LAKEVILLE - When coaches run an intrasquad scrimmage, both the coaching staff and players benefit. Saturday, LaVille head football coach and his staff divided the 40+ players as equally as possible to get a gauge on where the Lancers are after five days of practice. The Blue & White Scrimmage came away with a lot of winners, especially the players. "By how we format the scrimmage it gives all 43 players on our team the opportunity to perform in a true competition atmosphere," said second-year coach Jeff Kaiser. "It's kind of an opportunity for the guys to show us a "look what I can do" approach." From the incoming freshmen, to newcomers, to returning players everyone got a chance to display their skills. After the teams were divided, both teams were given 16 plays each to move the ball down the field from the 20-yard line. Following a couple of water breaks, each team was given 10 plays each to try and score from the 10. The final sequence found each squad starting at the 40 and attempting to move the ball toward the goal line. "The new guys that have either never put a LaVille Football uniform on before or have never played in a High School scene coming in from the middle school program essentially gets them to get a good feel for the speed of the game and a glimpse of what it takes to play under the lights on a Friday Night," said Kaiser, who helped lead the Lancers to an 11-2 overall record and sectional title in 2023. "Also the way we format it as a staff, some of the guys had the opportunity to either play with or beside a teammate that they may not be able to during the season. due to being either on JV or Varsity but realizing at any point in time their number might be called to play alongside that brother of theirs. Also it is very satisfying as a coach to see our older kids working alongside and with some of the younger newer guys and helping them out in the moments of battle." Using that approach, Kaiser was happy with how things shook out. "With us truly dividing our teams in half and having a mixture of players, I was pleased how we were able to mix up the run and pass game consistently," said Kaiser. "That tells me that guys can execute no matter who they are lined up with or who is running the offense. That is very promising at both the Varsity and JV levels." According to Kaiser, it is a big benefit to see what happens in practice and translate to the game field. "The biggest plus was that we were finally able to see guys in game type settings for the first time and being able to witness all of the guys playing hard and hustling," said the Lancer leader. "We see it everyday at practice, but to transition that to a game field in front of spectators is something that is very satisfying." As LaVille prepares for the August 16 scrimmage at Prairie Heights, Kaiser, his staff, and the players will look at film and continue to get better each day. "We have work to do no doubt but things we see as a staff and the effort all of the guys put in will make the improvements possible," concluded Kaiser. "This team is hungry to continue the LaVille Football tradition and prove their identity!" The Lancers will open the regular season on August 23 at Triton. The home opener will be August 30 against North Judson-San Pierre. Stay tuned in the coming days as we chat more with coach Kaiser and we preview LaVille football. Game on ...