TROY, Texas — As the sun rose on the first practice of the Stephen Hermesmeyer era at Troy, he says he felt like a kid on Christmas morning.
"You don't know what's under that tree right now," he said. "So we're excited to get out there and work and take it one day at a time and just get better each and every day."
Like pieces of a puzzle, Hermesmeyer has spent the summer figuring out who fits where in his new offensive scheme. Troy will run a Wing-T based offense in 2021.
His team will do so without the school's all-time leading rusher Zach Hrbacek, who will be a freshman at Sam Houston State this fall.
"We have a puzzle that we're looking for and certain pieces that we need and until we get out there and go to work, we don't know how it fits," Hermesmeyer said. "But we're excited that we are finally here and ready to start doing that."
The Trojans stumbled at the end of the season in 2020, going from nearly winning a district title to missing the playoffs entirely in the final month. Players say that disappointing finish will be a source of motivation going into the fall.
"I definitely have a bitter taste in my mouth from last year. It didn't go as well as we wanted it to, so this year, we will just have to make our mark again," Troy senior Kadin Workman said.
The Trojans will try to be a dark horse in the "District of Death," 11-3A D, where they are projected to finish sixth.
Troy opens the year against Salado at UMHB.
