging at the end of West Liberty’s Saturday afternoon practice session under the scorching summer sun at Russek Field.
And head coach Roger Waialae was loving it.
“I know the guys were feeling it out there today,” Waialae said after a second straight practice with on-field temperatures well into the triple digits, “but you need days like this in the preseason to build stamina and get acclimated to performing in the heat.
“Last year’s camp was one of the coolest we’ve had since I’ve been here and I think it had an effect when we caught a pretty warm day for our opener at Edinboro.”
With the players still going in helmets, T-shirts and shorts, the 2 ½-hour session opened with an extensive assortment of conditioning drills followed by an hour of offensive and defensive work led by various position coaches.
The highlight of the afternoon was the first 7-on-7 work of the summer. Not surprisingly, many of the Hilltoppers’ returning standouts appeared ready to pick up right where they had left off last November.
Senior QB Zach Amedro was on target with nearly every throw, connecting on numerous short, intermediate and deep routes. Returning senior WR Willie Walker hauled in a pair of 60-yard TD bombs from Amedro while fellow senior WR Ryan Travis worked his patented intermediate routes to near-perfection.
Senior letterman Pauly Ferguson and redshirt freshman Brandon Schroeder also got into the pass-catching act. Senior standout TB Kevon Calhoun looked sharp with sophomores DeVaughn Gordon and Arvin Bell also getting reps with the first unit.
Redshirt freshman Tyler Tucci and sophomore Chris Kiedaisch got most of the work under center with the “twos” and “threes,” along with true freshman Cody Cernansky. Tucci connected with Kevin Board, Vinnie Candelore and Lloyd Phillips during his stint while Kiedaisch hit Schroeder with a 60-yard scoring strike. Schroeder outleaped his defender to make the catch at the 20 and then won the footrace to the end zone.
Junior college transfer CB Justin Black impressed with his coverage skills and looks ready to challenge for a starting spot. Veteran LBs Clay Beeler, Mike Buffo and Freddy Kimbro obviously relished being back on the field and the outside safeties – Jayson Keyser, Lawrence Robinson and transfer Alec Wood – also looked sharp. True freshman FS Marco Ricchetti had two interceptions during the “twos” and “threes” session.
West Liberty sports information director Matt Watson was on hand to take pictures of Saturday’s drills. Here’s a link to Matt’s pictures: West Liberty Camp Photos - Aug. 14 .
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