By Mike Hutchens
Communications Director
The clock struck midnight Sunday on Union City’s offseason football program.
One minute later, the Golden Tornadoes opened defense of their Class 2A state championship.
UC, which won its fourth title in the past nine seasons last December, officially began preparations for its 2018 prep campaign with a 12:01 a.m. first full-pad practice under the lights Monday in Columbia – an annual camp tradition the past decade during head coach Darren Bowling’s tenure.
A crisp, high-energy 90-minute session that began with physical one-on-one blocking and tackling drills – another staple in the program’s annual trip to Ridley 4-H Camp on the outskirts of town – opened the practice. Team offense and defense periods then followed on an unseasonable cool night with lower humidity, conditions that helped the spirit of all involved.
The yearly preseason excursion to a remote area where there are no other clubs or individuals is critical to not only preparation for the coming season, but also vital in team building, developing mental toughness and bonding prior to the routine of the season setting in, according to Bowling.
“This is where it all begins for us,” the Tornado skipper said Monday morning while monitoring a traditional conditioning practice that includes a one-mile run through the woods. “No question, camp has had something to do with every state championship we’ve won in the past. It answers a lot of questions coming into the season and shows us who we are and who we might be.
“Plus, it helps us come together and bond as a team. This is a beautiful place and you can isolate yourself from everything and focus on just football and relationships. We’re away from all the distractions and we do everything together. When we leave here, we’re a different football team than when we came.”
The Twisters will have multiple practices each day – some in pads, some not. There will also be numerous conditioning drills, weight room sessions at nearby Columbia High School and position meetings and “skull” sessions.
The players, who are housed in cabins by classes with a member of the coaching staff in each of those buildings, do get breaks at times and can swim in the evenings and enjoy ice baths to recover from the rigors of the season.
They are also fed well three times a day by staff members at the facility and have snacks, fruit and drinks readily available.
Such camps were a staple among football programs in and around the state a decade or two ago. They’ve long become nearly extinct in recent years, however, the victim of early school beginnings and a football schedule that this year that will see three games played in the month of August.
“There are a lot of conflicts that have made this impossible for other programs – like school starting so early and so much in-service. I talked to a coach yesterday who told me he’d love to come, but they had in-service at 9 this morning and would be starting school next week.”
The Tornadoes return a handful of starters on both sides of the ball off last year’s 13-win squad that beat Chattanooga Tyner for its first Class 2A championship after claiming three Single-A crowns.
And while its far too early to predict if UC will again be in the hunt for another Gold Ball, there is some promise and potential – if Practice No. 1 is any indication.
“Basically, what we always try to find out in our first practice in full pads is who will hit you,” Bowling added. “We obviously have based both our offense and defense over the years off our physicality, and that first practice lets me know which guys will ‘stick their noses in there.’
“That first practice is always our first major evaluation of what we have. And even though we have a long we to go, I liked some things I saw.”
“Every team is its own and each has to find its own identity, though. We had a good group last year that worked well together and everyone saw the results. Winning championships doesn’t come easy and there are a lot of intangibles that factor in. Camp can be a big part of that.”
Union City will see its first scrimmage action of the preseason Thursday when it stops on the way home from camp in Waverly for a three-way session with the Tigers and Wayne County.
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