Falcons Soaring in Summer Events as They Prep for 2011

Courtesy J.Clark

The offseason has gradually changed over the years from a time once consumed with building the strength of the program through consistent strength work to a multi-tiered and organized season unto itself. Augmenting a typically intense strength program are extensive conditioning sessions, agility and speed work, and focused skill-development that in many cases is periodically tested throughout the summer at passing league events.  In years past, these events were primarily of the 'friendly' variety where events were held at a local school and a number of programs would convene and work what they had installed with coaches on the field and copious amounts of time allowed between reps in order to coach-up their team.  Over the past five to ten years, more 'competitive' 7-on-7's have hit the scene and it is not unusual to see schools mix up their passing league schedule with a number of the more coachable events with one or two tournament-centric events.  Although both types of event have their positives, the latter of these two events is a great way to strengthen what has been installed during the summer, while adding a bit more 'game-like' pressure and feel in a more Friday Night Lights type environment.

Throughout this summer the Jordan Falcons have been a great example of one of our area teams that has taken part in a number of passing league events, spanning both genres.  The Falcons, coming off a 7-5 campaign in 2010 where they pushed one of the top teams from Fayetteville to the brink in the first round of the playoffs, are looking to gain momentum from the performance they put forth against 71st and transfer it to the upcoming 2011 season.  The continued maturation of the 2011 Falcons has been evident in how they've worked as a cohesive unit this summer in their passing leagues.  The Falcons have participated in a number of events at local high schools, including Carrboro High and Northern Vance, as well as travelling to Greensboro for the Holt Brothers Foundation 7-on-7 and more recently the 4th Annual UNC Beast of the Hill competition.  Reports from all of the events have been positive for the Falcons as they work to adjust in many ways to the loss of an extensive senior class that was highlighted by current Tarheel, T.J. Thorpe.

One of the more impressive showings by the Falcons came just about a month ago when they participated with a number of Triad teams in Torry and Terrence Holt's Annual 7-on-7 Tournament.  More details on the Holt Foundation and associated camp and tournament can be found in a previous article [Falcons Invade Holt Brothers 7-on-7].  The Falcons, after going 4-0-1 at the Carrboro event just prior to the Holt Tourney turned in a solid performance from all accounts in posting an undefeated record and capturing the championship.  The Falcons picked up wins against George Washington Danville High School (Virginia), Greensboro Page, Eastern Guilford, Southern Alamance and Burlington Cummings.

After the event I was able to catch up with two of the rising seniors for the Falcons, Jeff Clark and Nick Drew.  Clark will be one of the wide receivers stepping into a more prominent role offensively with the departure of Thorpe, while Drew will be looking to lock-down half of the field as one of the cornerbacks on the Falcons roster.


I was curious with the loss of a strong senior class how the Falcons have been progressing during the summer and for all the Falcon Fans out there as well as supporters of Durham football in general, the response was very positive.  Drew said, "...as a whole defense we've progressed tremendously since the first day of summer workouts. We'll have about four returning starters on defense but we're looking like we've been playing together for a while now."

Courtesy J.Clark

One of those seniors that will no longer patrol the secondary is Thorpe and Drew commented on how the Falcons have been galvanized as a defense in their approach to this summer and 2011, in part due to the loss of Thorpe and the rest of the starters from last year.  "With this years defense we will continue to focus on all eleven guys flying to the football.", said Drew. "Every play we want to get all hats on the football and I believe if we do that we will be successful."

"Our defense will be similar this year to last year in regards to how we focus on the importance of on-field communication", said Drew.  "Last year I think we did a pretty good job of communicating with each other and trying to disrupt the offense before the snap."

One of those four starters on defense to return for the Falcons is Tarheel commit Phillip Williamson.  I asked Drew how the presence of a player of Williamson's ability can help a defense.  "First off Phil is a phenomenal athlete. The kid can play any position on the field", said Drew. "This year he'll mainly be playing outside linebacker along with a little bit of safety. Most opposing teams probably look at him and are like 'Wow! How are we going to stop this guy!' He's so versatile he can beat you wherever he is on the field."

From Williamson's strong safety and outside linebacker position the Falcons have an impressive athlete available as one of the eleven and his ability is a welcome contribution in a system that emphasizes the importance of team within the Falcon culture.  "Phil helps me out a lot at cornerback. He always has my back, and I can trust that in a given coverage, he'll be over top of me if I'm out there on a island with a receiver that's getting up their in height", said Drew.

Even with solid defensive play the Falcons will still need a top-notch effort from the offensive side of the ball to challenge for the PAC-6 crown and rising senior wide receiver Jeff Clark provided some great insight into how the recent passing league work has been critical for continuing to push the Falcons to another level.

"I feel these 7-on-7s are helping us grow on both sides of the ball", said Clark.  "One area it's helping us, is allowing our quarterbacks to continue to get more used to knowing where the receivers will be on certain routes based on the play and defense."  Just as communication was an important element for the Falcon defense, Clark indicated that the same element of communication during these passing leagues is crucial for the Falcons offensively as well.  "...it just improves the communication since we have to talk to each other about what is going on."

There has been a lot of talk since the close of the 2010 season about cross-town rival Hillside and Southern Durham and I asked Clark about how their success has or hasn't impacted the off-season for the Falcons. "We've become accustomed to hearing about both teams, we're not really knocking their talent, but we feel we're just as good as them and we have a lot to prove since we're not mentioned much up there along with them. So that's just added motivation to our team", said Clark.

The Falcons' success this summer hasn't come without a high level of dedication and teamwork.  Clark commented on these elements. "I feel like we're having success during the summer cause we've come out with determination to get better as a unit at each of these events and the coaches have said they feel like the leadership of this year's Senior class is helping us to continue to work more as a team."

The Falcons will conclude their passing league work this Wednesday, before starting up official practice on the 30th.  We'd like to thank seniors Jeff Clark and Nick Drew for their assistance with this post and look forward to seeing how the Falcons fare in 2011.

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