Pillow Academy and Greenwood High School will enter spring football drills riding high off the emotion from succesful 2010 seasons.
Coming off a 10-2 season and Region 3-4A title, the Bulldogs will kick off spring practice May 5 and conclude things May 20 with a scrimmage at Charleston.
n Pillow: The Mustangs have some major holes to fill at running back and on both sides of the line from last season's State AAA Division II championship team that finished 10-2.
Pillow will take the first step toward finding those replacements May 2, when it starts spring training.
With only six sophomores out, the numbers for the Mustangs will be around 35 - down about 10 from last season.
"We're going to do more learning this spring and less full contact than we have in the past because we are so thin in most areas," Mustang coach Michael Fair said.
"We're going to change some things offensively and spread the ball around and give a lot of different guys a chance to show what they can do."
The Mustangs will conclude spring drills on May 13. At his time, Fair has no plans for a scrimmage.
Things will be much tougher for the Mustangs in 2011 after moving back up to Division I, where they will compete with Jackson Academy and Madison-Ridgeland Academy for two playoff spots.
n Greenwood: The theme for GHS this spring is "unfinished business" after winning a district title and losing in the second round of the North 4A playoffs to Shannon.
"We're focused on getting better so we can win the North and play for a state championship," said Bulldog coach Clinton Gatewood. "We know everybody in our district will be gunning for us, so we've got to work twice as hard.
"We're real excited about what next season will bring and real excited about getting things going in a couple of weeks."
The GHS coach expects to start spring drills with about 75 players.
"Our kids have been working hard in the weight room since January. The offseason is where championships are built," said the GHS coach.
n Amanda Elzy: The Panthers started spring practice last week with about 40 kids and will wrap things up May 4 with a jamboree at West Tallahatchie in Webb.
"We've got a lot of positions to fill so we're using this time to see what our young guys can do and help them transition from junior high to high school," said Elzy coach Eric House, whose team went 6-4 last season. "We're looking to really boost our running game to help give us some balance because we feel real good about what we'll have in the passing game."
Quarterback Jaylon Daniels and wide receiver Jalen Jones are the Panthers' top offensive returnees.
n Contact Bill Burrus at bburrus@gwcommonwealth.com.
