With less than three months before Appalachian State kicks off the Eliah Drinkwitz era, here are five storylines Mountaineers’ fans want to hear or read about before App takes on East Tennessee State at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Health – In this case, it might be more what fans don’t want to read or hear about. Injuries occur during intense summer workouts at every program every year. So, something very likely will happen to one or more of the Mountaineers’ this summer. Minimizing it or none at all is highly preferable and the number one entry on this list.
Zac Plaudits – College football players at every program speak very highly of their summer workouts and praise teammates for having great attitudes and improving so much. It happens literally everywhere. But reading between the lines helps discern some of the more on-target plaudits from players. Quarterback Zac Thomas was the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year last season, but he can be better, a lot better. Accuracy, arm strength and more are things to look for as we get closer to the start of fall camp and into August’s practices.
Culture, Culture, Culture – Culture is often written about regarding college football but it’s also often misunderstood. There are times when a culture change within a program is an absolute must, but that wasn’t the case when App State hired Eliah Drinkwitz as Scott Satterfield’s replacement. Yet, he is in the process of installing his own culture, as each one reflects the head coach to a significant degree. The key is to not trample on the previous culture when there wasn;t an issue. In some respects, Drinkwitz’ task is harder than, say Mack Brown’s at North Carolina. Brown inherited a program that was unraveling, Drinkwitz inherited one that was thriving. So, keep an eye on any comments by players about the program’s culture. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Goals – To the surprise of some, players and teams don’t always openly discuss their goals. There’s a variety of reasons why, from not wanting to be snake bitten to lacking confidence in their goals to coaches mandating they simply reveal nothing about their program. The latter has been a growing trend, and a bit disturbing, too, in college football in recent years, as head coaches fancy themselves more as General Patton than simply football coaches. As for the Mountaineers, listen and read for goals the players might be talking about. Social media is a good place to get a sense of this. Follow the players, it could be quite revealing.
Position Changes – Every coaching staff switches a few players around after they fully absorb all of the film from spring practice and notify the players before the summer workouts begin so the player can begin transforming his body for the new role and also developing whatever skills are necessary for those responsibilities. Again, social media is a really good place to get a gauge of this, because a few App State players are now focusing on a new position from the one they played in the spring.
