Panthers getting ready in a hurry

For a rushed introduction into the Colleyville Heritage football program, new head coach Joe Willis used his first week of workouts to at least gain an idea of his team’s strengths and weaknesses.

“There’s no question that the strength and conditioning program helped them,” he said. “The more I was around them and got to know them, the more trust I think was gained. I could tell what kind of work habits we had. We had a good evaluation week of what we can and can’t do and what we should and shouldn’t do.”

There really was nothing definitive about the starting quarterback situation. That still appears to be a competition between junior Cam Roane and senior Jacob Sheppard. Both made some good decisions and solid throws in this past Saturday’s intra-squad scrimmage.

“The first thing is we need to have a guy who has confidence in the system,” Willis said. “As we move forward, we want to see guys taking command of the offense. We’re not going to make a decision until we need to make one.”

Coaching staff set

Willis has finished hiring his staff for the upcoming season. The moves are:

Judd Thrash – assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator

Michael Quintero – co-defensive coordinator

Ron Mendoza – associate head coach, defensive backs

Ahmad Zaiden – linebackers/special teams coordinator

Ted Willmann – offensive coordinator

James Bostick – co-offensive coordinator

Caleb Cunningham – quarterbacks

Jarvis Johnson – running backs

Taylor Wilson – tight ends

John Pavliska – receivers

Notable: Mendoza and Thrash will focus on the secondary … Cunningham’s name should sound familiar. He is the son of former Colleyville Heritage head coach and current Plano Prestonwood head coach Chris Cunningham … Quintero was Willis’ defensive coordinator at Cedar Park and will focus on the defensive line … Johnson was previously in Duncanville … Mendoza’s name should also be familiar. He was Carroll’s defensive coordinator under Todd Dodge in the 2000s.

Grapevine update

Head coach Randy Jackson is a firm believer that the second year is going to be so much different for all of the right reasons. And that seems to be the case as the Mustangs are expecting a far better season.

While the first week turned into retention and re-installment of the offense and defense, Jackson saw where it didn’t take long for the players to move quickly. Needless to say, he was impressed.

“The culture is so much more established and the tempo is really good,” Jackson said. “The kids seem to understand how we want the game to be played. One of the points of emphasis we have is finishing. We feel pleased with where we’re at.”

QB package

Sophomore Alan Bowman is settling in as the starting quarterback. He took command of this team when the offseason program began in the winter.

But the backup quarterback situation is a bit different. Brennan Davis (6-1, 215), a former move-in from Coppell, is working out at both linebacker and as the backup quarterback. Jackson said that the coaching staff designs some different packages for him.

Mustang notables

Running back Jacobi White did not start fall workouts because of an undisclosed injury. Jackson said White continues to work his way back and is hopeful he will be ready for the Aug. 27 opener against North Crowley … Running back Patrick Bollman (5-9, 180) had an eye-opening showing at the intra-squad scrimmage and could be an option throughout the season … Jackson has his offensive line set between nine players. He just hasn’t settled on his starters yet … The new artificial turf at Mustang-Stadium is installed and ready for play.

Scrimmages

Both Colleyville Heritage and Grapevine will go Friday. Colleyville Heritage plays at Arlington Lamar at 9 a.m. Friday at Cravens Field. Grapevine plays host to Denton Ryan at 7:30 p.m. at Mustang-Panther Stadium.

This story was originally published August 17, 2015 at 4:41 PM with the headline "Panthers getting ready in a hurry."