As Tuesday turned to Wednesday, many teams around the state, including Adna and Morton-White Pass, kicked off their fall training camps with a midnight practice to celebrate the beginning of the new season.
Other schools, including W.F. West, didn’t take the field right at midnight on the first day, but the energy was still just as palpable hours later under the mostly cloudy Washington skies.
“Day 1’s always exciting,” W.F. West coach Dan Hill said. “We feel like we got a great opportunity this season with a great group of kids, just excited to get it going.”
As cheerleaders and students practiced chants and cheered the team on, Hill watched his players get their first reps of the fall in.
Hill has already seen several Bearcats in action during the past couple of seasons, as they bring back nearly all of their skill position players, including 2023 2A EvCo Offensive MVP Gage Brumfield and first-team all-league wide receiver Connor Coleman.
On the defensive side, Tucker Land is back, though he’ll spend most of his time as the mike linebacker instead of at defensive end, while Talan Meredith, Carlos Vallejo, and Grady Westlund headline an impressive front four.
“You’ve got the experience,” Hill said. “Now it’s just about fine tuning the tools and perfecting what you can do well.”
Hill specifically pointed out Brumfield, Westlund and Land, saying that he expects their leadership to have a positive influence both on and off the field.
“Anytime you get a senior group that is the nucleus of the team, it’s a trickle effect that just goes down the board,” Hill said. “You see it in the hallways, you see it in the classrooms … Our seniors are ready to lead that charge.”
Those three, along with the rest of the senior class, will come into 2024 looking to make a big splash in their final season. After starting 0-2 last season, the Bearcats won seven of their next eight to make it to the state tournament, where they ultimately bowed out in a loss to Highline.
“We’re looking at just picking up where we left off and charging forward,” Hill said. “We feel like we have skill guys that can go play with any skill guys … It’s our job to get them ready to go.”
