After a long summer of workouts and fundamentals, the Charles Henderson Trojans finally returned to the practice field for the start of their fall practice Monday morning. Charles Henderson hopes to improve on a solid season this year, and it all starts with fall practice.

After spending much of the morning lifting weights and doing a lot of gym work, the Trojans then traveled to the Charles Henderson Middle School for a 90-minute long practice session.

“I think that we have had a really good three days,” said Trojan head coach Brad McCoy said. “The first two days were just in shorts and helmets, but today in shoulder pads I could tell they got hot.”

After instilling the importance of doing the little things like fundamentals and lifting weights into his players, McCoy expects his team to be ready to go 100 percent when they hit the practice field.

“If we are doing our jobs in the summer we should already have a pretty good tempo,” McCoy said. “We have been talking a lot about competition. We have a lot more depth in a lot of positions therefor it has created a lot more competition. So, I think competition and going out there and getting into the routine of a normal practice is what we are trying to instill.”

After losing key players like Austin Ingram and Richard McBryde, McCoy expects a lot more competitiveness from his players to close some of the gaps in key positions.

“We are going to have to work harder than anyone else if we are going to have a shot to win,” McCoy said. “We don’t have that Richard McBryde or Austin Ingram, so it’s going to be a different make up. I think it can be a positive in a lot of ways because we are going to get a lot more out of a lot of different players.”

After losing Ingram following last year McCoy is charged with finding the next Trojan starting quarterback.

Bryson Gandy, who is playing quarterback for the first time, and Alex Bland are two early favorites to win the starting role. Noah Lowery, Nick Sedano and Brock Huner are also getting reps under center.

“After talking with coach Jordan, our offensive coordinator, that decision may not be made until the Wednesday before the Pike County game,” McCoy said. “All of the guys are getting a lot of reps. I think practice today and the scrimmage on Friday will tell us a lot about some separation from Alex Bland and Bryson Gandy.”

The Trojan defense will also have a new look heading into the 2015 season with newly hired defensive coordinator Chuck Dunn taking over the defense. After making stops at Prattville High School, the University of South Alabama, and the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Dunn is sure to bring experience to the Trojan locker room.

“Coach Dunn is one of my best friends, and we go way back,” McCoy said. “It’s been a huge advantage to get him on our staff, and I respect the heck out of him. He is breeding confidence. He is one of the first guys in the field house in the morning, and he brings players in for individual meetings. We both have worked under some great people, and we understand the expectations we put on these players are very important.”

Troy will open up the 2015 schedule with a preseason match up with Pike County on Aug. 21 at 7:00 p.m.