ROANOKE – Thursday marked the first day of high school football practice and Patrick Henry wasted no time as they hit the field in the morning. Coming off a 6-5 season that sent the Patriots to the playoffs, Coach Alan Fiddler is setting the tone for his team to go even farther this season.
"One thing we're trying to do is have success in the playoffs. We've made the playoffs the last five years, and that's great, but now, let's take it to the next level and let's do something when we get there. That's one of our goals this year," said Fiddler.
"Dedication. Coming to every practice, going hard. Don't take a day off. Seriously. That's the reason why in the past, we haven't gone as far as we hoped we could, we sort of lost focus throughout the year. Hopefully, we can just keep that going up throughout the entire year," said lineman Charlie Boxley.
"Leadership. There wasn't great leadership last year, but, better leadership this year. If you're encouraged to do better,instead of negative talk, you'll always do better," said Nasir Noel, who plays wide receiver and cornerback for the Patriots.
"if I give my all, they'll all give it their all, so, I got to make sure I do it," added wide receiver and safety Leroy Thomas.
The Patriots open their season August 24, when they host Hidden Valley.