With several starters and second-year head coach Tyler Rickard returning to the Wildcats this season, Wright City has high hopes for the upcoming season.
The Wildcats return 17 starters on offense and defense from last year’s team that finished the season with a 1-8 record. Rickard stressed the team returns a solid number of players who have experience at the varsity level. They have solid senior and junior groups on the team this year. There is also the added benefit of continuity among the returning players and Rickard.
“There’s a lot of continuity that’s been built between me and the team,” Rickard said earlier this month. “And just the entire coaching staff for the most part. So it makes the transition super easy. We’ve been able to jump into things starting Monday (Aug. 8) and it’s been a relatively quick transition.”
The Wildcats have dubbed their offense Air Force. Their goal on offense is to own the sky and control the ground, Rickard said. They are moving to a five-wide offense.
“That means we’re going to try to throw the ball a little bit while still maintaining a good, strong run game,” Rickard said. “But we definitely want to get the ball out and get it to our receivers.”
The Wildcats have dubbed their defense Phoenix. Rickard noted this theme of rising fit well with the overall team theme this year. The defense’s slogan is 11-30, meaning 11 guys get to the ball every play and they focus on forcing the other team to punt without getting a first down.
The Wildcats have both short term and long term goals for the season. In the short term, Wright City’s goal each week is to go 1-0 that week and win the next game on the schedule. The team’s ultimate goal for the season is to strive to win a conference championship.
“Those are just some things that we set and that’s what we’re striving for,” Rickard said.
Rickard stressed the Wildcats are building to play their best football of the season at the end of the season. They want to be clicking at the end of the season to give themselves a chance to win in postseason play.
Rickard touted the team’s participation in the summer programs. He saw almost every player on the team over the summer. This allowed the team to hit the ground running early on in fall practices.
The Wildcats are set to begin their season at Winfield High School. Rickard is optimistic Wright City will be ready for the season opener. He specifically cited the number of returning players to the Wildcat team this season. Rickard stressed the difference between playing in a Friday night varsity game instead of being a reserve on the sideline or playing on the junior varsity team.
“For 17 of them to get experience to now come back, their eyes shouldn’t be so wide,” Rickard said. “They’ve done it before multiple times. So they should be able to step in. While you’re still going to get the jitters and you’re still going to get the adrenaline flowing, the game should slow down for them and that’s what we want. Because when the game starts to slow down, that’s when you’re more confident and that’s when you’re more capable as a player is when the game’s slow.”
Kickoff for Friday’s season opener is slated for 7 p.m.