The 2005 edition of the Pulaski County Cougars started its first week of two-a-day practices this past Monday, and Head Coach Jack Turner has been optimistic so far about what he has seen.

The Cougars had a great off-season. The team pushed each other to the limits with workouts both in the weight room and on the track and hills around Dobson Stadium. Several Cougars received some off-season attention. Rising Junior running back Kevin Crouse was mentioned in a Sports Illustrated article naming some of the top high school players in the nation. Crouse also attended the Adidas Camp in Knoxville, TN, where he performed well against some of the top talent in the Country. Rising Senior Casey Turpin has been tabbed as one of the top Tight End prospects in the state this year. Turpin attended the Virginia Tech seniors camp and received praise from the coaches there for his performance against some of the top linemen in the state. Rising senior Adam Adkins also saw some camp time this off season, and had a phenomenal off season in the weight room.

Rising senior Austin Twine looks to be the man who will be taking the snaps for the Cougars this season. Twine has a fine arm and great speed, and should do a fine job for Pulaski, but there is some competition lurking not too far in the background. There are two other young quarterbacks who can also get the job done and may compete for playing time at QB.

Another eyebrow raiser this season is the fact that Pulaski County will have a rising Freshman starting on defense. Jared Cole, formerly of Dublin Middle School, will be starting in Ernie Hodge's old spot on the defensive line this year for the Cougars. Now some may ask "Is Pulaski hurting that bad for talent, or is this kid that good?" After seeing this kid in the weight room during the off season, I can tell you that he has EARNED his position with lots of sweat. He may be a freshman, but he most definitely don't look like it. Keep an eye on #33 (hmmm....Coach Turners old number.....) and expect good things.

The Cougars will be a young team this season, with 19 seniors, 22 juniors, 30 sophomores, and 1 freshman working out together next to the corn field. Of those 19 seniors however, only a few are returning starters from last seasons 8-2 team. The freshman team also had a good turnout on the first day of practice, with a little over 40 players coming out.

There are a couple of other players that you might want to keep your eyes on. Rising juniors Benji Poindexter (#3) and Brent Osborne (#72) both had very good off seasons and have plenty of experience from last season. Devin Henry (#74) is a face I didn't recognize, but he also had a face that made me glad I'm not going against him anytime soon. He's a good size young man (6'1"/287 lbs) and looks plenty mean enough to play some good OT/DT. Rising senior Zach Quesenberry (#8) will be playing Z-back this season, but he's got some strong competition in the form of Cab Cabaniss (#45). Watching these two in practice is something, I cant wait until the go at it in hamburger drill. Senior Trey Angle has shown some really good hands in practice so far, and returning senior place kicker Luis Piscura should again provide us with a solid kicking game. There are, many more that could/should be mentioned, but its still early in pre-season practice.

The team will see its first full contact on Thursday, August 11th. Hamburger drill starts at 9:30, I'll be there with the camera. I expect several folks to challenge starters for their position over the next week or two. There are some hungry Cougars out there who want that starting spot!! Be sure to check back for more photo's and team info as the official season opener against Patrick Henry gets closer.

GO COUGARS!!!!

CougarDave's Practice Photos