Lions Off to Promising Start

BY JIM STEELE

Pressbox1@gmail.com

DRESDEN (July 25) - Dresden High School football coach Keith Hodge likes what he's seen in the first few weeks of his team's pre-season workouts.

He likes how his team approached the off-season and that this team is developing a personality.

But the coach said that physicality is garnering special emphasis in the early going.

"I like what I've seen, but we need to try to step up and handle the physicality," Hodge said. "It's a violent game and we need to be more physical."

Dresden, through the years, has had a reputation of being physical up front and Hodge seeks more of the same this year.

"We need to control the line of scrimmage and we have to build on that," the coach said.

Recent 7-on-7 encounters have yielded some pretty good things as well, pertaining to skilled players.

"I have seen a lot of things we can use, but we have to put it all together," Hodge said. "We want to pass and run the ball, but we're going to have to be better tackling and on defense."

Following spring practice and going into pre-season drills, the coach believes the team is building an identity.

"I feel like we have an identity, but we need to build on that," he said. "We'll continue to figure that out."

Dresden was 8-4 last season and reached the second round of the state playoffs. The Lions open the season at 7 p.m. Saturday, August 20, against Martin-Westview at UT Martin’s Hardy Graham Stadium.