Ritchie County’s Rick Haught heads into second year at helm after successful 2018 season

— By Andrew Spellman, The Dominion Post

ELLENBORO, W.Va. – The Ritchie County football program can be best described as a jolting rollercoaster ride since Kenny Wright stepped down from the head role in 2000.

In his 15-year tenure, Wright accumulated a 96-62 record with the Rebels to solidify him as the program’s all-time winningest coach. After an 11-year slump that saw Ritchie battered with a 13-87 overall record, Mike Dawson (24-20-0) took the reins for four years to finally bring the program back to level ground. Although Dawson’s departure was quick, he left the program with its feet firmly planted. Then, as if it all came unraveled, the following three years under Kaleb Lawrence saw the Rebels go 2-28.

So when the announcement was made that Rick Haught would be stepping into the head coaching job in 2018, there was a collective sigh of relief heard from Cairo to Pennsboro. Haught is mostly known for his success with the middle school football program, as well as his consistent production of state title winning talent in track and field.

“I think all those years of coaching middle school prepared me to know what needed organized,” he said. “There was a learning curve last year, I won’t lie to you. Probably the overall experience handling kids in different situations helped prepare me for it.”

Under Haught’s direction, the Rebels changed the tune last year, ending the season at 7-4 and seeing the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Finally, there was some magic back in Chuck Schofield Memorial Stadium.

Heading into crunch time in Week 8, Ritchie was sitting at 4-3. With the playoffs on the line, they won out their remaining games before hitting the road to play Mt. View in Welch. With the home field advantage, No. 3 Mt. View defeated the No.14 Rebels 34-14.

Haught’s playbook, notable returners

One key to Haught’s success is the implementation of the Wing-T formation. Known for it’s simple structure but quick hitting, high-production value, it was what Haught needed with the group he inherited.

“I guess I’ve always liked what that type of offense can offer, because when you take the abilities with whatever kids come down the road, you can tweak the offense and get the best out of those kids,” he said. “The offense this year isn’t going to look like last year’s, because we’re another year into it and have more weapons. I have to figure out how, in the right situation, I can get kids the ball that can make plays.”

Two of those playmakers are returning running backs Tre Moss and Garrett Owens. Moss finished the year with 972 yards on 141 carries and four touchdowns while Owens logged 874 yards on 150 carries and 10 scores.

After seeing them in preseason practices and scrimmages, Haught sees that their comfort level in the offense is higher and relayed that the duo are “going to be a handful for teams.”

“I think the difference I see this year [in Tre and Garrett] is that they understand how the blocking schemes are working up front to the point where they’re thinking less about where they need to be,” Haught said. “[Plus] they’re able to read defenders where they’re lined up and where the cuts will come from.  That’s what I saw in the second scrimmage – they’re making better cuts than last year. Where last season we were getting 3- to 5-yard gains, now we’re getting 5- to 8-yard gains just from that.”

Other notable players this season are sophomore split back Gus Morrison, and wings junior Graden McKinney and senior Kayden Procacina. Procacina is returning from the wing position last year, and McKinney will step foot on the field for the first time since his middle school years.

Even with the notable losses of tight end Tatem McCloy and running back Zach Cline, Haught isn’t concerned about a loss in production and sees the potential to tweak the offense to fit the new lineup.

Quarterback shake up

Something developing within the program is that returning junior quarterback Dakota Wayne is fighting for his starting job. It’s not about his numbers, though  – Wayne suffered a hip injury over the summer while at a leadership conference.

The accident has given freshman Ethan Haught the chance at claiming the QB1 spot after an impressive showing in the preseason.

“Dakota’s been very limited in practice, so he’s working his way back into playing. Since then, Ethan has been getting all of the reps/ Moving forward I’m not sure how it will all play out,” Haught said.

“Dakota was a guy coming into the stuff we were doing this summer, that I thought I could find ways to get him into the running game a little bit with more misdirection. He’s been working in the weight room, has good size and speed. He throws a solid deep ball, too.”

Wayne ended last season 42-for-95 with 705 yards and 12 touchdowns (eight passing, four rushing).

Moving forward

After a sluggish start in their first scrimmage against Buffalo, the Rebels showed improvement in their multi-team scrimmage Thursday night.

“I’m pleased with where we’re at. We’re by far nowhere near a finished product, but we are progressing,” Haught said.

Even though the team is still fine-tuning, Haught has hope in his team led by 13 seniors – a group he says will be very successful. Albeit his second year, Haught is showing promise to be successful at the high school level, too, challenging the likes of Wright and Dawson. For him, it all comes down to the basics.

“With each passing year, as far as the longevity, we work really hard in fundamentally teaching every kid we’ve got,” he said. “So then, whether they’re young or old kids, it boils down to how well you block and tackle. If you do a lot of that in practice – not full-go, just running drills and teaching how to be in the right position – it keeps them healthy and you look better on the field. We work a lot on that. If you do those little things, then those types of things just fall into place.

“A lot of the kids this year were important to last year’s success, but the difference I see in this year’s group [is their confidence],” he continued. “We worked really hard last year and each game I could see us believing a little more in ourselves. Last year’s seniors had only won two games, by midseason they had won more games than they had their entire high school career. Those kids really doubted themselves because things [with the program] were so bad.  It was neat to see each week them gaining that little bit of confidence.

“In the Tyler Consolidated game last year, at halftime it was a tight game. Everything they went through that night – what impressed me the most – was the fact that they kept playing hard the whole second half and it payed off. That was a huge win for us because it propelled us into the [rest of the season].

“This year which scares me to death, too, is that this is a confident group. They believe they’re going to step out on the field and win. I just have to make sure that they know they can win, but they have to put in the work.”

Needless to say, Haught will get to see if those fears are justified when the Rebels open their regular season with Tyler Consolidated at home next Friday night.

Twitter – @andrewspellman_

ASpellman@DominionPost.com





More Sports

Sports
Odds and ends: Free-throw shooting, experience major factors in Charleston; shot clock discussion surfaces again
A look back at some key figures and memorable soundbites over the course of two state tournaments that featured 56 games in 10 days.
March 18, 2024 - 5:53 pm
WVU Sports
3 Guys Before The Game - Searching For Mr. Right (Episode 539)
What factors will determine how long the search lasts for WVU's new basketball coach?
March 18, 2024 - 3:05 pm
Sports
Charleston's Osborne, Fairmont State's Anderson first recipients of MetroNews Joe Retton MEC Coaches of the Year
The Golden Eagles men's squad and Falcons' women's team garnered Mountain East Conference regular season and tournament titles, while both squads surpassed the 25-win mark for the season.
March 18, 2024 - 12:00 pm
Sports
WVU heads to Iowa City as a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament, potential matchup with Caitlin Clark awaits
WVU will face Princeton in the NCAA Tournament opener Saturday.
March 17, 2024 - 10:56 pm