North Callaway football hopes it can be strong this year from front to back.

The Thunderbirds are coming off an improved 7-4 season that included a district victory against Father Tolton and season-ending loss to Class 2 state champion Blair Oaks. They aim to rack up wins against this season with its big kids up front leading the way on offense and defense.

“The strength of our team is going to be our offensive line,” head coach Kevin O’Neal said. “They’ve had good practices, and it’s just the attitude that they’re going to bring up front. They’re physical football players, they enjoy contact, they enjoy the game of football and they understand what we’re trying to do offensively.”

Seniors Landon Oney and Cooper Wortmann will be returning starters that have experience along with junior David Sapp. Junior Justice Moore is a new addition to the line at center, and freshman Jaiden Galbreath is another likely new blocker.

O’Neal knows what a good offensive line looks like as he said that was his position in college and where his coaching career began. Along with his head coaching duties, O’Neal said he will take over as the offensive line coach after spending more time with quarterbacks and running backs a season ago.

“I’m going back to the offensive line, kind of where my roots are,” O’Neal said. “It’s probably renewed me a little bit too.”

Those same stout linemen on offense will of course provide North Callaway’s biggest strength on defense as well, O’Neal said, as Oney, Sapp and Galbreath will be defensive linemen. Wortmann slots in as a linebacker as part of an experienced group that includes senior Kyle Pennell and junior Riley Humphrey.

Much of North Callaway’s nine seniors and six juniors will be in these areas of the team to complement the nine sophomores and 12 freshmen on the roster.

“Our strength is going be up front with our defensive linemen and our linebackers,” O’Neal said. “Our philosophy is going to be much the same as on offense. We’re going to be physical, we want to tackle well and we want to put pressure on an offense to make decisions quickly.”

The defense allowed a four-year season high points per game last year but still managed to keep under 30 points at 29.8. O’Neal said he said the big kids up front can help the secondary with its new faces.

Seniors Lane Kimbley and Cashton Holloway will be two returning starters that O’Neal is happy to have back as Thunderbirds, but they will also try to incorporate junior Carter Moore, sophomore Nick Threlkeld, and freshmen Collin Moore and Coltyn O’Neal.

“Our defensive backs, while we have a little bit of experience, we’re still breaking in some new guys,” O’Neal said. “They have to learn to communicate and play together. That’s just going to take time and experience playing with each other.”

The offense will have several different pieces making up a unit that is coming off averaging 26.7 points, 149 passing yards and 165.5 rushing yards per game last season. North Callaway’s changes start under center with quarterbacks Kimbley and Carter Moore.

O’Neal said both have looked good in practice, and he plans to pick a starter before the first game at 7 p.m. Aug. 25 at home against Westran. Kimbley has shown great leadership despite not playing quarterback before, and Moore has experience with the junior varsity squad. If Kimbley isn’t at quarterback, O’Neal expects him to make an impact at receiver.

“Those two guys competing have made each other better,” O’Neal said. “It’s going to be a little bit different look from last year as we’ll be under center a lot more. Having a solid offensive line allows time for our quarterback to develop and get comfortable in the system.”

O’Neal said he expects the Thunderbirds to be “run-heavy” so Humphrey returning at running back is what the offense needs after he sustained a season-ending knee injury in Week 4 against Louisiana. Pennell will be there at fullback ready to take contact and block in the backfield.

To compete with the tough Eastern Missouri Conference this season, a conference O’Neal described as “the best it’s been in a long time,” North Callaway will need to make improvements from week to week. Bowling Green returns as a multiple-season juggernaut and schools like Montgomery County, Wright City, Louisiana and South Callaway are who O’Neal expects to be fighting in the standings.

“Our passing game will come along,” O’Neal said. “Timing is a little bit of an issue there. As we progress through the year, we get that timing down between our quarterbacks and our receivers and we’re able to pass when we want to and not when we have to.”