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Moore, Brennan ready to get up to speed with Oakland City sprint football program
The Wabash Valley Football Coaches Association All-Star Game was the last game for several of the players involved on June 22.
For others, it was a chance to get back on the field and re-acclimate themselves ahead of more seasons to follow.
Two of those players will be heading south in August to begin preparations for their next teams as Greencastle graduates Lamar Moore and Brendle Brennan both signed in May to play sprint football at Oakland City University starting in the 2024-25 school year.
“Originally, I didn’t plan on playing college football in any capacity,” Brennan said. “(Greencastle football head coach Dave) Stevens put me in contact with the Oakland City coaches and gave them some of my info.
“Oakland’s coaches then got with me, explained what they had going on and I really liked it.”
“I like the coach, see his vision and like the ideas he has for the team,” Moore said, referring to new Mighty Oaks head coach Jared Maners. “I want to be able to help the team out.
“This is a great opportunity for me, so I took it.”
Oakland City, located in the city of which it takes its name, sits a half-hour northeast of Evansville, giving the kind of cozy feel both athletes enjoyed.
“I love the dorms,” Moore said. “The school is right next to Evansville but in a private area, so it’s not too busy.
“I want to study business, though I haven’t decided on what direction I want to go, and minor in coaching.”
“It’s a small campus, which is what I’m used to,” Brennan said. “It’s a small town, so it shouldn’t be a huge jump or change for me.
“I’m going to study business management, looking to probably go into sales of some sort.”
The school’s location and size offered both chances to feel at home while also handling the increased workload they will undertake at the university level.
“Honestly, there’s not too much that will be different,” Brennan said about moving to the collegiate level. “The school has consistent classes every day and the classes are about the same size as I had in high school, not any huge ones like you would have at a place like IU.”
“It’s definitely going to be a much faster pace as things are going to come fast and furious,” Moore added. “I’ve got to be ready to be on my grind all the time.”
The primary difference between the football both players have played and sprint football is a weight limit that players must adhere to.
Similar to wrestling, players must weight before each game with a cap set at 178 pounds. The game is still played the same otherwise, featuring two teams with 11 players on the field, with an emphasis placed on speed and agility at every position.
Oakland City joined the Midwest Sprint Football League, which began in the 2022-23 school year, in the 2023-24 season, its first year competing in sprint football, facing off against Bellarmine, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Walsh, Calumet College of St. Joseph, Midway, Quincy and Fontbonne. Fontbonne has since announced its decision to close in the summer of 2025 and sprint football will not play in the 2024 season, leaving 16 schools that play sprint football, including nine in the Collegiate Sprint Football League, the only other sprint football league in the country, which formed in 1934.
“For the most part, everything is the same,” Brennan said about the sport. “There is a limit on weight, so you don’t have the big lineman that are typically on the field, which is nice, not having huge people running around.
“I’ll be a receiver on the team. There’s not a lot of upperclassmen because the program is still new but there are a lot of very talented players on the team and I’ve been checking out their film lately.”
“(Coach Maners) sees this as a team with a bunch of kids from Indiana with the same vision,” Moore added. “We all love football, want to play at a higher level and want to do great things in life.
“I’ll probably end up playing on both sides as a running back and linebacker.”
With only a month until practices begin, both players said the opportunity to get back on the football field again was one they were both ready to grasp.
“I’m very excited to be going to Oakland City,” Moore said. “This gives me the chance to grow up and do some things on my own while learning to handle more responsibilities.”
“I’m really excited, especially after the All-Star game” Brennan said. “Playing in it got me back into football and reminded me that I love the game.
“It’s a new start and I’m excited to go over and do something different over there.”