SOUTHEAST GLENDALE — One school says it has a new attitude, a new work ethic and a new commitment to the program.
The other says its starting completely over.
One program believes that its losing ways will become a thing of the past.
The other thinks it has a long way to go before it can win on a consistent basis.
The Hoover High football team declares it has a new identity and its ready to start winning week after week, not just once or twice a year.
Its crosstown rival, Glendale, answers that its identity will start being built on Monday when it begins from the “ground up.”
Hoover looked toward the future with promise and Glendale just looked down on Friday night after the Tornadoes’ 15-7 win at Moyse Field in the Pacific League and regular-season finale for both teams.
“This is different,” Tornadoes quarterback AJ Pule said. “Everybody plays hard. No one gives up. Everyone feels closer as a team.”
Two years ago, the Tornadoes were a team that looked forward to just one game: Its emotionally packed rivalry contest against Glendale at the end of the year.
“But there were nine games to play before the Glendale game,” Tornadoes defensive coordinator Andrew Policky said.
Policky and Coach Chris Long — who were assistants at Arcadia before coming to Hoover — began trying to instill a mindset that winning should be expected around Hoover. It took a year, but the Tornadoes say they now expect to win each game, not just to keep the score respectable. The Tornadoes have become a team that might have the ability to begin competing against league foes in the coming years, as Long and his assistants have what they believe is a strong foundation with freshman and junior varsity teams.
“We’re headed in the right direction,” Long said.
Pule, a junior, definitely agrees.
“We’re starting a new Hoover,” he promises.
At Glendale, Coach Alan Eberhart says his team will start anew.
“Now, it’s my team,” said Eberhart, who took the Glendale head coaching job in March, missing out on months of preparation and off-season workouts with his team, which was the same problem Long had when he was hired in the late spring two years ago. “When you inherit a team, it’s hard.”
Eberhart says his team has to work on mistakes and start building the Nitro program with assistants who will try to infuse a new spirit. But he knows it may take time.
“It’s a lot of learning,” Eberhart said.
For Hoover, however, that time may have started on Friday night.
