It’s fourth-and-one in the final quarter. The Lawrence High football team must stop its opponent to secure the victory. If not, the Lions lose.

Senior defensive lineman Kyle McTaggart encourages his team to hold its own and not give an inch from the line of scrimmage.

“It’s fourth down, baby, we’ve got to hold them now,” yelled McTaggart.

The atmosphere was that of a game. But McTaggart actually was yelling from Daisy Hill behind McCollum Hall. These were only offseason conditioning drills, but LHS senior captains motivated their team members with “what-if” situations the other morning. The seniors provided leadership and created a game-like atmosphere in the workout.

Team members needed it. They were going through hill workouts, a very simple concept. The 35 individuals who showed up to the voluntary workout took turns sprinting up a steep hill that was about 100 feet long.

How many times? McTaggart was ready to cool down after the 24th and final sprint.

“When we’re in the situation like that where we’ve got six hills left, it’s pretty much just like the last plays of the game,” McTaggart said. “We’re all dead tired and need to find a way to get it done. If you can do this, you can make it through six plays at the end of the game.”

Lawrence High will need this type of senior leadership on the field next season. The Lions lost 18 starters from last year’s team and will return only three.

“As far as any year, it’s probably the most important year to find some leaders,” Lawrence High coach Dirk Wedd said. “It’s going to be important to find some kids that have never been thrown into that situation.”

Seniors McTaggart, Nick Debiasse and Travis Gage noticeably emerged as leaders at the morning workout. In the first drill, the team stretched with dumbbells. McTaggart was positioned separately from his 34 teammates. He was in front and led the exercises, despite coaches being present.

You could call McTaggart a natural leader. After all, he knows the consequences of not accepting the role.

“Coach always stresses that he doesn’t have any problem with setting a senior on the bench and playing a sophomore,” McTaggart said.

LHS also will rely on Gage as a leader next season. The safety/wide receiver accepted his role openly at the workouts.

After the first group finished a jumping exercise, which followed the sprints up the hill, members of the group walked with a purpose to find water.

Not Gage.

He waited until every group completed the exercise and encouraged his teammates, vocally and with high-fives, to finish strong. This will be pretty similar to his defensive role on the field.

“As a free safety, you have to know everybody’s coverage and everybody’s responsibility on every play,” Gage said.

LHS has finished its four-times-a-week summer workouts.

The team couldn’t work out in its gym because the locker room was being remodeled. So the team has been outside in the summer heat every day of practice.

“We’ve probably worked them harder than any group since I’ve been here,” Wedd said.

Since LHS will lack experience this year, Gage said the team would rely on its top-level conditioning from the workouts to win games.

“We can break them down and play with them the whole game and get them tired and beat them that way,” Gage said.

The seniors have a lot to live up to – including Wedd’s recent assessment of the Lions.

“Overall, we’re a soft football team right now, and we’ve got to become much tougher physically and mentally – but that’s what summer weights is about,” Wedd said.

And the seniors know it. McTaggart has barely missed a voluntary workout all summer.