"I only had one year around Jordan, so I didn't get to see him as much as I've gotten to see Nolan," third-year Falcons coach Terry Walker said. "But their demeanors are different. Nolan's the kind of kid I can bark at a little bit and it doesn't really effect him, mentally. My first year, I didn't really bark at Jordan, because I could sense early on that probably wasn't going to be a real positive with him.

"I think Nolan is a little further along when it comes to reading defenses and passing-game type stuff, because that's how our offense has evolved. With Jordan, he was extremely good at extending plays and chucking the ball downfield, and he was extremely accurate at doing that.

"They're both very, very good in their own right, it's just that there's some differences in their personalities and how they play the game."

Nolan may have seemed a bit green last year --- and not always green in the Blair Oaks way --- but he certainly improved as the season progressed. In the end, he directed the Falcons to an 11-1 mark and a trip to the quarterfinals.

"Nolan has really bought in, going back into the offseason," Walker said. "He plays basketball and baseball, but he was still spending time in the weight room and getting his work in, even during that period of time.

"He has a much better understanding of the offense now, since we're really not changing a whole lot. He recognizes his mistakes when he makes them and he's got a cool demeanor about him. You can just tell the way he conducts himself on the field that he has more confidence and as a result of that, he was voted one of the team captains."

The rare junior captain.

"I think," Walker said, "that's just because the kids trust Nolan and they've seen him put in his work."

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THE QUARTERBACK USUALLY GETS TOO MUCH of the credit or blame, because he obviously doesn't win or lose alone. Last year, Hair could lean on the dynamic duo of seniors Cody Alexander and Jake Van Ronzelen, but not anymore.

"The thing of it is, if you're going to have a good program, you've got kids who've been waiting for their opportunity," Walker said. "They're not the quality of Cody Alexander or Jake Von Rozlen yet, but they're working in that direction.

"Even though we've got quite a few kids back, we're still a pretty young football team. I think we only have three or four kids on offense who are seniors and about the same number on defense. So we're going to be pretty much an underclass team ... there will still be a lot of learning that goes on.

"But what the staff has liked so much about this team is how eager they are about learning and how eager they are about working. That's a big positive."

There are several talented two-way starters, including senior linemen Drew Boessen, Justin Cobb, Hunter Herigon, and junior receiver/defensive back Brayden Pritchett. It's worth nothing that Blair Oaks has a deep, talented freshman class, and "three or four" of them are already battling for starting jobs.

"They're pushing the older kids in practice," Walker said, "and that's made for a nice, competitive environment."

The sting of last year's season-ending loss to McCluer South still lingers. It was a game where the Falcons got belted into an early hole and never recovered --- and seemed to lose their competitive edge.

"I hope it's driven them quite a bit," Walker said. "We talk about that game quite frequently ... there were a couple things I did not like about that game. I didn't like how we responded when we got stopped on the fourth-and-goal on the one --- I sensed the players were beyond deflated about one play, because it carried over. We moved the ball well between the 20s, but when it counted and we needed to convert, we did not. So we've spent quite a bit of time working on red zone offense and red zone defense.

"When you get to that point in the season and you've put in all that work, you've got to grasp that opportunity. I think we were a little bit intimidated by them, and I think I was more disappointed by that than anything."

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TERRY WALKER IS A MAN WHO WALKED STRAIGHT OUT of the original old school after learning his lessons well, and his coaching reflects it. It's certainly working, as he's 18-0 in the regular season and 24-2 overall in two seasons with the Falcons.

Old school still works ... and always will. And in the lesson book, and as we mentioned earlier, there will be some barking.

"I don't play any favorites when it comes to that," Walker said. "But there are some kids you can bark at and they'll be just fine; other kids, you might not get the kind of response you want. But you have to hold the kids accountable, regardless of how you choose to do it.

"We tell the kids that if we're getting on a certain kid, it's because we want the best for them and we have their best interests at heart. The time they need to worry is when they know they've done something wrong and a coach does not address. That's when they need to start worrying because at that point, the coach has probable decided that's it not worth his time to address it."

In other words, silence isn't always golden.

So how good can this team be?

"Like we tell the kids, it's up to them," said Walker, 50. "Coaches coach and players play and at some point, the players have to make the decision that they won't accept anything less than the very best. Time will tell.

"We're going to have some talented kids on both offense and defense, then it comes down to how hard you're willing to work in order to give yourself an opportunity to be successful each and every Friday night."

The former Jefferson City Jay and Missouri Tiger --- who rose to Lt. Colonel during his 22-year career in the Air Force --- continues.

"At the end of the day, you've got to be tougher mentally and physically than the team you're playing against. It's not always the biggest dog in the fight that's going to win, it's the dog who has the will, is willing to work and has done the preparation it takes to be successful.

"That takes a lot of hard work and quite honestly, there are a lot of kids now days that just don't want to do that work. Learning to do something you don't like is a life skill, our kids need to learn that. We really try to instill in our kids that you're going to be successful because you're going to earn that success, it's not going to be because someone gave it to you."

It still works.

Blair Oaks quarterback Nolan Hair (left) returns for his junior season after leading the Falcons to a 11-1 mark and a trip to the quarterfinals last year.

With a Hair still running the show,
Falcons eye another big season