In the past, WACO head football coach Chad Edeker has shied away from going to team camps when the Warriors were playing Class A 11-man football. However, embarking on their first year of 8-man football, Edeker decided to take his squad to an 8-man football camp hosted by Northwest Missouri State University in mid-June. On Saturday’s JET Physical Therapy Radio Coaches Corner, Edeker talked about the camp and its value as the Warriors embark on a new brand of football this fall.

The two day camp attracted 8-man football squads from Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, and one team from South Dakota. Freemont-Mills and Bedford were the teams for Iowa who joined the Warriors at the camp. Edeker says in attending the camp and other clinics over the summer, he learned there is a much larger emphasis in tackling properly with three fewer guys on the field.

There are two notable differences the Warriors’ football team will have to adjust to this season. Like the name states, there are three fewer players on the field during an 8-man football game. Also, the game is played on an 80-yard field, 20 fewer yards than in 11-man football.

The 2016 football season for the WACO Warriors is set to kick off Thursday, August 18, hitting the road for a non-district game versus the HLV Warriors.