Kicking Big Butt

In the 7-on-7 skill player football camps that fill the high school off-season, linemen are left out. Not so in the Battle of the Big Butts, hosted by West Aurora High in Illinois. The competition, which just marked its 16th summer, tests five-man squads in feats of strength and athleticism, including a bench press, tractor-tire flip relay, tug-of-war, seated medicine-ball throw, five-man blocking sled drive, 40-yard dash and an agility course, all capped off by a watermelon-eating contest. West Aurora O-line coach Mike Powers cofounded the event to give the guys in the trenches some glory. "It all starts up front," he says. Coach Dennis Piron's Batavia High team won last year's showdown, then captured the Illinois 6A title. "Some coaches think the linemen stuff is a joke, but I think it's pretty important," Piron says. "If you dominate in the 7-on-7's, and your linemen kick butt in their challenges, you've got a good thing going."

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CRIS NUTLEY (TUG OF WAR)