Story: Hopatcong Football Heats Up

Since the end of the school year this past June, football players from have been preparing to duplicate or better the team’s 2010 performance.

Every morning during the week, about 50 players come to school early in the day to do a combination of weight training and speed work. Most haven’t missed more than a day or two. Those who have jobs make sure their work schedule doesn’t interfere with their football workouts.

None of the workouts are mandatory but the players themselves have made attending the workouts a priority. They remember the success the 2010 team had and they believe they will have just as much success, maybe more, as long as they work hard now.

Bill Fischer, a 2003 graduate, runs the weight room and speed workouts. He has been working with the team for about four years and each year the team has shown improvement on the field.

He believes, as does the football staff and the players, that the team’s success is a direct result of the work being done in the weight room and the speed training, which is specific to position development. Fischer is a graduate of East Stroudsburg University and has a degree in exercise science.

Last weekend, coach Gary Andolena took his core group of players, about 24, to Lehigh University for a seven-on-seven tournament with other high schools from New Jersey and Pennsylvania. No pads, just helmets. He was pleased with what he saw from his players.

According to Andolena, he might schedule a couple more seven-on-seven scrimmages with local high schools in addition to intersquad scrimmages.

Beginning on Aug. 15, though, the team will switch gears from weights and speed to all football.

That's the first day of the fall season. The first three days are helmets only and one three-hour practice is allowed. Days four and five are helmets and shoulder pads. Day six is the day players are allowed to wear full gear and will be the first day "two-a-days" are allowed.