The Jefferson City Jays have gotten a dose of what Walker, 51, is all about, starting in January when he was named the head coach of his alma mater, continuing through spring conditioning and into summer workouts, and now in practices heading into Friday night's 7 p.m. season opener against powerful Kirkwood at Adkins Stadium.

If they didn't know, they're finding out.

"We've been very tough on them," Walker said, "but the kids been very receptive. It's probably the toughest I've been on any group of kids, just because our expectations are so incredibly high.

"But the kids want to do well, they just haven't had a ton of recent experience of doing well."

Walker's predecessor, Ted LePage --- who's a state-championship head coach in his own right during his first stint at Blair Oaks --- couldn't be more different in his approach than Walker.

"The kids are working harder than they ever have," Walker said. "But are they working hard for a straight three-hour practice? No, they're not. We have stretches when we're doing well, then they'll hit a mental wall and things wane for a bit.

"We're working hard, but we're not working that efficiently. As we continue getting better at that, then the efficiency will improve in games. The two go hand in hand."

This is a culture shock for most of these players. That's where Blair Oaks transfer Bryant Gipe comes in, because he knows first-hand what Walker is all about.

When Walker left Blair Oaks --- where he went undefeated in his three regular seasons --- to become head coach of the Jays, Gipe, a 6-foot, 190-pound junior linebacker, followed.

"He had a really good season for us last year," said of Gipe, one of the top tacklers on a state semifinal team. "He's a football player, he's not afraid of collisions.

"I think a lot of kids have asked him what I'm all about. They've picked his brain a little bit ... I think they're definitely learning from him."

Fundamentally speaking, it's all about fundamentals --- blocking and tackling --- more than anything else.

"We kind of knew coming in that we were not fundamentally sound in some areas, and we were not very physical or experienced in some areas," Walker said. "Those are areas we need to improve.

"That's where most of our emphasis has been, teaching the offensive linemen and running backs what their leverage position needs to look like at contact, and teaching receivers how to block on the edge. Then defensively, doing some of the same things when it comes tackling, because from talking to the kids, they didn't really do any tackling last year in practice.

"It's kind of hard to be good at something when you never do it."

Good fundamentals, Walker said, turned what could have been an average season into something special last fall at Blair Oaks.

"From that experience, and in my own personal opinion, last year we had probably our least talented team, but it was our most fundamentally-sound team," he said. "They understood how to block and tackle.

"So even though we didn't have a lot of talent at some positions, we were still very successful."

Until the semifinals, that is, when Blair Oaks ran into eventual state champion and perennial power Maryville, and was pummeled 49-20.

"When you have two teams who are equally solid in the fundamentals," Walker said, "and both teams preach the intangibles like heart and desire, then the team that's most talented will win, more often than not. They were just bigger and more talented than we were.

"We try not to focus on the talent aspect of it, because God gave you what he gave you. We try to focus on, What are you doing with that talent that you do have? And how can you put yourself in a position to have a chance to be successful."

Football is still and physical sport, and that's No. 2 on Walker's list.

"I think the two go hand in hand," Walker said. "As your fundamentals improve, I think your physicality improves, because it's a mindset."

It's more than the mental side of it, because the Jays go full contact in most practices.

"There are different schools of thought on that," Walker said. "My school of thought is that I put the kid at greater risk of injury if we're not hitting every day in practice, because then they're going to see things in games that they have not encountered.

"To me, that increases the risk."

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WALKER CERTAINLY HAS SOME PHYSICAL TALENT to work with, starting with senior quarterback/defensive back Devin Roberson and senior defensive end/tight end Corey Suttle, who's committed to Iowa State.

Both are fast, powerful athletes, both in the 6-3, 6-4, 240 range.

"When you see them in uniform," Walker said, "you say: 'Those kids like look football players.' We're going to need for those kids to play well for us to do well; they can cause some match-up problems."

Another big change --- guys like Suttle and Roberson will go both ways. Yes, even the quarterback, it's certainly been a long time since that's happened.

"It's an adjustment for Devin," Walker said. "When you're 6-3 and 240 and exerting yourselves on both sides of the ball, conditioning becomes a factor. And the same goes from Corey.

"But they're two of our best athletes, we have to have them on the field."

This is a significant change for the entire roster.

"We don't have a single kid who has played both ways, so there's a learning curve with that," Walker said. "Some of the kids have never tackled since they've been in high school and those who did tackle on Friday nights didn't practice it much in the recent past."

Roberson and Suttle are two of the Jays' three captains, as selected by the team. The other is senior back Ryan Brooks (listed at 6-4, 185 last season).

Elsewhere, senior running back Maleek Jackson "is explosive," Walker said. "But all our running backs need to learn to run behind their pads and finish runs."

Sophomore Devin White "has been really mpressive" and will be a two-way starter, at receiver and cornerback. Senior Levi Jobe has opened some eyes and will start at both receiver and cornerback, while junior Brandon Backues (6-2, 235) and senior Ian Cote (6-2, 195) will help anchor the line.

"The kids continue to improve," Walker said, "and they continue showing up and working hard, for the most part. But it's a process and we're in the middle of it right now."

They might be in the middle of it, but in their opener, they're going to be tossed directly into the fire.

Kirkwood has become a consistent player on the state stage in recent years, including winning the state championship two years ago. The Pioneers look potent again this season with a roster that includes some Division I talent, including senior wide receiver and Mizzou recruit, Maurice Massey.

"We're most inexperienced in the secondary, so if I had to choose, I would not pick a team with Division I receivers in our first game," Walker said. "But that's really neither here nor there for us, we focus on our kids and trying our best to put them in a position to be successful.

"I measure every game the same way. I want the kids to go out and play incredibly hard, and then were they fundamentally sound? If they do that, they've given themselves a chance to be successful.

"I've never really worried about the result, because I know if we take care of the process, the results will take care of themselves."

The Jays --- who haven't won a state title since 1997 --- finished 3-7 last year, losing six of seven to end the season. Now, the program has a new head coach and staff, new offensive and defensive schemes, and a new approach.

What's needed now is patience, which may not sit well with some fans --- not to mention the head coach.

"I am probably the last person to preach the message of patience, because I am incredibly impatient when it comes to this stuff," Walker said. "That being said, I have to check myself every now and then, because I'm placing expectations on the kids that --- if I'm being completely honest --- they're probably not ready for yet.

"They are developing into that, and it's my job is to push --- and I'm going to push as hard as I can to make the kids the best they can be."

Getting pushed and working harder than you ever have isn't much fun. But you know what is?

Winning.

Stay tuned.

Terry Walker barks out instructions during the Jays' camp earlier this summer at Adkins Stadium.