Football preseason notes: Mountain View Thunder
Mountain View High School football player Avi Bharth at practice, Friday, August 30, 2013. (Steven Lane/The Columbian)
Additional notes from Mountain View’s preseason report:
CAMP RETREAT
Mountain View spent four days at a football camp on the Oregon Coast last month. Beyond team bonding, coach Adam Mathieson said the best part of the camp was having a captive audience from his players.
“You’re able to teach nonstop for four days,” he said. “You can go over film about what happened in practice each day, and you don’t have to worry about anybody having to be somewhere else.”
RUN FIRST?
Mountain View had some monster games on the ground last season. Against Prairie, the Thunder amassed 483 yards on the ground, including 234 from Austin Mace, who returns this season. You’d think that means Mountain View has a run-first offense, but Mathieson doesn’t see it that way.
“There have been times when we’ve had great wide receivers, the Andrew Whites and the Rashaun Williamses,” Mathieson said. “Last year, we just had a lot of depth at running back. This year, we’ll have to wait and see as the first month unfolds.”
POWER OF DELEGATION
Among the best techniques Mathieson embraced in the offseason is the ability to delegate responsibility. The coach used to call all plays on offense, defense and special teams. Now, he’s letting his assistant coaches shoulder more of the load. Mathieson singled out defensive coordinator Tim Fox in helping him prevent coaching from being an all-consuming activity.
“If I would have known delegation would be like this, I would have done it a lot earlier,” Mathieson said. “I feel fantastic. I have tons of energy. I have more time for the family, so there’s better balance.”
