The Mayfield varsity football team plans to build momentum into the 2015 season by having a good offseason, which includes offseason workouts.

The offseason workouts are important for the whole team, according to head coach Larry Pinto. He said, “They’re important because it helps with team building; it helps everyone get familiar with each other and helps builds chemistry. Without them, we wouldn’t be prepared for the season.”

Pinto believes the offseason workouts help with the development of the team’s chemistry. Mario Monastero, junior quarterback, said, “It really builds team chemistry. Everyone works together and comes together to meet our goal for the season.”

The offseason workouts give the players a time where they can just bond with each other. Michael Canganelli, who’s also a member of the team, said, “Besides getting stronger and faster, you can bond with the team. The older kids are leaders to the younger ones, and we inspire them to keep improving and work hard.”

The offseason workouts benefit the players. It helps them build strength and the physical and mental toughness needed for the season.

Pinto said, “They benefit the players by making them bigger, faster, and stronger. It also helps them get to know their teammates better and build better relationships with their teammates, which helps in building chemistry. The offseason workouts are mostly focused on our players gaining explosive strength and power for next season.”

The offseason workouts offer many physical benefits to the players. Monastero said, “A lot of people get bigger and stronger from them. For example, we’ve done a competition called Green Dawn, in which every player competes against each other, and it prepares us for the season. It gets everyone stronger and everyone excited for the season.”

The players go through many different drills during the offseason workouts that help the players become physically fit for the season. Pinto said, “There are many drills the players do during these workouts. Some of the drills include plyometrics, for explosive power, the rope ladder, for foot speed, cane drills, for agility, and ground plyos, for speed training.”

Even though the offseason workouts mostly benefit the players, it also benefits the coaches. It helps them get familiar with the players and gives them an idea of how their team will play during the coming season.

Pinto said, “They help the coaches get to know the players and expectations. They also help us build the schemes that fit our players the best.”

During the offseason and from these offseason workouts, trust is built between the coaching staff and the players.

Canganelli said, “The coaches push us to do our best. Trust is built because they know the best for us, and they care about us. They want us to do better and better each day.”

The offseason workouts play a key role in the team’s preparation for the season. They help the team come together and help reduce the players’ chances of injury.

Pinto said, “They prepare the team for the season by building more confidence in the team as a whole. They also help reduce injury in the season by training them before the season. It gets them comfortable and use to the conditions they’ll have to go through throughout the season.”

The offseason workouts are scheduled from late January to late August. But, important ones are scheduled in the summer, from June to August, in which regular workout days are scheduled on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

Important events scheduled during the summer include Mount Union Team Camp, which is from July 6  to July 8, and Mayfield Wildcat Football Camp, which is from July 27 to July 29. On August 1, double sessions start, which go on until the season opener.

The varsity football team hopes to have a good year next season, but, in order for that to happen, they need to have good offseason workouts. If so, they will likely have a good start to the season and, hopefully, a better ending to the year than last season.