Badger T.O.U.G.H.

PHOTO BY RICHARD AKRIDGE Lampasas head football coach Joey McQueen poses next to a trash can full of excuses his players pulverized with a baseball bat earlier this year. The mangled trash can remains in the Badgers' locker room, serving as a reminder to the players of their commitment to the program. On his first day as Lampasas' new head football coach, Joey McQueen arrived at the high school campus with a brand new, shiny steel trash can in hand.

He had to clean his locker room of all its clutter.

But the coach was not looking to pick up debris left from previous workouts. There was no athletic tape on the floor or little paper water cups crumpled in the corners.

McQueen was there to remove a different kind of garbage.

He was there to eliminate excuses.

McQueen sat down his varsity squad, gave them each a piece of paper and asked a simple question. What is wrong with this team?

One by one, the players were called upon to reveal their answer.

Then it went into the trash can.

Once the final excuse was wadded up and thrown away, the coach brought out a baseball bat and told his team to eliminate the waste.

"They beat the dog out of that trash can," McQueen said. "The first one hit it [against its side] and knocked it about 20 feet over. I said, 'Whoa, wait a minute. We have to beat down on that thing.' "

And they did.

Repeatedly.

The crumpled trash can remains inside the locker room. The discarded pieces of paper are still inside, serving as a reminder of the Badgers' commitment to turn around the program.

"[Sometimes] I have to tell them, 'We talked about this; no more excuses,' " McQueen said. 'You threw them away.' "

Over the past three years, the team posted only four wins and when the season opens on Aug. 28 against Manor, the Badgers will be looking to snap a 20-game losing streak.

This week, Lampasas takes its first steps toward 1-0 as spring football practice begins.

Perhaps nobody is hungrier to taste victory than McQueen.

"I'm not a very patient person," McQueen said. "I want to win now."

The coach endured the past three seasons from the sidelines, serving as the school's athletic coordinator - a position he still holds - before replacing Ryan Bailey after last season's 0-10 campaign.

"When things started going bad, instead of us digging in, we didn't dig in," McQueen said. "[Human nature is typically] when things go bad, we [cower]. And not only just athletes, but coaches and townspeople and everyone.

"I think when coaches believe in kids and kids believe in coaches, and when parents believe in kids and parents believe in coaches, then you'll start having a winning program."

McQueen (102-96-4 career record) turned around several programs in the past. His most recent revival came at Smithville, where he led the Tigers to three victories after erasing a 31-game losing streak.

In addition to Smithville, McQueen, beginning his 19th season as a head coach, has made successful stops at San Angelo Lake View, Reagan County High School, Mason, Howe and Bells with his teams making the playoffs 13 times.

Part of the Badgers' problems of late stem from being in a difficult district that includes Killeen, Pflugerville Hendrickson, Dripping Springs, Marble Falls, Hutto and the defending Class 4A state champion Lake Travis Cavaliers.

But, to McQueen, that is just another excuse.

He knows his team must become tough to overcome. More accurately, his team and his community must become Badger T.O.U.G.H.

The acronym stands for "together our unity grows higher," and it will serve as the team's rally cry this season.

"The parents, the community, the kids and [the coaching staff]. When those four entities are working together then our unity will grow higher," McQueen said.

On the field, however, the responsibility falls squarely on the shoulder pads of his players.

Spring practice will be much the same.

McQueen expects his players to have specific plays memorized coming into each session, so the team can quickly run through the daily drills without wasting time.

Those planning to visit the practices that lead up to the spring game on May 22 should not expect to be sitting on the edge of the bleachers.

"I think the word 'boring' is good," McQueen said. "If you're bored, that means you are doing it over and over and over. That's what we need to do."

The highly organized two-hour practices begin at 4 p.m., consisting of 11 five-minute segments for offense followed by 11 five-minute defensive segments. Between the two periods, the squads get a 10-minute break.

The freshman and junior varsity teams will play on the same side of the ball, lining up across from the varsity Badgers.

If everything goes according to schedule, the squad will have its base plays memorized and ready to run flawlessly when the spring game kickoff flies into the air.

McQueen feels certain the extra preparation off the field will help the Badgers grab the win that has eluded them over the past two years.

But he knows what might happen if the losing continues.

"I had someone earlier tell me that they were sad to see me take the football job, and I asked why," McQueen said. "They said, 'If you don't win then you'll be gone in two years, and I like you.'

"You can't look at it that way. You've got to look at what you're going to do to help that program and make it better."

Anything else is just an excuse.

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The Quarterback Club will hold its first meeting Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. inside the Lampasas High School Library.