Earlier this month, the state high school baseball tournament marked the end of another calendar year for high school athletics in our state.
So what will be some of the top high school stories next year? Much of the attention will be on outstanding individuals in individually driven sports such as cross country, track and tennis. Football also has a significant story.
In football the focus will be on the George Washington Patriots. Steve Edwards team will be heavily favored to win the AAA state title. Individually, the Patriots are led by running back Ryan Switzer. Switzer won the Kennedy Award last fall and has already given a verbal commitment to play at North Carolina.
Another outstanding player is Sedrick Brown from Martinsburg. He has led the Bulldogs to back-to-back AAA titles, but he is one of the few returnees at Martinsburg. Winning a third title is not likely.
Also, this fall, in cross country, our small state will have one of the best runners in the nation in Jacob Burcham of Cabell Midland High School. He will have scholarship offers from virtually every school in the nation.
In girls tennis, Cassie Mercer of Huntington High is a rising junior and she is one of the best tennis players in the country in her age group. She has NCAA championship potential and will also be a top recruit in two years.
The same is true on the boys side where Hunter Tubert of Huntington High is a rising sophomore. He won a state title easily last month as a freshman and will be expected to dominate next year. He is also one of the best in the country in his agre group and could also be a potential NCAA champion. Like Mercer, he will be heavily recruited when he becomes a senior.
I know it is the early days of summer. Soon, however, August will be here and high school athletes from around the state will start official practice. It is never too early to look ahead.