The Gatewood Gators’ football team will wrap up summer practices this upcoming week.
They will soon start the Georgia Independent School Association’s “acclimation period.” It consists of a week’s worth of practices leading up to the start of fall camp, which is when the Gators will start preparing for the 2022 season.
Gatewood head coach Jeff Ratliff is ready for the season, stating his players have been hitting the weights since the start of the offseason in January.
“We’ve been lifting weights and have had a pretty good summer,” Ratliff said. “We lift four days a week - Monday through Thursday - but took the week of July 4th off. The way we do it is that we lift hard on Monday (and) Tuesday. We use Wednesday as a conditioning day, and then we come back and lift again on Thursday. We’re fortunate, though, because we can have weightlifting throughout the year. We are lucky to have a P.E. class at the end of the (school) day that I am able to get most of our football guys involved with. It’s been kind of a continuation of that (since the start of offseason).”
Gatewood has competed in a few 7-on-7 competitions outside of hitting the weight room and lifting. Those camps gave the Gators a chance to finally go up against other schools such as Warren County and Briarwood Academy.
Ratliff stated that as far as on-the-field stuff, his team’s “been limited” because of GISA rules, so that time spent on the gridiron has been “valuable.”
“We’ve done a little bit of an install and have focused on what we can get accomplished with our 7-on-7 (competitions),” Ratliff said. “I’m not a big 7-on-7 guy, but I also know that it has some value. What we’re trying to do is work on the passing game, and of course, our DBs (defensive backs) get a lot of work in that type of competition. We’re slowly trying to piece together what we’re going to do. Hopefully, that will be a little bit of a carry-over.”
He also wishes to have the full installation of both the offensive and defensive schemes finished by the start of the acclimation period, which begins on July 25.
According to Ratliff, the summer is all about “getting stronger” as the fall approaches.
“That’s what we have been up to,” he said. “We’re trying to get stronger, stay in shape and get these players ready for the late summer, and early fall. That’s when we know it’s going to be warm. We know heat is going to be an issue - but at the same time - we’ve got to have some mental toughness at some point here. That’s as we put our pieces together while getting them ready for August. The (upcoming) season is going to be here before we know it.”
The Gators will open up their 2022 season against the Trinity Christian Crusaders on Friday, Aug. 26 at home in Eatonton. The kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.