HACKETT (KFSM) - Hackett and playoffs go hand-in-hand. In fact, the Hornets haven't missed the postseason since 2005.
Over the past five years, Lonnie Hester molded the Hornets to a team who consistently plays in the postseason with a high seed. Now, new head coach Michael Meador has big shoes to fill.
"The kids responded actually better than we expected," Coach Hester explained. "The kids really want to work hard, which makes it a lot easier on us."
"He's a real good coach," guard/tackle Briar Goines said of his new head man. "I like what he's been going with us. He changed our offense and our defense, so we have a new look this year and I think that's really going to help us."
Now, Hackett is on a hunt to make school history.
"We've never been past the second round, so obviously one of our goals for our senior class is to try to get over that hump, so get past the second round," Coach Hester said of the team's goals. "We'll make history. We want to be competitive every single game. Right now, that's our goals."
Avery Hester takes over for his brother at quarterback, and is sliding right into the role of a leader.
"Avery's a little bit different than his brother. But we're excited about what he can do," Coach Hester mentioned of his QB1. "He's really athletic and he can throw the ball, so we're excited about what he can do. Honestly, our expectations are basically him running the offense and him being able to throw the ball and use his legs when he's needed."
When you look at where the strengths are for the Hornets, it's the quickness and agility that sticks out.
"We've got a lot of speed and we've got a bunch of good backs," Hester mentioned. "All of them can catch. All of them can run. We've got a really good line. They're big, they're fast. They're just going to be good."
"I think some of our strengths is our speed," Goines agreed. "We have a lot of speed and skill with us this year. We've never really been big, but we have a couple of big guys this year so that will really help us."
All around - it's a new look for Hackett. The team also adds on four or five players to add some needed depth to the roster. That will likely come in handy as Coach Meador looks to take the program to its fourteenth straight playoff appearance.
Hackett opens its season Thursday, August 29th at Mansfield. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.