COMING
For the 16th consecutive year Times Free Press sports editor Stephen Hargis will travel across the Chattanooga area touring 20-plus prep football teams' practices on the first day the state allows them to work out in pads. Follow Stephen's day via twitter: @StephenHargis for live updates, online via the Times Free Press website or in Tuesday's sports section.
Teams across Tennessee beginning full-pads practices today is the surest sign the clock is ticking toward kickoff of the 2015 high school football season.
But as coaches find out who their toughest players are and which ones won't shy away from contact, it appears another old-school test of toughness is becoming outdated.
With the TSSAA monitoring player safety more closely, only nine of 26 area coaches said they plan to have two practice sessions in one day during the preseason.
"This is the first year that one of my teams won't be having two-a-days," said Tyner coach Wayne Turner, who has more than 30 years of coaching experience, including 25 with the Rams.
Turner said Tyner will have one morning practice session that will last a little more than two hours.
"We've got quite a few returning from last year that know what we're doing, so maybe it won't affect us as much as it would in some years," Turner said. "We'll just stay out a little bit longer than we normally would to make sure we cover everything we need to.
"It's good for the safety of the kids. A lot of kids don't keep themselves hydrated like they should, so this is a good way to prevent some heat exhaustion."
Like most other states, the TSSAA is following the suggestion of the National Federation of State High School Associations by instituting a new rule that states teams cannot practice twice in the same day on consecutive days. Also, no single practice can exceed three hours, and if a team opts to practice twice in the same day, coaches must give players at least five hours of rest between sessions and the combined time of those practices cannot exceed five hours total. Teams also are allowed to have contact in only one of the two practices per day.
The new rules are being put into place to minimize the risk of heat-related illnesses as well as concussions. Teams that continue two-a-days can only have them every other day.
Once the season begins, another rule teams across the state must adhere to is having full-contact activity (tackling drills, taking a ballcarrier to the ground or even having a "competitive tempo in pads") limited to 30 minutes each day and no more than 90 minutes per week.
"With us not starting school for a few more weeks, we've got that time to work and we're going to use it," said Boyd-Buchanan coach Grant Reynolds, who will continue putting the Buccaneers through two-a-days.
They'll have two-hour practices beginning each day at 8 a.m. with defensive drills. Players will return at 7 each evening for offensive-focused practices.
"We'll go full pads in the mornings and come back in shorts in the evenings," Reynolds said. "Another big change with kids today is that I don't think you get much out of them after two hours anyway, because their attention span isn't that long.
"I'm just an old-school guy, and I think we need to utilize that extra time while we have it before school starts back."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293.