Wildcats hit reset: Rang refocuses on fundamentals
When Oak Ridge High School opens the 2025 football season, it will do so with plenty of familiar faces on the field.
With experience returning, third-year Coach Derek Rang used the Wildcats’ recently completed spring practice to reinforce the basics. Spring drills wrapped up with a scrimmage against Knoxville Central.
“It wasn’t a true scrimmage,” Rang said. “We did some agility work, some one-on-one drills, and some 7-on-7. I felt pretty good about spring.
“For us, it was about getting all the kids reps. We did pretty well offensively, defensively and across the board.
“This time of year, it’s not really about schemes, though people think it is,” he said. “It’s about fundamentals and seeing what you have. During the season, it’s about getting the reps for the guys who will play on Friday nights.”
While the outcome of the scrimmage with the Bobcats was inconsequential, Rang was upbeat about how his squad closed spring.
“We took care of the ball against Central,” he said. “We scored, and we did a good job keeping them out of the end zone.”
Oak Ridge is one of the last programs in the area to hold spring practice, and Rang sees that as an advantage.
“Since we start so late, we get to see what everybody has and how much their players have changed,” he said.
With spring behind them, the Wildcats will now turn their attention to strength and conditioning, with some on-field activities.
“We’ll do some conditioning, and Coach (Kevin) Day does a great job with that,” Rang said. “We’ll also do some 7-on-7 work until the dead period when we’re off for two weeks.
“When we come back, we’ll be ready to start school. We start early, and that’s actually a benefit. We’ll get into our routine sooner than most teams. When we return from the dead period, it’ll be time to get ready for the season.”
