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Show Vagt 30A - THE HERALD, Provo, Utah. Thx-sda- y, August 30, 1364 Prep Roundup tf? rt::r:;:: Ihftiuthoul I nlr.il i.ih I - h Under New Coach It's a Rebuilding Year forPayson Lions By DOUG WILKS Herald Sports Writer STRENGTHS: Team attit- ude. New coach signals a chance for new beginnings. Sterling Haskell is experienced quarterback who can provide team leadership. Line also has playing experience. WEAKNESSES: Players inexperienced with new sys- Eight teams, but they should be competitive. Junior Jason Tolton is the strongest lineman at 210 pounds. He sat out last year with a broken leg but is working well in preseason. Tom McCloud, 195 pounds, joins Tolton as the main force on the line. McKee's hands will be full as he tries to rebuild the defensive secondary and linebackers. Tolton is slated for the line but may see action at middle or outside linebacker. Twede and Sonju will be at the cornerback spots with the rest of the defense still undetermined. The good news is that McKee's expertise comes on defense. He is thrilled with his team's response to skill drills and is optimistic about the fu ture of the Payson program. "You know we'd love to be No. 1 and the best team in the region. But realistically, we look to have an improving year and do the best we can," he said. The Lions' goal this year is to make the playoffs. To their advantage, the other league teams have never faced a Dave McKee squad and won't know what to expect. That element of surprise, combined with a a very real enthusiastic attitude, could pose problems for the rest of the league. Aat 7 Srpt. Srpl. 21 rl. at Payson 11 Scpl. 28 5 Oct. It Oct. 18 Oct. 2t 7 HI Paynn at Tooev 7 30 p m p m Favson at PI drove. 5pm Pavsfm at Spnnsviilt?. 7 34) p l.ehi at Payson 7 30 p m Pavsnn at Timpvtew. .NT Pavson at Sp hark. 7 30 p m ( arbon at Payson. 7 30 p m. - i tem. Defensive secondary and linebacking corps needs rebuilding. PREDICTED Sixth. FINISH: Realistically, no one can expect a new young coach in his first head coaching job to take a down program and build a championship team in one year. But the Payson Lions will give it their best shot this season under new head coach Dave McKee. McKee, a former defensive starter for Brigham Young University, comes to Payson by way of Idaho State University r ACQOAIHTGD m COUNTY'S WIW 2m 1 where he was an assistant coach under Jim Koetter. He spent one year in Idaho turning his defensive back skills into coaching skills and gets his first chance as a head coach this fall. "We just got in pads but we're looking decent," he said as drills got underway. "We've just had a lot of work to do in the first place." McKee is concentrating on the fundamentals of football, working his defensive backs through coverage drills and getting back to the basics of hitting, blocking and tackling. He hopes the newly learned skills, combined with a little playing experience, will result in a winning team. "The attitude has been just great. I couldn't expect anything more than what's happening here. Everybody's pretty excited," he said of his group of 45 ill varsity players. Tops on the list of this year's best Lion players are returning quarterback Sterling Haskell and running back Scott Muhle-steiBoth are athletes for Payson and will put good speed in the Lion back-fiel- n. d. Joining Haskell and Muhle-stei-n is senior tailback Blake Mortensen. All three will team with Bob Sonju as captains of this year's team. McKee says Sonju, the fastest player on the team, will be the top receiver and probably see time returning kickoffs and punts. Three junior players, Mark Cower, Glen Twede and Keith Andrews, will also catch passes for Payson. The offensive and defensive linemen aren't as big as those on some of the other Region g Up I IfttKl QPEfJ LABOR DAY. " umsJ, 0,,m I |