Steve DeVoursney was pleased with his team as it ended preseason camp with a scrimmage and then a round of county fair Friday evening as a few hundred family, friends and fans looked on.

“It was a grind,” the Bears 12th year head coach said the camp. “We had eight practices and five of them were two-days, so we got a lot of work in and a lot of practice time which we need.”

DeVoursney addressed his team as soon as the county fair session ended.

“We had a good camp,” he told his team. “Now it’s time to get focused.”

The Bears shift their focus to a preseason scrimmage 7:30 p.m., Friday at Newnan.

While most teams don’t take preseason scrimmages too serious, this one is different.

“We need to get ready for them,” said DeVoursney, whose team suffered its worst preseason loss, 34-0, in more than 10 years last season at home against Newnan. “We have something to prove.”

“The big thing is when somebody embarrasses you, you want to be able to go back and make a good showing,” said DeVoursney. “You don’t want to go back and get embarrassed two years in a row. That’s not what we’re about. We’re about winning in every aspect of what we do — on and off the field. If somebody beats you bad, you can’t let that happen two years in a row.”

DeVoursney realizes his team will have to work through some stiffness and soreness this week after the intensity of last week’s camp.

“I’m sure they are a little dead legged right now and it’s probably going to show a little bit next week, but that’s fine,” said DeVoursney. “We want them to fight through it and then get fresh for week one.”

The Bears made strides from beginning of camp to end of camp in several areas.

“I think our offensive line got better as a unit,” said DeVoursney. “They’re starting to come together and learn the little things, so we’re happy for those guys on the offensive line.”

Improvement was limited to one side of the ball.

“I think the defense, as a unit, got a lot better,” added DeVoursney. “They started running around, doing what they’re supposed to do. That was good to see.”

DeVoursney also said special teams units put a lot of work in throughout the week and came a long ways.

Griffin plays its regular season opener Aug. 31 at Dutchtown.