FOOTBALL: Lions prepare for Friday night spring scrimmage

By Miles Smith
LPR Editor

It’s not August, but you wouldn’t know it at Lockhart High School this week.
New head coach Todd Moebes has the players out on the field in full pads, working on drills, learning plays and terminology, and working on the chemistry between the quarterbacks and receivers.
Lockhart is participating in spring ball for the first time in school history, and will wrap up spring training with an intrasquad scrimmage at 6:30 p.m. Friday night at Lions Stadium.
The tradeoff is the Lions will have one less week of practice in August, but Moebes said he was fine with that because he was ready to get his team thinking about new terminology, new philosophy and completely new style of playing the game.
“I’ve seen some change already,” Moebes said. “I asked the kids, ‘Aren’t you glad you are getting to work on this now instead of waiting until Aug. 5?’ They said so. We’re working on things like scheme and football IQ right now, so I am glad they see the importance.”
The Lions will have a different look this year out on the field. Gone is the slot-T offense that looks to keep the ball on the ground and uses the passing game only as trickery or a last resort.
Replacing it will be a spread formation similar to that employed by many college coaches. Quarterbacks will line up in shotgun formation in mostly one running back, four receiver sets.
While the team will look to establish the run and use that to set up the pass, Moebes said the game plan would accommodate the situation.
“There are going to be times we run the ball 50 times a game, and there will be times we throw it 50 times per game,” Moebes said. “We’ve thrown the football probably more in practice over the past 10 days than it’s been thrown in the past six years.”
Fans will see some things that look familiar. The defense will still line up in a 3-4 formation, and electrifying running back Daetron Ellison, now a senior, is certain to get his share of touches in Lockhart’s new offense.
New to the offense is quarterback Stoney McGuire, an Austin Westlake transfer who played on the Chaps’ junior varsity team. McGuire, who will be a junior this season, has been sharing snaps with quarterback Jackie Edwards Jr., who went 3-4 in district last year after coming in for 2018 opening day starter Jayden Garza, who suffered a season ending injury in the final non-district game.
The quarterback depth chart has not yet been determined.
Garza has returned to practice, but Moebes said he has been taking a lot of snaps at wide receiver.
“We are trying to create as much depth as we can,” Moebes said.
The spring game on Friday night, though technically just an intrasquad scrimmage, will have the feel of a fall game. Players will be introduced individually prior to the game. There will be a timed half and a half with a running clock, and there will be a halftime performance, Moebes said.
It’s free to attend, but donations are suggested for the Texas High School Coaches Education Foundation Benevolence Fund, which can be used in situations ranging from helping seriously ill coaches to families who have lost a student athlete.