Greyhounds won't let heat beat them

By Scott Nuzum

Herald-Tribune

FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- One of the 115 Greyhounds on the sideline remarked Friday afternoon's practice that it was "only a couple of degrees cooler than Hell" at Fort Scott Community College's football practice.

But although the Greyhounds worked out for about 2 1-2 hours in heat that was 95 degrees at the end of practice at 5 o'clock, first-year head coach Rion Rhoades is making sure his players don't suffer from the effects. There were frequent water breaks, all of them at least five minutes long. Also, the players are encouraged to drink plenty of water all day long, not just during practice.

"We've really placed a major emphasis on hydration and protection from the heat," Rhoades said. "We're taking more frequent water breaks. And we have the guys equipped with a water jug they carry around so they can drink water in the meetings. We have a couple of cold tubs for after practice so they can bring their body temperature down. We spent about 30 minutes in our opening team meeting for camp going over the ways to keep yourself out of trouble with the heat."

FSCC started with 123 players at the first day of practice Monday. Although they've lost a few players, they've also gained a few, most notably 2006 Fort Scott High School graduates Stephen Doherty and Jacob Lawrence. Both former Tigers had signed with Coffeyville Community College but decided after one day that that wasn't the place for them.

Out of the remaining 115 players, only 55 can be on the regular-season roster according to Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference rules. Of those 55, 43 must have graduated from a Kansas high school.

"We'll need to know Aug. 24," Rhoades says. "We'll load the bus the morning of the 25th to head to (Navarro) Texas and we have to have our roster certified before we leave."

The Greyhounds face Navarro in their season opener at 7 p.m. on Aug. 26. They will play their first home game and KJCCC contest against Coffeyville, Sept. 2, at 7 p.m. at Frary Field. The home opener pits Rhoades against the team he assisted the last two seasons.

Since classes don't begin at FSCC until the 21st, the Greyhounds will have more opportunities within the rules to prepare for their opener than most other conference teams. Some KJCCC schools begin school as early as the 16th.

"We'll have a good extended fall camp," Rhoades noted.

National rules required that schools work only in pads and helmets the first three days. The Greyhounds, therefore, didn't get to work out in full gear and engage in full contact until Thursday. Also, teams can't have two-a-day practices on consecutive days. Thursday, the 'Hounds practiced twice. Friday, they could only go once. Saturday, they were allowed to go twice again.

"The NCAA went to that about four or five ago," Rhoades said. "This is the third year for junior colleges."

Looking at 115 players every day and only having seven practices as of Friday to acces them, Rhoades still sees progress being made. It's started off slowly as the new staff brought in a lot of new players looking to reestablish the tradition that the FSCC had, particularly in the 1960s and early 1970s and for a short time in the early 1990s.

"(The progress) is slow but I feel like there have been some solid steps," Rhoades said. "It seems like a teeter totter. One day, the offense will have a good practice. The next day, it's the defense. That's fairly typical for football teams this time of year. We need to find a way to be consistent.

"Our condition is not great, so we're going to continue to work hard on getting into better condition, especially on the offensive and defensive lines. I feel like we're taking good steps."