Zillah’s football team has spiced up its spring and summer practices with a little friendly competition among teams with the team.

The Summer Accountability Challenge has the Leopards divided into eight teams, drafted much like fantasy sports, according to Zillah coach Ryan Watson.

Competition began during the winter and continues until the end of the spring. Returning players earn points by playing multiple sports, attending off-season weightlifting, grade-point average, community service and fundraising.

Team leaders were chosen on the eve of summer practices, and players continue to accrue points by attending practices, weightlifting sessions, team camp and 7-on-7 events, as well as fundraising and helping with youth camps.

The winning team gets a steak dinner at the end of the summer.

“I couldn’t be more excited where our culture is heading into this summer,” Watson said. “Draft night brought an awesome, competitive fantasy-football energy, and now we are seeing our players hold each other accountable for every summer practice and weight session.

“This is a veteran group with a good amount of returners and we feel like they’re buying in and are competing.”

Currently leading the competition is the team captained by junior-to-be running back Maverick Myers. Team Myers leads by more than 26 points over a team led by Karson Bruhn, which is in a tight competition with squads topped by quarterback Beau Donahoe, and Brody Steinmetz.

The Leopards finished 7-3 last season, falling to Life Christian in the crossover round to advance to the 12-team Class 1A state tournament.

Zillah is set to return a strong core of players, topped by the class of 2028, which includes Myers, Donahoe, Jace Salme and Brayden Russell.

Watson and his staff will have to plug holes across the lines left by the graduations of all-conference selections Nathan Kibbe and Jake Turner.

Prosser will visit Zillah in a 7-on-7 competition Wednesday night, and the Leopards will meet Eisenhower and East Valley next week.

Royal hosting jamboree

Sixt-time defending 1A champion Royal will host Moses Lake, Ephrata, Connell and Wahluke in a jamboree Friday night at David Nielsen Memorial Field.

The junior varsity and C teams will get things going at 5:30 p.m. with the varsity to follow.

Two of the teams will feature new coaches. Kyler Haneberg was promoted at Moses Lake to take over for Brett Jay, who stepped away after guiding the Mavericks to their second straight conference championship and berth in the 4A quarterfinals.

Connell recently hired Othello graduate Micah Giles. Giles was an assistant at his alma mater. He replaces Scott Forsyth, who also was the school’s athletic director.

Forsyth has taken a position at Royal, and will be an assistant with the Knights.