By JOHNNY LEAVER
LA CROSSE — The game of football is all about experience.
This is very apparent at the high school level. The playbook expands, and concepts take on a complexity that many athletes have never seen. Even for varsity returners, it can be difficult to translate the Xs and Os into game speed, especially after a long offseason.
For athletes in the Coulee Region, the transition is made easier thanks to a 7-on-7 passing league in the summer.
Every Sunday, teams from nearby areas of Wisconsin and Minnesota travel to Logan High School, where players get the chance to practice route concepts and pass coverages without the physicality of traditional football.
Teams take turns driving down the field from the 40-yard line using only pass plays. By condensing the game, 7-on-7 offers fast-paced gameplay along with increased field space to run multiple games at once.
At Logan, the main field gets split into two games, with an additional game on the grass field behind the bleachers. Each Sunday is broken into two sessions with teams playing two games per session, resulting in 12 games played over the course of an evening.
“I think the biggest thing that we look to do is we just want to get our guys together and have them thinking about football a little bit during the summer,” Logan coach Casey Knoble said. “Some of the concepts you see here, they don’t really fit into what the actual season will look like.
“We don’t have a lot of Peyton Mannings on our teams here. But it’s still fun to get guys catching the ball, communicating on defense.”
Although 7-on-7 games are casual with a decreased emphasis on winning, there’s an energy that is unmatched elsewhere. Coaches get the chance to stand in the backfield, waiting for the perfect teaching moment or hollering last-minute reminders to players.
With the ball in the air on every snap, athletes fly around the field, and playmakers make plays.
For the Logan coaching staff, identifying those playmakers and seeing a variety of ideas are a couple of the main benefits of hosting the event.
You get some pretty good athletes out here running around,” Logan defensive coordinator Brock Harney said. “And looks that maybe you’re not used to seeing every day at practice.”
Take Central junior Gabe Servais for example. Servais grabbed the attention of spectators with speed and ball skills that had him involved on both offense and defense.
Offensively, he thrived as a receiver and took a few snaps at quarterback. It’s no secret that 7-on-7 perfectly serves athletes like Servais, but it also provides them with experience that is essential to maintaining such versatility.
“It’s just about reps,” Servais said. “We install, and then we come here and do it against live competition.”
There’s no doubt that reps are abundant in 7-on-7, and most coaches opt to spread them throughout the depth chart. Player substitutions occur frequently, and for a backup or younger athlete, the varsity competition can help them acclimate to a level at which they will eventually play.
Whether teams compete in 7-on-7 for strategic purposes or just for fun, they receive plenty of benefits.
After all, football is a game of experience, and with the fall season fast approaching, every bit helps.
