By Staff
Kim West, Franklin County Times
HAMILTON – The Russellville High School football team capped off its summer competition schedule on a positive note by winning the 7-on-7 passing camp tournament held July 19-20 at Hamilton High School.
The Golden Tigers defeated Hamilton, Gordo, Florence, Aliceville and Phillips on Thursday and Friday en route to a 6-1 record and the camp championship.
"We played better here than at the last camp (at UNA)," Russellville coach Doug Goodwin said. "Of course, we had some people that we didn't have at the first one. We had some people who played better this time, too. I thought they all played pretty good. We had one little lull there against Gordo, because we were up by three scores at halftime, but then we dropped a few passes and busted a few coverages."
Goodwin said a passing camp helps evaluate players on the defensive side of the ball, too.
"You find out which quarterbacks can anticipate and put the ball in the right spot, and you get to see receivers running man-on-man routes," Goodwin said. "But a 7-on-7 camp helps defensively, because you can tell right away who can cover and who can't. It shows your weaknesses in your pass coverage with your linebackers and secondary."
He said the Golden Tigers will alter their coverages based on the type of offenses they face.
"We run different combinations of pass coverages, and we run several different coverages," Goodwin said. "A lot of that depends on what you're facing – it's sort of like playing chess or checkers. If you move, I move."
Goodwin said speed is his team's greatest strength.
"We'd rather be fast than big, even though we'd like to be big, fast and mean," Goodwin said. "We want to run to the ball, and get as many as people there as possible."
He said some teams use special offenses or defenses at passing camps in an effort to win tournaments, but he disagreed with that philosphy.
"We try to work on things at the camps that we'll actually use," Goodwin said. "What good is it to win a passing camp if it doesn't help you win regular season games?"