The opportunities presented by having a spring contact period for football are numerous.
The month-plus window that ends this weekend opens the door for teams to get a jumpstart on who will fit in where come the fall, but it may be most beneficial to new coaches learning their teams and installing their system.
In a lot of instances, new coaches are trying to build a program up. Typically, the previous coach departed – voluntarily or otherwise – due to underperformance. But at East Noble, it’s a different story.
Last season, the Knights went 8-3 under Coach Luke Amstutz, with two of those losses coming to Leo, both in dramatic fashion. The sectional game between the duo, a 45-42 victory for the Lions, was one of, if not the most exciting game in the area all season.
With Amstutz moving up to an administrator’s role at East Noble, it thrusts new coach Alex Stewart into the role of finding a balance between continuing what was achieved before by the winningest coach in the program’s history and putting his own philosophies and ideas into practice.
The spring contact period has been perfect in helping find that comfort zone.
“The time spent with the players have coaching staff has been very valuable for me to acclimate myself to the program and start building relationships with the players and coaches,” Stewart said. “I’ve been on campus a couple days a week most of the spring and that time has really helped me get to know the kids, coaches and assess the program so that we can really hit the ground running in June with our summer program.”
This is no longer the 1990s and before where on-field work didn’t kick off until the official start of fall practice. Between the spring and summer, teams have plenty of time to see who is committed and who isn’t, work on putting together two-deeps and install offensive and defensive schemes.
The few weeks of fall practice before Week 1 are more about putting the finishing touches on season prep, not wholesale changes and development.
In short, Season 1 for Coach Stewart has already started.
East Noble averaged just over eight wins per season under Amstutz, and the expectation to be consistent NE8 and sectional contenders isn’t going anywhere with a new regime. The fact that Stewart has been open to keeping key members of the coaching staff will help bridge the gap between old and new, even if they look slightly different.
“East Noble has a proud football tradition and it’s very important to me to keep traditions in place,” Stewart said. “However, I have to stay true to myself and my core beliefs as a football coach.
“I am a believer in doing things the right way, working hard, building relationships and making it a great experience for our players. I believe there are already many similarities between things I have done in the past and some of the traditions that are in place at East Noble, so it should be an easy tradition.”
What will definitely help the transition is the fact that Amstutz isn’t very far away. He will still be highly visible around the program as the school’s new athletic director.
“I am excited to remain close to the program,” Amstutz said. “I am right down the hall helping them in a different way. Now I get to plan for the future, work towards improving facilities and equipment and possibly spend some time working with our youth league.”
While Amstutz takes on a more prominent role within the East Noble administration, eyes will be on Stewart and his ability to keep the Knights as one of the pre-eminent programs in the area. Once the school year finishes up and he finishes his duties at Western High School, Stewart will be all in in Kendallville.
He already has a head start, thanks to spring ball.
“Our focus this spring has been on fundamentals with some base installs,” Stewart said. “Defensively, we return eight starters and the defensive staff from a unit that was outstanding last season, so we will be doing of the same stuff with a few new wrinkles.
“The offense will look fairly similar returning several starters and the majority of the staff. Much like the offenses in the past few seasons, we will feature a downhill running game with a play-action package off of that to take shots down the field. We will also try to get the ball out quickly to the perimeter to utilize our athletes and get them the ball in space.”
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