EXCITEMENT ABOUNDS AS UNION OPENS FALL PRACTICE

Union defensive back Landen Wood listened to more music during the past weekend than he usually does. “It gets me pumped up,” Wood said. “I like classic rock, that gets me going before football games — I’m a Linkin Park guy.” Wood and his teammates were pumped up for the opening day of fall football practice late Monday afternoon at Union-Tuttle Stadium. “I’m very excited about this day,” said another senior starter, tight end Lawrence Harris. “It’s been a long time.” Harris was referring to the Redskins’ last game, a 57-43 victory over Norman North in the Class 6AI state final last Dec. 2. As the Redskins gathered for practice Monday, this year’s opener — televised by ESPN at Broken Arrow — was only 19 days away. Kirk Fridrich, starting his 11th season as the Redskins’ head coach, is always glad when fall practice arrives. “Without a doubt, I don’t think there’s any football coach who isn’t excited about getting started today,” Fridrich said. “Obviously the weather (84 degrees at the start) is awesome. “I’ve said this for many years, we don’t get in this to lift weights, and have offseason, we do it to play games. When we get started, it’s always exciting knowing we’re getting ready to scrimmage or play a game.” Fridrich didn’t see a letdown from his team during the offseason following Union’s first state title since 2011. “It (spring and summer) was about as good as we’ve had in probably three or four years,” Fridrich said. “Our kids worked very hard and I enjoyed seeing them become a cohesive unit and leadership emerge. Whether we won it last year or didn’t, the expectation around here is to win championships.” A big question entering fall is who will emerge as the starting quarterback after Grady Davenport graduated. “All three guys have all been battling and doing a good job — if we had a slight edge, it would go to Peyton Thompson right now, but we still have a good competition with Cade Farquhar and Tyler Fisher,” Fridrich said. But choosing a starting quarterback isn’t the only thing on Fridrich’s to-do list in fall practice. “We’re trying to find a solid rotation within our offensive line,” Fridrich said after graduating four seniors there. “In the spring we played guys at several different positions. To find who those five or six guys are in the next 10 to 12 days is key for us.” Fridrich said a pleasant surprise during the spring and summer has been senior receiver Avery Alverson. “He really came on and we’re really excited about and proud of what he’s accomplished,” Fridrich said. Wood and Harris said they didn’t get much sleep the night before fall practice. “We won a gold ball, we celebrated for a week and then we started working on the next season,” Wood said. “I’m so excited.”

EXCITEMENT ABOUNDS AS UNION OPENS FALL PRACTICE

Photo Credit: Ian Maulet

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