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The first signs of fall have arrived.

Leaves haven't turned from green to hues of red, orange and gold, and the mercury continues to climb well above the 90-degree mark. But the familiar sounds of pads crunching, coaches screaming and whistles blowing resonated on high school practice fields this week.

Football practice has begun.

The Gazette-Star stopped by the football practices at Laurel, Charles H. Flowers, Fairmont Heights and Gwynn Park on Monday, the second day high schools across the state were allowed to practice.

Gwynn Park

One of the most successful programs in the county over the past decade got back to work Monday morning, as the Yellow Jackets began hitting in full pads.

Coach Danny Hayes has changed the culture of Gwynn Park football since taking over in 1998, and the team has been a perennial contender for the past 11 years, including a Class 2A state title in 2005.

Hayes said a tried-and-true formula has helped produced a winner.

"When I think of training camp, I think of conditioning and hard work," Hayes said as the Yellow Jackets' varsity and junior varsity teams practiced lining up in various formations during Monday's workout. "The kids who were not out here all summer long getting ready are the ones who won't make it through the season."

Hayes demands a full commitment from his players in these first few weeks of practice, which means players are expected to shut out everything that doesn't have to do with football, including cell phones, girlfriends and video games.

Hayes intends to push the players to their physical and mental limits. Yellow Jackets' senior tailback Brandon Banks said training camp comes with a whole set of challenges.

"The mental part of it is definitely hard and it's going through the drills that tests how strong your mind is," Banks said. "The way I handle it, I don't know about the rest of the team, but a couple weeks before we start practice I don't talk to anybody. I just get to work. And I think by the end of the first practice in full pads, I'm ready for the season."

"Anytime they put on that uniform, they know they've earned it," Hayes said.

Flowers

Jaguars' coach Mike Mayo has guided high school football teams in the county for more than two decades. He said the start of training camp has become an annual routine.

"It's like, ‘Here we go again,'" Mayo joked Monday afternoon as the Jaguars practiced under a hot sun and sweltering humidity. "When we had our first practice Saturday, it was kind of rainy and it wasn't that hot. When you think of training camp, this is what you think about — steamy weather."

The Jaguars have become a perennial contender for the 4A South Region championship, but haven't been able to get over the hump. The Springdale school opened in 2000 and fielded a varsity football team for the first time in 2001. Six times in the last seven seasons, Flowers has lost in the 4A South Region final.

Though they've yet to win a region title, the Jaguars have become a fixture in the playoffs, and expectations for the team are high as new varsity players mature into leaders this year.

Flowers senior tailback/defensive back Daryl Bailey reflected on growing up in the program over the last three years.

"I think training camp is harder now," Bailey said. "When I was a freshman and sophomore, I didn't really know what to expect. I was still learning what high school football was about. Now, I want to be the best so I've got to work harder than everybody else to stand out and be a leader and show the young guys. Our coaches embed in our heads that we've got to give 100 percent because nobody else is going to do it for us."

Mayo said training camps have become easier for him as a coach over the years because he knows what works and doesn't work. He most enjoys the essence of what training camp is about.

"The best part about training camp is the teaching and development," Mayo said. "When you go from seeing a player in their freshman year and you're not sure whether they are a true football player and then you see him developing over the years and you begin to realize how fast they can pick things up and how much they've grown, it's great."

Fairmont Heights

First-year Hornets' coach Cornell Simms takes over a program that has experienced struggle in recent years and turmoil last season.

Two weeks into the season, former Hornets' coach Derek Deane was suspended for using two ineligible players. The program called former coach Ralph Paden out of retirement to serve as an interim coach for remainder of the season. Paden guided Fairmont Heights to 177 wins in 29 seasons before retiring after the 2003 season, but the Hornets went 2-8 last year and are 29-70 over the last 10 years.

Now Simms is charged with turning the program around, and he has a fierce uphill battle. Only 13 players were on hand for the Hornets practice Monday afternoon, which was without pads.

"I'm still waiting on a lot of the players to turn in their physical forms, and those are slowly coming in," Simms said as senior Trenton Griffin handed in his paperwork. "Our uniforms were destroyed because a pipe burst in the storage room and I had to order all new equipment."

It remains a mystery how many players the Hornets will have on hand when they scrimmage at Spingarn High (D.C.) on Monday.

Simms said he is unsure whether the program will have a junior varsity team, as several freshmen and sophomores went through repetitions with the varsity squad Monday, although he said that he has received calls from parents who intended to have their children play for the team.

For at least the early stages of preseason, the Hornets are able to go through drills and formations, but can't do 11-on-11 drills because of the small numbers.

Simms has a structure to his practices, which he said will be run at half-speed. The team will open practices with special teams drills such as punt/kick coverage and returns before breaking into respective units.

"I just want to preach to them just them working together," Simms said.

Laurel

"I want it hot and I want them to be tired," Laurel coach Brian Moore said as the Spartans went through drills on Monday. "Our mentality has to change. We've got to get tough in camp. If they all get through it, they'll be tougher men."

Moore wants his players to feel confident in their preparation and performance. The Spartans have not been a threat to win the County 4A League in recent memory, and the program has gone 22-77 over the last 10 seasons.

Monday was the first day the Spartans practiced in pads, and Moore said some players still have yet to turn in administrative paperwork, such as physical forms, so they can practice.

In terms of toughness, Moore said some of his players have learning to do.

"See that guy right there in the shorts and T-shirt?" Moore said as he pointed out a player working with the defensive linemen. "Some of our players don't know the difference between being hurt and being injured. He complains that his thigh is injured, but he's not limping or doesn't have any bruises. You're going to get sore at times, but our players have to know how to play through some pain. It's football."

Moore is hoping improved offensive line play this season will help spark an offense that averaged just 11.1 points per game last season. Moore said the team's offensive troubles were due to offensive lineman simply not knowing their assignments.

The Spartans do have a few bright spots. Moore said senior tailback Davon Wilson will return to the team healthy following a successful ankle surgery he had June 23 for an injury he sustained against Suitland last season. The Spartans will also have experience at quarterback as Zane Carroll will start for the second consecutive season.

thampton@gazette.net