HSGameTime.com staffers visited football practice fields around the area Monday as Class 5A and 4A teams that held spring practice began workouts for the 2008 season.

First-year Duncanville coach Jeff Dicus tried something different for the first day of practice. He bused 90 players and 20 staff members to Camp Wisdom, a Boy Scout camp a few miles from the school.

MIKE STONE / Special to DMN

Highland Park coach Brock Walker (left) works with Matt Bonano and the secondary at the team's first practice Monday.

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The players were divided into five groups, and for 3½ hours, those groups worked to solve challenges. After the challenge was explained, groups had two minutes to formulate a plan and then a specified time to accomplish the challenge.

In one challenge, all members of the group had to be passed through a tire that was hanging from a tree. In another, team members had to swing on a rope to a platform and catch the next teammate. Coaches, including Dicus, took part. And his wife shot video.

"In 26 years, it is the first time I've taken practice time for something like this," Dicus said, "but it is something I think we needed. I think we gained more than we would have by going out and practicing. The kids found out about each other and learned that they need to be on the same page with each other to succeed."

Dicus' next concern might be finding enough helmets to equip up to 380 players, including freshmen, the football program is expecting.

Randy Jennings

Euless Trinity coach Steve Lineweaver's first reaction to hearing his team was ranked No. 1 nationally in ESPN's poll: "I almost got sick at my stomach."

Lineweaver said he's always preferred less publicity but, after talking it over, is fine with the ranking now.

"People have convinced me this ranking is really a way of paying homage to our teams of the last four, five and six years," Lineweaver said. "When you look at it that way, it is a great feather in our cap. I just hope it lasts longer than one game. It sure doesn't put points on the board."

Randy Jennings

You can't play if you don't have the right equipment. That includes the color of your mesh shorts, at least at Richardson Berkner and Plano.

One of Berkner's linemen was slow to get on the field while fiddling with the drawstring on his shorts. Turns out the color of his shorts, blue, was a bigger problem than whether they would stay up around his waist.

"You are not wearing blue!" an assistant coach yelled from the field. "Go back in and get you some black!"

Nearly every Berkner player was attired in black shorts and gray T-shirts. At Plano, maroon shorts were the required fashion. It didn't take long for coach Jaydon McCullough to notice one of his linemen wearing red shorts with blue stripes.

When queried, the player said he couldn't find his maroon shorts.

"You better find them tomorrow," McCullough hollered, "or I'm going to run you 'til you can't see straight!"

Keith Whitmire

Carson Meger, Plano's returning starter at quarterback, did not practice. Meger said he was recovering from a sore throat and was held out as a precaution. He should be back by Wednesday.

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West Mesquite quarterback Trevone Boykin, 14, was so eager for training camp to start that he couldn't go to sleep the night before. Afraid of oversleeping, Boykin asked his friends to call him at 6 a.m. Good thing they did, because he fell asleep at 3 a.m. Boykin said he was fully awake by 8 a.m., when practice started.

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Among the 75 Arlington Bowie varsity players practicing was Jordan Selexman, a senior transfer wide receiver from Duncanville. In 2007, Selexman caught 42 passes for 723 yards and 10 touchdowns.

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McKinney North coaches showed their enthusiasm at morning practice and occasionally showed their frustrations. "If that's the way I taught you," one yelled during a blocking drill, "then I have no business coaching!"

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Cedar Hill is looking at two quarterback candidates: senior Le'Derian Cockrane, a receiver last season, and sophomore Driphus Jackson, who led the junior varsity to a district title. Coach Joey McGuire said both will play in the opener against Cincinnati La Salle on Aug. 30 at Texas Stadium.

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Highland Park players looked like they were practicing their moves for the video game "Dance, Dance Revolution." On a board with five dots on it, each jumped on one foot in a Z pattern while an assistant urged them to "hit every dot!" We're told the drill helps strengthen ankles.

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At McKinney, you could clearly see who the offensive linemen were, and not just because they were big dudes. They were wearing knee braces. Coach Bobby Reyes said he's had his offensive linemen wear knee braces for about 15 years. "Knock on wood," Reyes said, "but I've never had a kid tear his ACL."

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At Lincoln, former Spruce quarterback Daniel Mayberry said he had no trouble trading in his scarlet and royal blue workout gear for purple and white. Mayberry and senior free safety Donovan Bonner headline a list of athletes who transferred to Lincoln after Spruce was reorganized and stripped of varsity athletics in June. Mayberry has orally committed to North Texas. Bonner has committed to Colorado State. "They welcomed us with open arms," Mayberry said of his new teammates.

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Richardson Berkner practiced throwing the ball quite a bit, which is not generally the focus of the Wishbone triple option. "Believe it or not, we'll spend 30 or 45 minutes on it," coach Jim Ledford said. "We're going to throw the ball a little bit more. But I say that every year."

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New South Grand Prairie coach Rob Davies is moving to two-platoon football. Players practice with either the offense or defense, but not both. It makes for quicker practices. Most of the quarterback snaps on the first day went to Aaron Gautney, who won the job in the spring.

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Skyline has two strong candidates to replace graduated quarterback Troy Stoudermire, coach Reginald Samples said. Senior Chris Frazier and junior Javia Hall are "nip and tuck" to start Skyline's opener Sept. 5 against Kimball, Samples said. Frazier (6-1, 209) orally committed to SMU.

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Wylie coach Bill Howard was happy with his team's first two practices. The players came back in good shape, he said, and with the right attitude. It helps to have 14 returning starters from last year's team, which finished 5-6 and lost in the first round of the playoffs. Among them are two highly touted recruits, 6-5, 230-pound quarterback Jerod Monk and 5-11, 235-pound defensive lineman Nikita Whitlock.

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Grand Prairie coach Gary Bartel says he has trouble telling apart twin linebackers Adam and Adrian Pena unless he sees them together. So he asks, but if a twin detects anger in Bartel's voice, he might claim to be his brother. "They mess with me all the time," Bartel said. "I need to write their name on a piece of tape and put it on their helmet."