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 “Our team has
great intensity, and each practice it gets better and better,”
senior defense end Eric Sutton said.
The 2014 squad
is just a couple of practices into their preparation for the new
year, the rest of the week is full with nearly three hour daily
workouts.
Senior Chris
Duong said the varsity team came ready to play this year.
“We’ve come out
with a lot of intensity,” Duong who will see plenty of playing time
on both sides of the ball said. “(We) want to play. Everyone is
excited to be here.”
But carrying
that intensity all the way through the season will be a tough task
for Duong, Sutton and the other seniors.
Lincoln did not
win a single football game last year.
Head football
coach Andy McDonald said the Central State Eight is one of the
toughest football conferences in Illinois. But he adds his team is
going to be ready for the tough schedule this year.
“We know every
game is going to be a tough game,” McDonald said after Tuesday’s
practice. “We’re going to expect every game, at all levels to be a
tough battle.”
The Railers
open the season August 29 at home against Springfield Southeast and
end the 2014 campaign against Springfield Lanphier. Both teams won a
combined three games last season.
But Lincoln
will also face off, in back to back weeks, against two defending
state champions.
Sacred Heart
Griffin went 14-0 in 2013, and Rochester High School went 13-1 on
their way to winning the 5A and 4A state football championships
respectively.
“I hope that
our identity is to be a relentless team. To be a physically and
mentally tough team,” McDonald said. “We will play as hard as we
can, as focused as we can, no matter what time of the game. No
matter the score.”
But the senior
leaders in the Railers are not looking to simply compete.
“We want to go
to the playoffs this year,” senior defensive back Ethan Kunkel said.
“I know those are big aspirations coming off of 0-9, but that’s
we’re working towards.”
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Before Lincoln
can get to the playoffs, or even win a game, the Railers will have
to identify a starting 11.
“There’s a lot
of work left to do,” McDonald said. “No one has won a starting
position yet. We’ve got a long way to go before we suit up and
compete on a Friday night.”
Lincoln first
must find a quarterback.
“We initially
planned on having a senior quarterback,” the senior Sutton said.
“But his plans changed during the summer. Now we have Garret Aeilts.
He’s doing a good job so far, but he just needs a little work.”
Aeilts, a
junior, has been splitting snaps all summer with sophomore Andrew
Yount.
Sutton said
there are also some holes that need to be filled on defense and
special teams.
McDonald said
he expects to fill those holes and answers those questions later
this week when the Railers put on the pads and starting hitting.
“Right now,
without having anything other than helmets, we’re doing a little
more conditioning,” McDonald said. “I’m looking forward to that on
Saturday. That’ll show how guys have grown throughout the summer and
the offseason.”
Lincoln has 10
games this year, five at home and five on the road.
The season
unofficially kicks off a week from Friday with the annual Meet the
Railers night.
Note:
Benjamin Yount
is a new correspondent for the Lincoln Daily News this season, he
will be covering Railer football. He is the father of Andrew Yount,
the sophomore who competing for a spot on the varsity team.
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