WATCHING THINGS UNFOLD—New Amite High head football coach Alden Foster, far left, and assistant coach Joe English look on as, from left, Rodriguez Sibley, Brandon Mitchell and Thomas Hart go through the motions in a workout session Wednesday. Foster, a former Warrior standout, is preparing for his first season at the helm of his alma mater. Fred Batiste/Daily Star

AMITE - The legal wrangling and dreaming is finally all behind Amite High head football coach Alden Foster, with only 80-plus sweat-soaked players in front of him in workouts and the 2008 season on the horizon - along with an experience some 16 years ago.

Foster took over the reins of the Class 3A power in early June, months after a federal judge ruled in his favor in a federal desegregation case in March. Amite's fourth head coach in three years is juggling duties as he prepares the Warriors for the upcoming season while handling the tradition of being the head coach at his alma mater.

“The kids have made it good,” Foster said. “I know a lot of their families, so that helps the transition. The parents know you, so they put your trust in you also. That's made the transition even smoother. It's been a blessing and a dream come true.”

The Warriors' conditioning workouts have averaged 85 players daily, something Foster said speaks a lot about the players' desire and the state of Amite's program.

Foster has made few changes in the Warriors' camp so far, which could be attributed to the bevy of experienced players returning on both sides of the ball.

Amite has 27 seniors returning from a 10-3 record last season, when the Warriors won the District 10-3A title before bowing out to eventual 3A state champion Parkview Baptist in the quarterfinals.

And they're good ones. One area talent evaluator said Amite might have as many as 21 players capable of playing at the Div. I level in college.

“They've accepted every challenge we had,” Foster said. “Every challenge we've given them this summer, they rose up to the challenge. We're doing new things like pass skeletons, but we're not making wholesale changes on the offensive side of the ball. Defen-sively, we made a couple of changes, but we still have the personnel.

“We're looking for the seniors to guide us. Usually in the past dealing with high school football, when you have a senior-laden team it gives you a chance to compete for a state championship.”

The lack of sweeping changes and giving the seniors a sense of ownership were lessons Foster learned back in 1993 as he headed into his senior year at Southern University. That season also featured a coaching change that drew the ire of some supporters.

Current Jaguars head coach Pete Richardson took over in 1993 despite the school governing board's recommendation to hire Houston Markham while passing over Doug Williams. Williams succeeded Eddie Robinson at Grambling State before taking a job in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' front office.

"I watched coach Richardson, who came in under a lot of criticism because they wanted Houston Markham at the time and he was the last one on the totem pole as far as candidates," Foster said.

Richardson did not make sweeping changes when he took over, Foster said, and told the seniors that the Jags were their team. Foster and the seniors responded, leading Southern to an 11-1 record, the Southwestern Athletic Conference title and the black college national championship.

Nowadays, Foster is putting what he learned from Richardson into practice. The goal his team had in 1993 is the same his team has in 2008 - a championship.

"Sometimes when you have a senior-laden team, some of them can get senioritis," he said. "Along with the coaching staff, we've done a good job of keeping them focused and the kids have kept a level head and check each other. That's what we did at Southern my senior year."