Vinnie Cammarano
Key Points
Wekiva head football coach Ashton Watts knows the Mustangs have work to do with a 2-6 record, but he sees a team that is beginning to understand what it takes to build a winning program.
Coming out of their bye week, the Mustangs returned to the practice field with an emphasis on fundamentals, accountability and maintaining the standards Watts has set for his players. With crosstown rivals Evans and Apopka awaiting them, the focus remained on preparation rather than changing the approach because of the opponents.
“Our kids’ spirits are high, and I know where our program could be at a time like this,” Watts said. “We’ve been in the process of kind of cutting the fat and weaning guys out and trying to get the guys that are bought in. So when you do that, you find the guys who still love the game, and I feel like we’ve done that. So these guys, man, they’re not paying attention to the record. They’re just willing to work.”
The bye week came later in the season than Watts would have preferred, especially with the Mustangs coming off several losses in games they believed they could have won. Rather than making the week a major departure from their regular routine, Wekiva continued working while taking time to address smaller issues and allow players to recover physically.
“I know a lot of people take time to do like a lot of team bonding and stuff like that, but for us, it was just work as normal,” Watts said. “We did take some time to do some housekeeping, rest our bodies, and recuperate a little bit. We still lifted hard, but for the most part, it was just trying to find what we’re fighting for, and I think when you have two big crosstown rivals coming up, I think it makes it easy to kind of fight.”
Practice reflected that approach, beginning with two variations of Oklahoma drills that emphasized blocking fundamentals for wide receivers and the running game. The Mustangs then split into individual position drills, with the coaching staff working to sharpen execution on both sides of the ball.
Coach Anthony Grant worked with quarterback Dominick Sanguine and the receivers on route depth and finding openings against zone coverage. Receivers practiced maintaining their routes and identifying space between cornerbacks and safeties before working on proper footwork and direction changes on curl routes. Grant also coached Sanguine on throwing into windows created by the safeties.
“All you gotta worry about at your position is ‘Am I getting myself open,’ not ‘Am I getting the ball,’” Grant told the receivers.
Meanwhile, coach Alex Vazquez worked with the offensive linemen on the five-man sled, emphasizing explosiveness off the line of scrimmage. Coaches Jerry Middleton and Brandin Hawthorne reviewed defensive schemes and gap-blitz responsibilities with the defense.
The Mustangs later came together for skeleton drills before working on punt and kickoff returns. Practice concluded with a best-on-best scrimmage, where Dominique Walker made a strong play in coverage before Sanguine delivered several accurate passes.
For Watts, the work goes beyond individual drills or a single week of preparation. One of the biggest challenges this season has been bringing players along in their understanding of the game while establishing the expectations necessary to compete consistently.
“We did a great job recruiting the hallways, and I know that sounds funny, but in doing that, you pick up a lot of guys who don’t have football IQ,” Watts said. “So the biggest challenge was teaching the game of football, and even in some of the guys who knew the game, it was still coaching and teaching some of our ways and our standards. I think that was probably the hardest, the most difficult point was the IQ.”
Despite those growing pains, Watts feels the team’s greatest growth has come from the players’ willingness to embrace his expectations.
“The buy-in to the standard, and I know it still rubs certain people the wrong way,” Watts said. “I’m tough on coaches, tough on players, but just their buy into the standard. The standard is the standard, it isn’t going to change. If you’re still here, you have to abide by the standard.”
Walker, a four-year member of the program, has continued to prove himself as one of the team’s leaders through his effort on both sides of the ball. Watts also praised Rashard Ricketts for bringing energy and competitiveness after joining the program, while pointing to the development of sophomore offensive lineman Jeremiah Allen as a reason for optimism about the future.
Watts said Allen has handled significant responsibility at a young age and expects him to continue developing over the next two seasons. Izayah Bell has also shown promise as the Mustangs look for more players to step into leadership roles.
As Wekiva prepares to return to game action against Evans, Watts does not plan to change the team’s approach because of the rivalry or the stakes of the remaining schedule.
“I don’t ever want to make it a big hoopla, whether it’s Evans or Apopka,” Watts said. “We’re not going to change the work. We’re not going to change the standard. We’re going to go out there and just prepare.”