Campbell

The dog days of summer are for the skilled.

Big, burly offensive linemen, you can take a knee and relax.

Quarterbacks, you can rest assured no behemoth defensive end will plant you into the turf.

During the summer months, high school football teams hone their skills during 7-on-7 drills, better known as passing scrimmages.

There are no offensive linemen, save a center, and no defensive linemen to rush the passer.

And, of course, the running game is nonexistent.

The drills are designed to build a rapport between quarterback and receiver.

But building timing between them isn't the only benefit.

"I think it may help my defense more," said Moniteau coach Jeff Campbell.

That could be why most Butler County football coaches are in 7-on-7 heaven.

"There are two major benefits," said Butler coach Jeff McAnallen. "One, it really helps your defense, and, two, it gets your kids' mindset off baseball and track, and gets them focused on football again."

Campbell said the drills help his defensive backs recognize coverages — and what happens when coverages break down.With high school offenses getting more and more sophisticated — thank the spread revolution in college for that — coaches find it is imperative to expose their defenses to as much passing as possible."It's not what you do, it's how well you do it," Campbell said. "And the only way to do it well is to practice it on the field."We play our keys and reads and stunts and blitzes with our linebackers," Campbell added. "Our linebackers are a pretty active group. The best benefit is it gets the kids together and gets them to build that trust."Campbell is a big proponent of the 7-on-7 drills. When he took over the Moniteau program from Steve Wilson, he got the Warriors involved in as many as he could.Neither the PIAA nor the WPIAL have restrictions on the number of 7-on-7 scrimmages teams can participate in during the summer.Most of the drills Moniteau competes in are informal affairs organized with other schools around the county, such as Slippery Rock and Grove City.Campbell said the drills are very competitive."Oh, the kids get fired up," Campbell said. "The bottom line is it is basically two-hand touch. It's like a pick-up game. It's not organized. There are no pads, no helmets, no mouthpieces. But the kids love it and it's a blast."The standard rules of football don't apply.

During most passing scrimmages, each team gets 10 plays to score.Even though there is no pass rush, the quarterback can't hold the ball all day. He has four seconds to get off a pass or the play is whistled dead.Not every coach is convinced the passing camps are the way to go."Everyone lays back on defense," said Karns City coach Ed Conto, who does participate in 7-on-7 drills, but sees limited benefit from them. "It gives you a false sense of how good you are."Conto also said he believes passing camps do little to breed toughness in a football team."You still have to run the football to win," Conto said. "I've seen a lot of teams go wide open and the kids are not as physical."Butler participated in a 7-on-7 camp at Slippery Rock University this summer, going up against six teams.McAnallen said most programs compete in passing camps and not doing so puts a team at a disadvantage.When in Rome ... have a 7-on-7 passing scrimmage."People need to realize football starts in March and April now," McAnallen said. "When I played, football started Aug. 15 and ended when you turned your equipment in at the end of the season."It's not like that anymore. I know what the other guys are doing, and, to be competitive, you have to do it, too."

Conto

McAnallen