Robert Perea
The offensive line returns three starters — Bradley Cabral, John Schoenmier, and Logan Casey, though Cabral is out until midseason with a broken collarbone suffered at Eastern Oregon's summer camp. Connors said replacements are picking up the offense quickly. He credited line coaches Lonnie Slapinski, Garrett Massey, and new defensive line coach Lawrence Mori for building cohesion up front.
Connors said Fallon's defense, which he believed was even stronger than its high-scoring offense last season, returns most of its starters. The Greenwave allowed seven points or fewer in seven games last year, including five shutouts. Defensive coordinator Trent DeBraga leads the unit.
“I trust him with my life,” Connors said. “His ability to understand the game and feel the flow of a game as a play caller is fun to watch.”
Special teams are led by Ryan McCormick, a Fallon graduate who joined the staff last season.
Fallon is scheduled to scrimmage at Carson Aug. 8 at 10 a.m. Connors said he will be focused on position battles and execution.
“They understand the standard we hold here,” he said. “You're going to fail more than you succeed in sports, and it's all about how fast you can get over that.”
Fallon enters the season as the defending state champion, but Connors said the team still carries an underdog mentality.
“An underdog is a hungry dog, and hungry dogs run faster,” he said. “We don't need any fuel to add to our competitive fire, but we appreciate anything that gets thrown our way that displays that we're not the favorite.”
Now in his third year, Connors said he's more comfortable with the program and the players.
“My first year obviously was my first year at this school too, so it was a lot of learning, getting to know the kids and the culture at Churchill County High School,” he said. “Now it's understanding how to coach each kid and what makes them tick. I'm really trying to tap into that and to try to get the most potential out of each individual player.”
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