The first football practice of the Dave Foster era began under a cloudy sky Monday at Dodge City High School.
“It went great,” Foster said about the practice. “We have a great group of kids coming back from last year’s team. And you add in some kids that didn’t play and a good incoming freshman class, it is definitely an exciting time for Dodge City football.
“We got a lot of work to do, don’t get me wrong. By no means do we come out and be great on day one. I felt like things were structured and the kids progressed.”
Foster took turns working with the varsity and junior varsity offenses, running through plays.
“Right now we are trying to get the framework so they understand how things work,” he said. “How you call plays, how you line up in basic formation. Your first three or four days are baby steps. Next thing you know, you have pads on and you are flying around.”
But Foster said building a team doesn’t take place just on the practice field. That is why 64 kids left the Dodge City weight room Saturday morning for a 30-mile hike to Jetmore City Lake, which took the team around 13 hours to complete, Foster said.
“We come out to practice, and every football team in the country practices,” he said. “You look for opportunities to truly build a team. When you do very difficult things as a team, it tells you a lot about the people you are coaching and the young men.
“Thirty miles is a difficult task … you just learn a lot about them. You learn what kids are tough, not only physically, but mentally when it comes to pain. I don’t know if we have any kids that went on that hike that are not in a tremendous amount of pain by the time we got to the end. The ability to continue performing the task at hand is what we are looking for.”
He added that he has done a hike with his teams six times in his 14-year coaching career.
“We don’t do it every year,” Foster said. “That difficult of a concept seems to carry you for two or three seasons. The reality, a lot of times it is my seniors’ call.”
A couple days later, the same players who went on the hike dressed in helmets, jerseys and shorts and took the field to try and continue on the football team’s success in recent years.
“You want to build excitement,” Foster said. “You want these kids to understand they are part of something special. Dodge City football is a very proud tradition. You would have to look long and hard to find one in the state of Kansas that has the type of tradition Dodge City has. We want our players to understand that.”
Last season, the Red Demons went 8-3 and won their first playoff game since 1994.
“You want to be good every year,” Foster said. “The true great programs never have a bad year, a down, down year. That is where you gain an understanding: Are we to that point? Are the kids to that point where they don’t accept failure and they are going to continue to battle through adversity?”
Foster takes over this year after being the head coach at Elk City, Okla., for the past eight seasons.
Dodge City will start its season Sept. 3 at home, facing off against Wichita Southeast.
“I want to produce a football team this community is proud of,” Foster said.
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The first football practice of the Dave Foster era began under a cloudy sky Monday at Dodge City High School.
“It went great,” Foster said about the practice. “We have a great group of kids coming back from last year’s team. And you add in some kids that didn’t play and a good incoming freshman class, it is definitely an exciting time for Dodge City football.
“We got a lot of work to do, don’t get me wrong. By no means do we come out and be great on day one. I felt like things were structured and the kids progressed.”
Foster took turns working with the varsity and junior varsity offenses, running through plays.
“Right now we are trying to get the framework so they understand how things work,” he said. “How you call plays, how you line up in basic formation. Your first three or four days are baby steps. Next thing you know, you have pads on and you are flying around.”
But Foster said building a team doesn’t take place just on the practice field. That is why 64 kids left the Dodge City weight room Saturday morning for a 30-mile hike to Jetmore City Lake, which took the team around 13 hours to complete, Foster said.
“We come out to practice, and every football team in the country practices,” he said. “You look for opportunities to truly build a team. When you do very difficult things as a team, it tells you a lot about the people you are coaching and the young men.
“Thirty miles is a difficult task … you just learn a lot about them. You learn what kids are tough, not only physically, but mentally when it comes to pain. I don’t know if we have any kids that went on that hike that are not in a tremendous amount of pain by the time we got to the end. The ability to continue performing the task at hand is what we are looking for.”
He added that he has done a hike with his teams six times in his 14-year coaching career.
“We don’t do it every year,” Foster said. “That difficult of a concept seems to carry you for two or three seasons. The reality, a lot of times it is my seniors’ call.”
A couple days later, the same players who went on the hike dressed in helmets, jerseys and shorts and took the field to try and continue on the football team’s success in recent years.
“You want to build excitement,” Foster said. “You want these kids to understand they are part of something special. Dodge City football is a very proud tradition. You would have to look long and hard to find one in the state of Kansas that has the type of tradition Dodge City has. We want our players to understand that.”
Last season, the Red Demons went 8-3 and won their first playoff game since 1994.
“You want to be good every year,” Foster said. “The true great programs never have a bad year, a down, down year. That is where you gain an understanding: Are we to that point? Are the kids to that point where they don’t accept failure and they are going to continue to battle through adversity?”
Foster takes over this year after being the head coach at Elk City, Okla., for the past eight seasons.
Dodge City will start its season Sept. 3 at home, facing off against Wichita Southeast.
“I want to produce a football team this community is proud of,” Foster said.
