Boyd-Buchanan quarterback Cooper Hodge, a senior, learned a lot from offseason college camps, especially one at Tennessee where Jon Gruden, former NFL coach and currently a highly respected TV analyst, was a guest instructor.
photo by Dennis Norwood
Marion County is a marked football team.
The Warriors, who went 12-2 and reached the Class 2A state championship game last season, are clearly the “hunted” this season in the new Region 3-2A title chase.
Only one other school in the region, which resulted from the latest TSSAA reclassification plan, had as many as six victories in 2014, and that was Meigs County.
Boyd-Buchanan and Bledsoe County each won five games, Silverdale Baptist chalked up four, Brainerd three, Tyner two and Polk County went winless.
Marion, Meigs County and Boyd-Buchanan reached the playoffs, but only the Warriors made such an impressive deep run to the title game at Tennessee Tech where they lost to Peabody, 34-7.
“That game still haunts me and probably will even when I’m a lot older,” Marion County running back Josh Henderson said Wednesday at the region’s media day at Boyd-Buchanan.
So, it makes sense that Marion County comes into this season with a target on its back.
“Being a target is definitely something we think about,” Henderson said. “There are a lot of good teams with a lot of good talent in this region and we can’t take any of them lightly. We’ll have to earn every win we get.”
Coach Ricky Ross’ Warriors rode a nine-game winning streak into the title showdown, having won by an average margin of 46-12 in the streak. The Bucs had the second-longest win streak at 5. Meigs County won four in a row and Silverdale won two straight.
The only streak close to Marion County was Polk County’s 10-game losing skid. Polk County was the only team that did not participate in Wednesday’s media session.
“What Marion County did last year puts them at a different level this year,” said Meigs County tight end/defensive end Ryan Ryal, the District 3-A Defensive Player of the Year in 2014. “I’m worried about some teams in this region, but not scared of them. If we stay together I have no doubt we can compete with anybody. We’re a much better team this year; bigger, faster and stronger.”
Ryal says he’s happy to be healthy and able to put the finishing touches on his high school career
He played only six combined games in his freshman and sophomore seasons due to twice injuring his left knee, both requiring surgeries.
“I tore my ACL, the MCL, the meniscus and damaged the bone,” Ryal said. “Coach (Jason) Fitzgerald comes and knew I was a player, but he’s developed me into a better player and person. Coach is a wonderful guy who likes to build connections with his players. He has turned us around.”
In 2011, the Tigers went 5-6 and lost in the first round of the state playoffs.
A year later, they fell to 1-9 and in 2013, Fitzgerald’s first year at the Decatur school, the Tigers won two of 10 games.
“That year before coach Fitzgerald came in it felt like we were playing for nothing,” Ryal said. “We’d come into the locker room after getting beat by 40 points and you’d see kids crying. Toward the end of the season we’d lose and people just didn’t care.
“Coach comes in and establishes the mentality that we need to have and it changes the game. It’s a lot more fun and makes the game of football what it should be.”
Ryal recorded eight sacks and 19 tackles for loss as a junior and wants to up those numbers to 10 sacks and 25 tackles for loss this season.
The Tigers went 6-5 in 2014 and lost to Grace Christian, 35-23, in the first round of the state Class 2A playoffs.
The only other to reach last year’s postseason was Boyd-Buchanan and the Bucs (5-6) dropped a 24-21 decision to Rockwood in the first round. By beating their three district opponents – Grace Baptist, Copper Basin and Silverdale – by a combined score of 142-7, the Bucs earned what seems like an annual spot in the playoffs.
A year ago, Boyd-Buchanan played seven non-district opponents – Red Bank, McMinn Central, Franklin Road Academy, Notre Dame, DCA, South Pittsburg and Rockwood – all arguably stronger than any district squad it played.
In 2015, Boyd-Buchanan plays a full complement of region foes in addition to just three non-region games against first-year Tennessee Christian out of Cleveland, King’s Academy and South Pittsburg.
“It’s going to be different,” Bucs senior quarterback Cooper Hodge said. “We know we’re going to have to battle every night out in the region.
“Every team in the region will have to elevate their games against Marion County. No doubt, them being the state runner-up last year, everybody is going to look at them as the team to beat this year. But if we don’t bring our ‘A’ game every night we won’t get many wins.”
Hodge spent a portion of his summer taking part in college camps at Mercer, Middle Tennessee State and Tennessee.
The camp in Knoxville was special for Hodge, who has added 10 pounds to his frame in the offseason.
Why?
Jon Gruden, the nation’s premier quarterback guru, was there.
“That UTK camp was as good as it gets with Jon Gruden walking around,” Hodge said. “You see all the talent around you and that makes you humble and better, but seeing Gruden walk around scoping out kids was a cool experience. He’s a fiery guy who loves what he does and understands what he does. And he doesn’t mind critiquing the quarterbacks at all.”
There are four schools in the new region that have reached the state championship game – Marion County, Tyner, Boyd-Buchanan and Meigs County.
Of course, the Warriors got there last December and that was their fifth title shot – they won it all in 1990, 1992 and 1995 after runner-up finishes in 192 and 1984.
The Bucs made final appearances in 2002-03-04 and 2009, winning the big trophy in 2003.
Tyner gained title showdowns in 1996-97, claiming the championship in 1997.
The Tigers made it in 1980 and 1995, finishing second both times.
Rams running back Jason Patrick certainly didn’t enjoy the 2014 season, which saw Tyner lose six straight games before beating Howard to end the season-opening skid.
“I’ve got a lot of Tyner pride because I’ve been around it for 10 years,” Patrick said. “It was really hard on me to be on a team that had a losing season for coach (Wayne) Turner. Showing up for practice every day and going to games on Friday knowing our record was difficult.”
One of nearly 30 seniors on this year’s squad, Patrick has been leading by example in the offseason and believes that after a season of disunity and conflict the Rams appear committed to returning to their winning ways.
“It’s not just an attitude change,” he said. “We’re really working hard. Last year I was lifting more than our linemen. We’ve got about 30 seniors now and we’re all competing. My backup, Keyon Webb, is a sophomore and he’s competing hard, too, because he wants to play. It’s that constant competition that’s keeping everybody on their toes.”
While acknowledging Marion County returns a solid team, Patrick is not worried about the Warriors as preseason practice fast approaches.
It’s the Notre Dame Irish, who lost to Alcoa, 28-19, in the Class 3A semifinals last season, that’s on his mind.
The Rams open the season against the Irish on Aug. 28.
“I’m not shooting for any team,” Patrick said. “We’re thinking about Notre Dame because that’s our first game. Looking past people was one of our problems last year. Our first five games are with Notre Dame, Polk County, Signal Mountain, Boyd-Buchanan and Walker Valley. We’ve got to get the job done in those games and we’ll take them one at a time.
“When it’s time to play Marion County, we’ll worry about Marion County.”
That will be on Oct. 2 in Jasper.
(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)
Meigs County defensive end Ryan Ryal believes the Tigers can be a football force in the newly formed Region 3-2A. Meigs County reached the state playoffs last season when Ryal was named District 3-A Defensive Player of the Year.
photo by Dennis Norwood