Back to work

By Mike Bowen
Times West Virginian

FAIRMONT August 06, 2008 12:07 am

— This week has been on the minds of West Fairmont football players ever since that cool November night that spelled the end of the season for the Polar Bears.
West opened its 2008 football camp Monday and fourth-year head coach J.L. Abbott is pleased with what he’s seen so far.
“It’s been great so far,” Abbott said. “We’ve mainly just been working on lining up and techniques. We’re only in helmets and shorts, but I’m real pleased with what we’ve done so far. The kids have a good attitude.”
The Polar Bears’ numbers are up again, with 49 varsity players attending practice this week, the most of Abbott’s tenure.
“We’re sitting at around 49 varsity-wise,” Abbott said. “That’s the highest its been in four years. The ’06 team had good numbers, but I’m pretty sure this is the most.”
Among those 49 players are plenty of veterans with varsity experience under their belts.
That includes returning quarterback Logan Moore, as well as running back/linebacker Remington Skarzinski and plenty of skill-position players.
A big addition to the team is Polar Bear basketball standout Kyle Raikes in the receiving corps.
“We’ve got a nice team,” Abbott said. “Line-wise we’ve got four starters back, five if you count Daniel Wade who was injured for several weeks last year.”
Abbott praised his veterans in the trenches for their work.
“Those guys are really taking a leadership role,” he said. “They know what they’re doing and show it during the individual drills.”
During the offseason, the Polar Bears have been hitting the weight room hard, according to Abbott, and have come into the season ready to return to the playoffs.
“You can really tell they’ve been working,” Abbott said. “We were hitting between 40 to 45 guys in the weight room three days a week over the summer. A lot of kids went to camps.
“This is just a good group of kids. They want to work hard, and that’s the best thing you can have.”
The next milestone will be suiting up in pads and full contact practices beginning next week.
“There’s no moaning going on,” Abbott said. “This group likes to run and lift, and that’s two great big positives to have.”
E-mail Mike Bowen at mbowen@timeswv.com.

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