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Area players get chance to make early impression
By CRISTINA LEDRA
Published May 20, 2005
It's audition time for area football hopefuls.
The county's three teams are playing host to spring games and will be evaluating the talents of their players as the programs look for next season's stars.
Today, Crystal River entertains Dunnellon at 6 p.m. and Citrus plays Tavares at 7. On Saturday, Lecanto takes on Springstead at 7 p.m. There will be some familiar faces on the field in the fall, including Citrus quarterback Walter Howard and Lecanto halfback Richard Chaney, but many vacancies need to be filled.
Lecanto and Crystal River each graduated 13 seniors, while Citrus lost 20, so spots are up for grabs. These early games give coaches a chance to survey prospects.
"People might think they have jobs, but they don't," Citrus coach Rik Haines said. "Things change just like life changes, and we're trying to see as coaches whether we've got kids playing the right positions."
Lecanto lost several key players, including quarterback C.J. Osburn, but has two seniors vying for the starting job. Danny Eberhart and Michael Nichols, who came over from the basketball team, will battle it out beginning Saturday. The Panthers are looking for three offensive lineman, split ends and a wing back. But one of the main objectives will be to get more comfortable with the system second-year coach Bob LeCours brought with him last season.
"These seniors have been with me now for a year and a half, so they're getting more familiar with the system," LeCours said. "We're really looking to work on the ability to execute and building a program from the ground up. We've had a losing tradition here, and we've been working really hard to change that."
Crystal River has several positions to fill, including those left by graduated seniors Matt Pepito, a multipurpose player; and Mike LaCharite, Ryan Stephens and Michael Schindler, all linemen.
- Cristina Ledra can be reached at 352 564-3623 or cledra@sptimes.com
[Last modified May 20, 2005, 01:06:18]
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