#HSFT22 Stop #8 – Smithville Seminoles

Smithville was led by a big senior class last year, now that they are gone, the responsibility falls on many of the juniors.

“Our juniors are having to be our seniors this year and next year also,” coach Chad Collums said. “They’ve done a very good job of stepping in for those seniors last year.”

Practices in the summer give the younger guys valuable playing time so that they will be ready in the fall.

“A lot of us are really young and not many people played varsity last year so we’ve been really getting a lot of reps in for guys who didn’t play last year,” junior Barker Obrian said.

Collums is giving plenty of reps to junior quarterback Chandler Brunetti and is doing everything he can to put him in a position to succeed.

“We’re changing the offense this year a little bit to fit the kind of kids we’ve got and Chandler brings a whole new aspect to that offense,” Collums said. “He’s able to throw the ball, run the ball and I’m excited to see what he can do this next season.”

Brunetti will make a huge impact on the field but will also be the person his teammates look to for leadership in the tough times.

“You know, letting them know that I’ve got their back,” Brunetti said. “Of course all the other guys have their back too but as the quarterback you got to step in and be the leader and let them know that you’ve got them.”

One thing is clear, this Smithville squad is ready to get back into action.

“Just the excitement in the morning, the guys will wake up and it’s like seven o’clock and they are like that’s great, they are pumped up and ready to work out,” Brunetti said. “They are ready for the season. I haven’t been to too many places where people were excited at seven a.m. jumping around like crazy, I don’t know about that. Those guys are crazy but I love them to death.”

The Seminoles are thrilled to be back on the field but aren’t looking too far ahead.

“We’re going to take it one game at a time,” Collums said. “There is a lot of excitement in the locker room and the weight room. These guys have been working their tails off this off season, so I’m expecting big things out of this group.”

Smithville will be led by it’s youth this year, heading into the season ready to show that their time is now.