ROBERTSDALE, Ala. - Robertsdale Golden Bears second-year head coach Brian Campbell already sees a lot of improvement from last year’s squad.

“We worked a lot in the off-season on our strength and conditioning and I believe it’s starting to pay off,” said Campbell, who finished 1-9 in his first season at RHS. “Last year we averaged 16 missed tackles per game and that all goes back to strength and conditioning. In our spring game against Theodore we only had four missed tackles and that was both JV and varsity, so it’s definitely made a difference.”

Building confidence is also key, Campbell said, for a team whose wins have been few and far between over the last several years.

“Our goal is to come out and be competitive in every game this season,” he said. “We need to give ourselves and chance to win those games we’re supposed to win and we need to win some games we’re not supposed to win. If we can do that, I believe this team will take off.”

Campbell said while all of his players have been working hard in the offseason to get better, he sees the biggest improvement in his defense.

“We’ve got experience at every position defensively,” he said. “That’s going to be a big key for us this year. Our final game last year, we put up 40 points and then some and still lost. We’ve got to do a better job making stops in order to win some games this year.”

Fewer turnovers and fewer mistakes on special teams will also be a key for the Golden Bears this season, Campbell said, as they open up on the road against Satsuma for a preseason game on Aug. 23 before kicking off the regular season at home against Mary Montgomery Aug. 30. Regional action begins the following week against rival Foley at J.D. Sellars Stadium.

For the full story, pick up our "FALL SPORTS PREVIEW" section on Aug. 27.