Dan McManus is used to the build up to high school football season, so he's ready for Saturday's first day of fall practice.

By now, working out all summer long and getting back on the practice field in mid-
August is old hat for the Eastern Tech senior. He knows he's ready and he is confident that his teammates are too, because the Mavericks have a lot to live up to after winning the state Class 2A crown last season, the school's first football title.

"I'm just looking forward to getting started, seeing who's going to fill in the spots and who's going to step up," said McManus, an All-Metro defensive tackle who had 92 tackles and 11 sacks last season.

The Mavericks are one of two local teams who take the field, on Saturday's first day of practice for public school football teams, looking to defend a state title come December. Old Mill took the Class 4A title a year ago, also the first football title in its school history.

For the Mavericks and coach Marc Mesaros, the All-Metro Coach of the Year, their title was particularly rewarding because they had been to the final the two previous years and lost. Now, they're not only used to being there, they know how to win and that's what McManus said the Mavericks aim for again this season.

"Basically, we just have a higher standard to live up to now," he said. "It would be a senior dream [to repeat as champs]. If you keep building and keep up the enthusiasm, it's all about coaching and hard work."

McManus wants to boost his game and knows he will have to be more of a leader now as a senior, so he spent the summer at camps and combines to improve his skills. He drew attention from several college programs, including Bucknell, which like the aspiring engineer's combination of a strong game and a 3.8 grade-point average.

As most football teams do, the Mavericks had a big turnover, graduating 22 players. McManus is used to that.

"Every year, we've graduated the whole offense, the whole defense except for two or three players, so the coach gets everything he can out of the players. Just rebuild, build a lot of strong players over the summer."

Some of those likely to be keys this fall along with McManus? He named Marquiese Bannister, Josh Cannella, Brad Hager, Mike Wright, Devon White and Brandon Jones..

The Mavericks won't rest on their laurels. They're just eager to get going.

"We don't really look back. We just keep moving forward," McManus said. "We're ready. We're used to practicing every week during the summer. First game is always a little nervous, but I'm used to it."