The Dexter Bearcat football team can be found working hard for two practices a day in preparation for the 2011 Season. Fortunately for the 'Cats, the weather has given relief to the extreme temperatures, but it's still hot.

"It's a little muggy out there, but all in all practice has gone pretty well," commented Head Coach Aaron Pixley. "I'm pleased so far."

In only their second official day of practice, the 'Cats are performing a lot of drills and refining their position skills. The coaching staff at Dexter have always been sticklers for proper execution of fundamentals and focus on the basics in the early part of the season.

"Everything is half pads, and we only work against bags, so it's hard to tell what all is going on (with their skills)," Pixley said. "The seniors look pretty good, and I am curious to get them in a game situation and see how they handle it."

The end of the 2010 season in the quarterfinal playoff game against John Burroughs left the program anxious for the 2011 season. Even though the Bearcats graduated several key positions, the 'Cats are returning with a lot of talent returning for the the 2011 roster.

Overall, many of the key skilled positions have returning starters or players that saw significant time last year.

The Bearcats return a strong group of young men on the line of scrimmage. Zach Lacy and Brandon Moore are returning two year offensive line starters. Jacob Stephens is also a returning All-Conference and All-Region starter at the center position. Lacy was All-Region while Moore received All-Conference, All-Region and Honorable Mention All-State in 2010.

"The line is coming off pretty hard and low so far in practice", noted Pixley.

Two-A-Day practices will continue through this week and will move to one practice per day next week prior to the beginning of classes on August 18th.

The Football Jamboree will return this year to Charles Bland Stadium on August 19th. Dexter will host New Madrid County Central, Kennett and East Prairie during the preseason scrimmage. The event will also be highlighted with a tailgate extravaganza for all the players and coaches sponsored by the Dexter Bearcat Booster Club.