By Jason Avery
News-Times Staff
With the official first practice of the 2018 football season six weeks away, Smackover continues to learn the nuances of the offensive and defensive schemes brought in by new coach Brian Brown.
Thus far, everything is going smoothly.
“Our kids have showed up. That’s the main thing,” Brown said. “That’s let us put in some things. We’re just happy they’re showing up every day. We’ve gotten a lot accomplished. We’re excited about the toughness of the kids and getting going.”
On Thursday, the Bucks competed in a 7-on-7 tournament at Camden.
In pool play, the Bucks knocked off Malvern before falling to Camden Fairview 37-35.
In tournament play, Smackover downed Union County rival Junction City before coming up just short in a 27-25 loss to Magnolia.
“We had a good day,” Brown said. “Everybody did a good job. It was really hot, but I thought we played well. You’re going to have your ups and downs, but we played well. We just ran out of gas against Magnolia.”
Smackover’s performance in Camden comes on the heels of a third-place finish at a 7-on-7 last week at Arkansas-Monticello.
In that event, the Bucks collected wins in tournament play over Monticello and Dewitt before falling to Benton in the semifinals.
“We were pleased with the kids,” Brown said.
“We played seven games, and we had to play a couple in a row. We didn’t have as many kids as everybody else, but we were excited about the way they played in 7-on-7.”
Brown also was pleased with the Bucks’ showing at a team camp at Lafayette County earlier this month.
“Our guys did a really good job there,” Brown said. “We got some stuff out of it.”
A key addition to Brown’s coaching staff was the hiring of his son, Kevin, who is the offensive coordinator.
“The kids have really responded to him,” Brown said. “He’s done a good job.”
And while the installations of the offense and defense are ongoing, one area the coaching staff has begun to focus on is building depth.
“As a coach, you’re never really happy,” Brown said.
“We’ve gotten in the things we’ve wanted to. We’ve still got some special teams stuff that we’re working on.
“One of our main deals is looking for depth at certain positions. We’re really working on that in 7-on-7 and even our team camps.”
With the dead period approaching, Brown said he was taking a wait-and-see approach on any camps or 7-on-7’s the Bucks may participate in later this summer, but he has been happy with the numbers that have been out and the progress the team has made.
“We’ve gotten a lot more out,” Brown said. “Our job is to get them here every day, and they’ve been showing up. We’re just trying to get some offensive and defensive stuff in.”