Heritage Pride
LAST POST: August 07, 2008Day 3: Heritage In Position to Challenge
Heritage wants to win, no doubt about it. And by the looks of things from camp, they certainly have the talent, but what's more important is the approach in which they go about things.
Take for example head coach Wes Driskill at the end of practice. Rather than talking about practice, he instead berated the point incessantly about being a family on the field. By his tone and manner, it's very clear that is something he strongly believes in as he wants it to be the cornerstone of this year's team.
There's no questioning that having a family attitude does help as it was part of John Wooden's 'Pyramid of Success' while he was at UCLA. Now that Driskill wants to implement that same philosophy with his team, you can count he'll beat that into mindset into his players.
Yet in looking at what actually took place on the field, most of the practice was centered on basic fundamentals. For the first two hours, the basics of the offense were being implemented as were the special teams. Certainly not the most fun thing in the world to observe, but it did allow us a chance to look at Heritage's quarterbacks in Zack Gordon and Brian Rhody. Gordon will likely be the starter, but Heritage is set in the future with Rhody. The more he fills out his frame, he'll be extremely dangerous. His arm is nicely developed for his age, and by next year, he'll be making plenty of headlines.
What does help separate Gordon, besides his age, is his athleticism. He's perfectly suited for Heritage's spread option offense, not to mention he's much bigger in size. No question that having Gordon as their ring leader will win the Pride ballgames this year.
Also looking impressive was receiver PJ McPhaul. He looked noticeably better from a year ago as his athleticism might be the best Heritage has aside from running back Ross Madison. How he progresses into the season should be interesting to note.
Joining McPhaul at receiver will be Russell East, who can combine to play either tight end or be split out wide depending on the offensive set used. For his size and versatility, that hybrid role is a perfect fit for him. He is athletic enough to play the receiver position full-time, but having a body like his on the line surely doesn't hurt either. Him and McPhaul right now look to be two rock solid options for Gordon.
But aside from the passing game, it was interesting to note Heritage operating out of the pistol formation a lot. Just like the spread, it's one of football's hottest trends, but it looked to fit Heritage perfectly. It sets up the option perfectly and it leaves the ball in the hands of Gordon, who like we said earlier, was built for an option type of offense. So in having him, along with Madison and David McCarthy all utilized out of the pistol seems practical.
If there is one thing to take away from Heritage's camp, it's that they have the talent to be very effective. Their first scrimmage is against Spotsylvania County's Riverbend, and it'll be interesting to see how they fare. This is a team right now with enough talent that could very well win the district.
PREVIOUS ARTICLES
:: Taylor, McCowat Power Titans Past Heritage - May 19, 2008:: DULLES LAX PREVIEW - Broad Run vs. Heritage - May 16, 2008
:: Lewkovich Leads Pride Past Briar Woods 7-6 - May 03, 2008
:: Pride Outlast, Outscore Spartans In 17-14 Win - April 30, 2008
:: Kline Hurls Panthers to 8-0 Win Over Heritage - April 23, 2008
:: Stambules, Rossi Help Pride Down Bulldogs 19-6 - April 17, 2008
:: Peters Too Much for Titans; Pride Win 4-2 - April 16, 2008
:: Stambules Powers Pride Lax Over Raiders 21-2 - April 08, 2008
:: Diviney, Shain, Lead Spartans Over Pride 7-0 - April 08, 2008
:: Pride Boys Lacrosse Rolls to 4-0; Down Panthers - April 04, 2008
:: Heritage vs Culpeper Box Score (Lacrosse) - April 01, 2008
:: Nightingale, Malan Spark Late Panther Win 5-4 - March 29, 2008
:: Gameday Boys Power Poll - FINAL - February 18, 2008
:: Findley Leads Pride Past Patriots 61-52..... - January 29, 2008
:: Dulles Race Gets Trimmed After Big Night - January 25, 2008
:: Cadwell Helps Pride To Solid Season - November 15, 2007
:: Gameday Notebook - Week 12 (Loudoun) - November 14, 2007
:: Gameday Notebook - Week 11 (Loudoun) - November 07, 2007
:: Park View Picks Their Way to 9-0 - Defeat Pride - November 03, 2007
:: Gameday Notebook - Week 10 (Loudoun) - November 01, 2007
:: Heritage Right In The Mix For The Playoffs - October 30, 2007
:: Massey, East Lead Pride Past Falcons 28-21 - October 30, 2007
:: Gameday Notebook - Week 9 (Loudoun) - October 24, 2007
:: Pride Blast Titans on Homecoming - 42-28 - October 21, 2007
:: Galvan Picks Up Where She Left Off a Year Ago - October 08, 2007
:: McAdow's TD Run Gives Spartans 17-10 Win - October 06, 2007
:: Cadwell's 82yd Kickoff Return Saves Pride Win - September 15, 2007
:: Galvan, Scott, Le Maitre Lead Pride Past Patritots - September 12, 2007
:: McCarthy Wins Iron Lion Award - August 23, 2007
:: Bulka's MVP Run Starts with Senior Superlative - June 28, 2007
:: Rossie, Madigan Top LAX All-Region Team - June 05, 2007
:: Heritage, Potomac Falls To Play For Tourney Title - May 23, 2007
:: Heritage 4x800 Team Making A Move To The Top - May 17, 2007
:: Gameday Baseball Power Poll - May 11th, 2007 - May 11, 2007
:: Pride's McLaughlin Grabs 1st Place at Dogwood - April 30, 2007
:: Beecher, Brosnan lead Heritage to 5-0 win - April 28, 2007
:: Despite New Faces, Heritage Ready To Win in 07' - April 16, 2007
:: Q&A with Heritage Baseball's Ryan Price - April 05, 2007
:: Forney's 2 RBI Night leads Pride to 4-1 Win - March 27, 2007
:: Cream Rises to the Top at SNOW - March 16, 2007
:: Pride Fall To Millbrook 7-5 In Softball - March 13, 2007
:: Trio Has Pride Thinking Repeat - January 17, 2007
:: Heritage Boys Rout Vikings For 1st Victory - December 06, 2006
:: Pride's Young Named Region Player of Year - November 16, 2006
:: Pride Take 3rd In States At Cross Country Meet - November 12, 2006
:: Titans Crash Heritage's Homecoming, Win 14-7 - October 28, 2006
:: Pride Girls, Panther Boys Take Home Titles - October 27, 2006
:: Raiders Pull Upset, Share Dulles District Title - October 27, 2006
:: Spartans Get Big Win Over Heritage 31-13 - October 22, 2006
:: Young Has The Pride On Track For A Title Run - October 18, 2006
:: Title Hopes High For Park View and Heritage - October 11, 2006
:: Pride Place 6th and 3rd at Octoberfest - October 09, 2006
:: McCoy, Burkhard Ignite Pride In 16-0 Victory - October 07, 2006
:: Heritage Wins 8th Straight, Pound Judges - September 26, 2006
:: Handley Rolls Behind Dorsey's 4TD's 47-20 - September 22, 2006
:: Heritage's Burkhard Is As Tough As They Come! - September 20, 2006
:: Dorsey Leads Judges Into Battle With Heritage - September 18, 2006
:: Heritage Cross Country Finishes Well On Sat... - September 17, 2006
:: Heritage Rolls: 25-12, 25-14 in District Opener - September 06, 2006
:: Heritage Grabs 5th Place at Invitational on Sat. - September 03, 2006
:: Heritage Rolls 39-0 Over Freedom In Opener - August 26, 2006
:: Heritage Pride vs Freedom Eagles Preview - August 25, 2006
:: TCC Sports To Launch Live Scoreboard & Show - August 21, 2006
:: Boyer's 34 helps Pride Take Out Panthers in Golf - August 18, 2006
:: Darden, Boyer Lead Pride Past Raiders in Golf - August 11, 2006
:: Training Camp Tour Day 1: Heritage Pride - August 01, 2006
:: Test Your True Strength - July 27, 2006
:: Local Players Take Home Skills Challenge Titles - July 09, 2006
:: 7 on 7 Tournament Features Great Teams, Players - June 18, 2006
:: Skills Challenge Participants Announced - June 16, 2006
:: Heritage Proves It's All About Pride in 2006 - June 15, 2006
:: Not Just Another Ordinary Guy - June 06, 2006
:: Patriots Drop Pride 9-7 to Win Dulles District Title - May 27, 2006
:: Potomac Falls Boy's Soccer: District Champs - May 27, 2006
:: Zedan, Graves help Panthers advance past Pride - May 16, 2006
:: Estrella, Rohde help Pride Roll 19-1 Over Titans - May 13, 2006
:: Weather Alters Postseason Games in LAX/Tennis - May 12, 2006
:: Valley Boy's Soccer falls short to the Pride, 2-1 - May 10, 2006
:: Pride and Patriots Locked Up at 1-1 in Soccer - May 06, 2006
:: Kriston, Lady Pride Beat Freedom 5-3 In Soccer - April 26, 2006
:: Stambules, Rohde Lead Pride to 18-2 Win - April 21, 2006
:: Stambules, O'Connor lead Pride to 12-2 in LAX - April 20, 2006
:: Vikings Topple Pride 5-2 in Girls Soccer - April 06, 2006
:: Pride and Patriots Tie at 2-2 in Girls Soccer - April 01, 2006
:: Heritage Wins Tri-Meet - March 30, 2006
:: Beecher's Hit Lifts Pride to 4-3 Win Over County - March 25, 2006
:: Pride Girls beat Freedom 5-4 in Soccer - March 22, 2006
:: Pride Hoops Take A Big Step For the Future - March 15, 2006
:: Pride Lose In Final Seconds - February 25, 2006
:: Versatility is Swindell's Game - February 05, 2006
:: It's About Being Positive for Tiffani Broderick - January 10, 2006
:: Heritage Basketball - Previews - December 03, 2005
:: Teeing Off with Greg Brouse - October 31, 2005