CHARLESTON, W.Va. — George Washington heads into the 2014 football campaign after coming up just short in last year’s quarterfinals, falling to eventual Class AAA runner-up Huntington 17-13.
“By the end of the year, I thought we were as good as anyone,” said head coach Steve Edwards, Jr. “You’ve got to be healthy and you’ve got to be lucky – those two things are hard to get together. I have yet to do it, but that’s what it takes to be a state champion.
“But we had a great year last year,” he continued. “It was an exciting year and I really loved that group of kids. They were hard fighters and left some good things for these kids to grow on. But I really enjoyed last year’s team – it was one of the most enjoyable years I’ve ever had in the 30-some years I’ve been coaching.”
The Patriots have plenty of experience to replace following the graduation of running backs Draven Riffe (over 1,500 yards and 19 touchdowns) and Jacob Jackson (over 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns), along with quarterback Jon Alexander (around 1,000 combined yards offensively and 17 touchdowns).
“I’m breaking in a new quarterback, new tailbacks and new receivers,” Edwards, Jr. said. “But we will be strong up front. I’ve got three or four of my starting guys back up front, which is good.”
Among those returnees along the line include 6-foot-4, 290 pound Dave Smith, 6-foot-2, 300 pound Zach Dean and 6-foot-2, 200 pound Trevor Wooten.
“Those guys have good Friday night experience and those are things that we’re going to count on,” Edwards, Jr. said. “We’re going to have to be good up front, but everyone has to be good up front.”
As for some of the skill guys in the mix for starting spots in the fall?
“We have Kaleb Mackey competing at quarterback – he’ll be a junior,” Edwards, Jr. said. “He’s been doing a nice job and I hope he continues to progress. You have a guy like Colten Rollyson who is trying to be a tailback for us, he played safety as a freshman and will be a sophomore this year.
“Darnell Brooks will be a sophomore receiver, he’s a big kid,” Edwards, Jr. continued. “We have Luther Toney as a tight end. So, we have some guys, they just don’t have a whole lot of Friday night time. We’ll see what they do under pressure.”
The Patriots will be tested right out of the gate with the annual rivalry matchup against South Charleston.
“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” he said. “We’re like anybody else, looking to find an identity and hopefully we don’t get our feelings hurt too often so we can develop as a team.”
GEORGE WASHINGTON 2014 Football Schedule |
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1 | 08/29/14 07:30PM | A | SOUTH CHARLESTON | – | ||||
2 | 09/05/14 07:30PM | H | ASHLAND BLAZER, KY H.S. | – | ||||
3 | 09/12/14 07:30PM | H | ST. ALBANS | – | ||||
4 | 09/19/14 07:30PM | A | RIVERSIDE | – | ||||
5 | 10/03/14 07:30PM | H | PRINCETON | – | ||||
6 | 10/10/14 07:30PM | A | HURRICANE | – | ||||
7 | 10/17/14 07:30PM | H | CABELL MIDLAND | – | ||||
8 | 10/24/14 07:30PM | H | PARKERSBURG | – | ||||
9 | 10/31/14 07:30PM | A | RIPLEY | – | ||||
10 | 11/07/14 07:30PM | A | CAPITAL | – | ||||
wins: 0 lost: 0 ties: 0 |
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