PITTSBURG, KAN. -- For Prairie Grove football, there's no place like Kansas.
The defending 4A-1 Champs and state runner-up Tigers returned to Pitt State Coach Tim Beck's Team Camp for the third consecutive summer and improved in all areas while also putting one of its players on the Gorillas' recruiting radar.
"We like to get all of our kids here because it is a lot of fun and a great camp," said Prairie Grove coach Danny Abshier. "It's really competitive and it's a great community, nice little hometown USA. Beautiful campus and these coaches really care about making sure they all learn and have a good time."
The three-day camp from June 9-11 featured multiple practice sessions with several 11-on-11 live scrimmages in between. As the lone Arkansas team playing against prep programs from Missouri and Kansas, Prairie Grove's varsity squad posted a 3-0 record while the junior varsity team went 1-1.
Facing unfamiliar opponents gave the Tigers several different offensive and defensive looks that they had to adjust to on the fly.
"Some people run a spread [offense], some people run a three-man [defensive] front, some people run four-front, and that's what we like about it," Abshier said. "It's a great variety. And also how they run their offense or defense is different, so that's good to see.
"Identifying what they're doing as quickly as possible -- it's good for the coaches as much as it is for the players."
After being limited on practice time during the spring because of rain and other factors, Prairie Grove needed the team to iron things out.
"What I liked the most about the whole thing is how much we improved," Abshier said. "When we started, it was almost disgusting because we couldn't even run our base stuff. I was like, 'What? This is our base stuff. We can't even do this?' And then all of the sudden we're opening huge holes and running everything the way we should."
Because of depth at the skill positions, several players were playing positions for the first time and still learning plays. That contributed to the sluggish start.
"We're still kind of scrubbing on 2 or 3 guys at different positions and learning what they're supposed to be doing, so a play sometimes won't work when one or two guys haven't done it as much, so that kind of messes it up," Abshier said.
What messed with all 12 teams at the camp was the weather and afternoon sessions had to be switched from Carnie Smith Stadium to the Gorillas' indoor facility, which was air conditioned.
"The heat really got to us," Abshier said. "I mean, who was ready for this? We hadn't seen 90 degree temperatures all spring and it's 90-plus degrees and we're on the turf, so it's zapping us and everybody else that's here. No one was in shape for that, but I noticed that once a cloud would stay over for a little while or it cooled a bit in the evening, boy, the moods went way up."
A player whose recruiting stock went way up was senior Jack Stone, a chiseled 6-foot-5, 230-pound defensive lineman. He caught Pitt State's coaches' attention almost immediately.
"Honestly, their head coach told me, 'We're liking Jack,'" Abshier said. "And then two of their [assistant] coaches I've known for a few years ... they said we like this guy a lot and I could tell because they were working with him a lot, showing him how to use his hands and they like his mobility.
"One of their coaches said he's 250 [pounds] like that [snapping his fingers], so they like what they see in him."
Abshier liked what he saw in a number of players, including Zeke Laird, who's taken over the quarterback position. Laird looked like a senior quarterback with his summoned of the offense and in the leadership he displayed such as when he would high five each teammate involved in opening up holes on big gains.
"Zeke Laird came down here and ran every snap at quarterback and ran every play because two of our other QBs didn't make it,' Abshier said. "He's a sharp guy, He's like 30 something on the ACT and he just got back from West Point where he stayed a week up there and got to see what it's all about. He goes there and they're liking him, and we've been liking what he's been doing for us."
Perhaps one of the best aspects of camps like this is the amount of time players spend with one another. After a three-hour bus ride to the campus, they checked into a dorm where they all bunked on the same floor.
Abshier said he enjoyed watching team chemistry grow and credited upperclassman with setting a positive example.
"It is a good thing, although it'll drive you nuts sometimes in the dorms," Abshier said. "They don't have a whole lot of down time in this camp, eating, resting a little bit or practicing and heading to the next one, so it's busy, busy. But it's good because the relationship they have with one another just keep getting better and better.
"Especially the young guys, the freshman that are moving up as sophomores, they're not sure what it's all about, but our upperclassmen have welcomed them with open arms, so it's good for us all. That camaraderie is good to see."
Sports on 06/15/2016