The Oswego varsity football team may not have fielded a team in 2019, but head coach Jason Primrose has 41 players ready for a shortened campaign this year.
COVID-19 pushed back the Buccaneers’ season from its typical fall time frame to just a few weeks in the spring, bringing on even more challenges for Primrose that he has not had to deal with in the past, such as working around the school district’s spring break.
After schools were closed last March due to the pandemic, Primrose also had to manage a strange and unusual offseason. Oswego could not practice together for different workouts, plus there were numerous players that went from “nothing to full-blown sprint,” with physical workouts. Primrose added he only has six or seven players that are coming off of a winter sport.
Primrose set up Google Meet workouts while athletes were home and everyone worked out together. Primrose used weights and feed that he had at his barn, while some players were using random items throughout their homes, such as safes or chairs.
“I’ve been sending out workouts daily since schools started to close, trying to get the kids involved and trying to get them going. It was tough, because the kids are like, ‘OK, there’s no end in sight,’” Primrose said. “Once I said it was time to go, the kids started jumping on the bandwagon.”
Oswego has only four games scheduled for this season, including Thursday’s matchup against Sandy Creek. The Bucs will host Pulaski on April 5, travel to Phoenix on April 15 and play at home against Mexico on April 20.
After a full season without a team, Primrose, who is in his first year at the helm of the Bucs, said he is not rebuilding a team—he is just building. While the primary focus is to improve on the field, Primrose added he is trying to promote a strong team camaraderie within the players and the community.
Primrose mentioned that there is not just one player in terms of leadership for this year, but that everyone is keeping “everybody accountable” while “moving in the right direction.”
“I’m just trying to build a camaraderie, like a school spirit so that people go, ‘Hey, what are you doing on Friday night? Oh, I’m going to the football game.’ We haven’t had that [in Oswego] in a very long time,” Primrose said. “You get the town involved, the student body is involved, the band is playing — it’s a great environment.”
Moving forward, Primrose eventually wants the entire football community of Oswego to come together, with modified and varsity practicing together, while also having the varsity team help out with Pop Warner football during the offseason such as filling water bottles or moving the chains.
Having everyone together allows anyone from 7 years old to 17 years old to practice the same drills, while hearing it from the same coaching staff. Plus, at the varsity level, if a kid sticks with the sport, Primrose can watch players truly develop by the time their senior year rolls around.
“You can have a junior or senior buddy up with a seventh or eighth grader [to mentor them],” Primrose said. “For the longest time, everything’s been separated. I want to try to bring them together … That’s how we’re going to be better.”
While the Bucs are looking for their first win since Oct. 29, 2014, Primrose said all he cares about is the team’s effort moving forward.
“If they’re giving me the best they’ve got, then things are going to work out well. I can’t necessarily say that’s wins or losses,” Primrose said. “We’re going for a win. But if they give me their best effort, that’s all I can ask for.”
Ben Grieco | The Oswegonian
