BRANFORD, Fla. — When Ric Whittington accepted the position as head football coach at Hamilton County in March, he spoke about the importance of establishing the weight room right away.

But with the grind of being in the weight room all summer, Whittington is also trying to give his team a chance to have fun while competing against other teams. Hamilton County has been doing that this summer with 7-on-7 workouts. The Trojans’ most recent 7v7 was a three-team workout with Bell and Branford on July 10.

“The most intricate part of our offseason program is the weight room, but it’s fun to come out here and throw the ball around,” Whittington said. “I think the best part is the boys get to have fun.”

Throwing for HCHS was quarterback Malachi Graham, who completed 17 of 30 passes. Graham, a rising freshman, connected with seven different receivers. Melvin Brown and Tyler Whetstone were the main targets, combining for nine receptions.

On defense, Aderias Ealy picked off one pass while Keyvon Webb had two interceptions.

For Whittington, it was a good showing, and another positive step as the regular season gets closer.

“I said it before the spring game, our summer is going to dictate how our fall is,” Whittington said. “We’ve gotten better, but there’s definitely more room to get better.

“Discipline and work ethic is what this program is about. We’re taking the steps we need to in that direction. We’re going to continue to progress and hopefully surprise some people really soon.”