Two days.
The countdown to the Dodge City Community College Conquistadors football team's home season opener against Trinity Valley continues, and the turf over at Memorial Stadium will be new to the numerous fresh faces for the Conqs this season, including first-year offensive line coach Brandon McCray.
McCray, who earned battle scars as a lineman at Lakeland College in Sheboygan, Wis. before stints as both an assistant and head coach in Illinois and Missouri, takes over a Conqs offensive line that allowed the most sacks of any team in the Jayhawk Conference in 2008.
But McCray said though there's still a lot of work to put in, this season is going to be different.
"We still got some work to do," McCray said. "It’s a work in progress but those guys are working hard and they're doing everything I'm coaching them to do.
“Once we gel together, I think we're going to have a very successful line because we have some very good skill guys in the backfield and also at the receiver position and we have to make sure, as an offensive line, that we take care of our quarterback and open up the holes so we can run the football.
An immediate weakness McCray saw when he arrived in Dodge earlier this summer was the line's chemistry. He said he'll continue to strengthen the ties of the group as he pairs two returning starters with three freshmen.
"That's been the biggest thing — getting those guys to gel together and work together as a unit,” McCray said. “Once they develop that camaraderie with each other and gel as an offensive line, I think we're going to be very successful."
Justin Bright, a 6-foot-3-inch, 280-pound Macksville product and returning starter, will suit up at right guard again for the Conqs this year, while Mankato-native Mitch Martin will anchor the line at center for the second year in a row. McCray said sophomore Jordan Sterling should also see playing time at both the center and guard spots.
Six-foot-3-inch, 350-pound freshman Brantley Luke will take on the right tackle job and McCray said he's looking for Luke and the other first-year guys to step right in and protect quarterbacks Justin Heard and Lane Kendall.
The summer has been highly competitive for the offensive lineman as each jockey for position in the race to be a starter, and McCray said that same ongoing battle will continue each and every practice.
"We want those guys to compete every single play out there and get better," McCray said. "And once we come out here and put our pads on, we work to win every single play."
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Two days.
The countdown to the Dodge City Community College Conquistadors football team's home season opener against Trinity Valley continues, and the turf over at Memorial Stadium will be new to the numerous fresh faces for the Conqs this season, including first-year offensive line coach Brandon McCray.
McCray, who earned battle scars as a lineman at Lakeland College in Sheboygan, Wis. before stints as both an assistant and head coach in Illinois and Missouri, takes over a Conqs offensive line that allowed the most sacks of any team in the Jayhawk Conference in 2008.
But McCray said though there's still a lot of work to put in, this season is going to be different.
"We still got some work to do," McCray said. "It’s a work in progress but those guys are working hard and they're doing everything I'm coaching them to do.
“Once we gel together, I think we're going to have a very successful line because we have some very good skill guys in the backfield and also at the receiver position and we have to make sure, as an offensive line, that we take care of our quarterback and open up the holes so we can run the football.
An immediate weakness McCray saw when he arrived in Dodge earlier this summer was the line's chemistry. He said he'll continue to strengthen the ties of the group as he pairs two returning starters with three freshmen.
"That's been the biggest thing — getting those guys to gel together and work together as a unit,” McCray said. “Once they develop that camaraderie with each other and gel as an offensive line, I think we're going to be very successful."
Justin Bright, a 6-foot-3-inch, 280-pound Macksville product and returning starter, will suit up at right guard again for the Conqs this year, while Mankato-native Mitch Martin will anchor the line at center for the second year in a row. McCray said sophomore Jordan Sterling should also see playing time at both the center and guard spots.
Six-foot-3-inch, 350-pound freshman Brantley Luke will take on the right tackle job and McCray said he's looking for Luke and the other first-year guys to step right in and protect quarterbacks Justin Heard and Lane Kendall.
The summer has been highly competitive for the offensive lineman as each jockey for position in the race to be a starter, and McCray said that same ongoing battle will continue each and every practice.
"We want those guys to compete every single play out there and get better," McCray said. "And once we come out here and put our pads on, we work to win every single play."
