Prep Football Preview: Pirates Take Show On The Road

Pattonville High School Head football coach Steve Smith and his staff will have a fresh start in 2011. Along with an almost entirely new crew of Pirates, the team will play an entire season on the road while the school builds a new stadium. The schedule already includes stops at Lindenwood University and the Edward Jones Dome.

With only a handful of returning seniors, Smith will be looking for new leaders to set the bar for excellence and execution.

Only six of the 47 players are , so there are many open positions to fill and plenty of opportunities for  newcomers. The defense will be the only glimpse from the 2010 season with all six returning seniors being defenders. Senior Jeremiah Wilkens made the 2010 Suburban North all-conference defensive team along with Brandon Weaver, also a senior, who made the second team.

“It has to be like that sometimes,” said Smith, who will have to "reload every position ... We need work everywhere in every skilled position.”

This work includes finding a skilled quarterback to lead the Pirates’ short-term offensive future. Smith has found potential in three young players, who each have shown hard work and dedication to take the responsibility in leading the offense. Along with the quest for a QB, Smith must also find quality receivers and runners in hopes of turning the Pattonville offense into a well-oiled machine. Smith plans on implementing a spread formation this season.

The defense will have experience, as well as some fresh eyes scanning the field. Smith believes it is the seniors’ duty to be a leader to the guys behind them. The Pirates’ defensive strategy this year is very basic: run and attack the ball.

“We have a lot of tenacity in our defense. If you’re not running, you can’t be on defense,” Smith said. With Wilkens and Weaver making a return, it gives hope for the team to feature a stifling defense.

The coaches want to install a close relationship with their players that will stay with them for a very long time, pushing them past last year's record of 7-4. 2010 ended when the Pirates lost to Fort Zumwalt West in sectional play, 42-19.

Every team wants to win, but coach Smith and his Pirates want more.

“First, I want (the team) to make it to the playoffs. But, by the time districts come, I want to make sure the whole team clicks.”

WEEK ONE: at Hazelwood East Aug. 27 at 1 p.m.