Tigers Prepare for Football Season

The DeKalb County High School Tiger Football Team is preparing for their upcoming season, despite concerns that the season may be delayed or cancelled. The COVID-19 pandemic all but destroyed the 2020 high school spring sports calendar, and it is yet to be seen how the fall school year will be affected. As of yet, the TSSAA has not discussed altering the football season, which is slated for Aug. 21.

Tigers Head Coach, Steve Trapp, said that early practices held this June have gone well, although sessions had to be held in smaller groups. According to TSSAA requirements, the team is taking a couple of weeks off, but will return in July with a full schedule of pre-season activity leading up to the scheduled season opener at home against Warren County.

According to Trapp, this year's team has is a contender for the region championship, as long as the season goes on as scheduled. “We were allowed June 1 to get back to work in our summer program and that’s really four days after we would have normally started. We typically start in June, the Tuesday after Memorial Day, and we would have 19 days before the dead period. This year as far as scheduling goes the only thing that has been different is we had 15 days instead of 19. This summer we have had to group our guys and do things a lot differently as far as the way we got our work done, but the one thing I have told all the parents I have talked to, and the players, is we will get the same work done that we usually do in June. We just have to go through a different process.”

Trapp said practices are different this year due to the pandemic. “This summer we have had to break down our workouts into smaller groups with multiple practice sessions a day but by having them in small groups we were able to have two or three coaches working with them (10-12 guys) at a time on more of an individual basis. They might not have been able to do it that way if everybody was together. It probably made it a little easier on the guys because they got in and out sooner than what they would have and it was only 30 minutes longer for the coaches."

"There were a lot of positives on the structure we had to get in our practices but the biggest negative was that our whole team wasn’t together with that team bond and camaraderie that you have with your brothers. That is the one thing you start building in January and you continue to build all the way through the summer. The biggest positive is that we were able to get back with these guys and get to work a little bit and start preparing for hopefully a successful season,” he said.

“The dead period is the last week of June and the first week of July and that is always the case. We get away from each other for two weeks. We will come back July 6 and at this point as far as our July calendar all the events we would normally have are still scheduled but it’s a week by week thing as far as changes and what we are allowed to do. Over the dead period I will get more information from our local school system on if we will be allowed to get into more football-like scenarios with our team together. We need to get to that point because our season is just around the corner,” Trapp continued.

“I think everybody in the community is hopeful and wanting us to play football. I know I am and these kids are ready. We have a lot of experience coming back off a team that really made some noise last year at the end of the year. We have high expectations. We have a quality football team with a lot of quality guys and quality support. Everything is there for us but ultimately we have to make sure we do our part. As long as we stay healthy, hungry, and humble I think we will be okay,” said Coach Trapp.

The season is due to kick off on Friday, August 21 at DCHS against Warren County, followed by another home game against Upperman on August 28. The first road game will be September 4 at Stone Memorial in Crossville.