With the thunderous sound of shoulder pads colliding, the sidelines erupt with cheers and talk at the Wylie football practice.

Jason Nwokedi read the play from his safety position and snuffed out the screen pass, knocking wide receiver Chris Lewis back behind the line of scrimmage. The maroon jersey defensive players erupted to celebrate the big hit, while the white jersey offensive players defended their teammate.

A few players later, Lewis got another chance, knocking over linebacker Cole Troy on a quick passing play. That type of competition is something that head coach Jimmy Carter and the Pirates coaching staff have looked preached this spring.

“That’s the thing we’re trying to establish this spring,” Carter said. “We want to bring a lot of energy on offense and defense and keep the competition level high. We kind of changed up how we do things in practice to get guys ready and battling on the field.”

Wylie is looking to reach the playoffs in 2022 after missing out by one game last season. After a tough start to the year and battling to get back in the district standings late, coach Carter said the team wants to break away from its identity as a second half of the season team.

“We want to start faster this season,” Carter said. “The goal is to play well from the first game in August through December. It’ll be a wake-up call for some kids early on. We fly around to the football a lot more this season and we’re going to go out there and have fun.”

To read the full story, see next week’s issue. For more news and sports stories, see The Wylie News in print or online. Support your community newspaper for less than $40 a year.

By Kyle Grondin • [email protected]