Cooler weather greets Snyder players at first football practice

The weather cooperated for the Snyder Tigers on their first day of preseason football practice at Tiger Stadium.
Instead of battling the afternoon heat, practice was scheduled later in the day. Snyder worked out under the lights with a crowd watching from the stands.
Defense was the focal point of the first practice.
“The first practice went well and (was) one of the best we had here in three years,” Snyder head coach Cory Mandrell said. “The practice went very smooth from issuing equipment and getting onto the field. The first few days are the first step and our goal is to make progress every day. We worked on determining how much the players retained from what they learned last season and the spring.”
Mandrell said practice will be held in the late afternoon through Friday with a morning practice scheduled Saturday. 
Meet the Tigers will be held Saturday night, ending the first week of practice.
“We will not assume players know everything and start with the basics and see what they recall,” Mandrell said. “We will work at moving forward. We are taking the approach like we are in school. This will be the same time we will be practicing. We will seek improvement every day.”
But the night wasn’t all about defense. Offense also received attention with quarterbacks passing to receivers with the linemen in the end zone area working on blocking techniques. Under the new rules, players can don shoulder pads Friday, but full contact is not permitted until Saturday.
“We are looking for progress, not perfection,” Mandrell said. “The number of players is down a little, but we should gain freshmen on the first day of school. It was fun for the players to practice under the lights on the first day.”
The later practice time provided an opportunity for parents and other fans to watch. Mandrell said that gave an extra spark to the team.
“It made for an exciting atmosphere,” Mandrell said. “The players appreciated it and received energy from seeing people cared enough to come out and watch practice.”
Snyder will continue its schedule of late afternoon practice for the first two days next week before classes begin on Aug. 15.
The first preseason scrimmage will be a home game against Idalou on Aug 17.
Snyder’s second scrimmage also at home, against Slaton on Aug. 24.