With one 7-on-7 passing camp left on their summer schedule, Catasauqua head football coach Travis Brett has seen plenty of positives.

“Things have been going really well,” said the third-year head coach. “We like what we have seen. The kids are ready to go.”

The Rough Riders are coming off a 7-5 season last year, and their campaign ended with a loss to Palmerton in a district playoff game. But the Roughies improved their mark from 2-6 in 2020.

Brett believes one area of concern could be the line. They lost Alex Oakley and Gabe Toth from last year’s unit.

Senior Dylan Kalynych and sophomore Matt Fotta will step in at the tackle spots, and senior Javier Sobrado can play anywhere on the line.

“Alex Oakley was our utility guy last year, and Gabe Toth was solid,” added Brett. “We got our guards back, and that will help.

“We’re just a little thin there, and we can’t afford injuries.”

Senior quarterback Christian Fye has looked good, and Brett expects him to take his game to another level.

“He has worked really hard since baseball ended,” said Brett. “He has started to look over the defenses better, and his downfield ball is a lot stronger.

“We would like to roll him out more, and he can run the ball well.”

Senior Anthonie Hunsicker and junior Hunter Reitz are back in the backfield after injuries cut both of their seasons short last year.

Senior Wyatt Younes and junior Ian Juica also return on the outside as prime receiving targets. Both had productive seasons last year.

Defensively, Brett has seen improvement and likes his numbers there.

“We have a little bit more depth last year,” said Brett. “We played a lot of kids on defense last year, and it helped.”

The Roughies’ strongest spot on defense may be their secondary where Fye and Younes will be at the corners, and Juica and junior Jyzaiah Bonilla and sophomore Jordan Bradshaw will compete for the safety spots.

Catty lost assistant coach Scott Rothrock, but they added former Northampton grad Dalton Hammer to help coach the lines.

The Roughies will have a scrimmage with Pine Grover before they open the regular season hosting Northern Lehigh Aug. 26.

Brett likes his team’s chances.

“We’re ahead of where we were last year,” he said. “We have a lot of younger guys who have spent a lot of time in the weight room, and they have a very good attitude.”