The Eagles Open Practice at War Memorial Stadium.
August 2, 2010
The Arkansas Baptist Eagles opened fall football practice in an unusual way. First-year head coach Brad Helm surprised the team this morning, telling his players to board the school bus parked near the gym.The players didn’t know where they were they were headed, but confusion gave way to excitement as the Eagle squad exited the bus, made its way down the tunnel, and onto the turf at War Memorial Stadium. “This is where we want to start the season and this is where we want to end it,” Helm said. The Arkansas Athletics Association holds its divisional state championship games at War Memorial every December. “We want to establish a championship program and it starts with getting and keeping our focus as coaches and players.”
Helm knows what he’s talking about. As a high school sophomore, he started at fullback for the state championship Fort Smith Southside Rebels. He also earned championship rings while coaching under Gus Malzahn at Shiloh Christian and Springdale High School, but Helm isn’t the only coach with championship experience. New to the staff is Bernie Cox, the longtime head coach at Little Rock Central High. Cox retired from Central but joined the staff to help coach running backs and linebackers. “Coach Cox is so humble he won’t tell me about all the championships he won,” Helm said. Defensive coordinator Andy Stallings also earned championship rings playing at McGee.The team opened with stretches and then worked on offensive positions. Sophomore Jack Easby-Smith is set to start at quarterback and welcomed the season’s first practice, “This is amazing. What a great way to start off two-a-days.”The team ran seven-on-seven passing drills before coming together and practicing team offense. Coaches were pleased with their players’ focus early on. Mixed in throughout the morning were plenty of water breaks in order to battle the effects of the heat. The team managers kept players sufficiently hydrated between plays as well.
The Eagles will install a new defensive scheme during two-a-days. It’s a simplified system that relies heavily on technique and all 11 players getting to the ball. The team is blessed with a defensive line that has both size and experience. Likewise, the linebacking corps and defensive backs showed flashes of speed, concentration, and aggression during drills.The team finished out practice at War Memorial and then spent the afternoon in the film room. For video and more pictures from this morning’s practice visit the Arkansas Baptist Facebook page.
