WOODVILLE &8212; After a surprising and, as Wilkinson County High School head football coach John Moore Jr. put it, disappointing 3-6 season, the Wildcats have been working hard to erase the bad tastes in their mouths.

While watching his team practice at Woody Hicks Stadium Monday, Moore acknowledged that practice has been pretty good, but he also knows that there will some changes for the 2006 Wildcats.

&8220;We&8217;ve been doing a lot of things with special teams. I&8217;ve got a new bunch,&8221; Moore said. &8220;We&8217;ve been working on both running and passing. Our offensive line is real young. We&8217;ve got two people back on defense.&8221;

Practicing in the middle of August has always been and always will be tough, but the recent heat wave has only added to the difficulties of working out and practicing each day, according to Moore.

&8220;It&8217;s hot,&8221; Moore said. We start in the evening (around 4:30 p.m.), so we get a little of the cool stuff. But when it&8217;s between 90 and 95 degrees, it takes a lot. We keep them hydrated with water.&8221;

Numbers have also been down for the Wildcats as compared to last year.

&8220;Last year we had about 50 players. This year we have about 40 players,&8221; Moore said.

Moore is looking forward to hitting the field Friday night at Natchez for a jamboree. He says it will be a good opportunity to see what his younger players can do.

&8220;We&8217;ll get to see some of them in game situations besides taking on each other,&8221; Moore said.