ELLENBORO, W.Va. — Rick Haught became head coach of the Ritchie County Rebels in 2018 and he inherited a program that won just 2 of their previous 36 games. Two years ago, the Rebels qualified for the playoffs with 7 wins. Last fall, they went 10-2 and were the No. 2 seed in Class A, falling to eventual champion Wheeling Central in the quarterfinals.
“With each year you kind of build upon what you want to do after you see what you’ve got,” Haught said. “We just kind of jelled. It turned into a real special season. We got beat by the two teams that ended up at Wheeling Island.”
“Halfway through the year we started really thriving,” said Ritchie County senior tight end/defensive back Dakota Wayne. “We started really getting the playbook down pat with a whole bunch of new players in new positions that we weren’t used to. We had some setbacks but we finally got through it. We finally realized about game six or seven that we can actually go somewhere with this season.”
“It was pretty enjoyable,” said Ritchie County senior running back/linebacker Tre Moss. “It was one of the better years we have had in the past couple. To get that rolling, everyone has good expectations for us.”
Several key skill players return for the Rebels this fall. Leading receiver Gus Morrison is back. He caught nine touchdown passes in 2019. Although Garrett Owens graduated after a 15-touchdown season, leading rusher Tre Moss returns. He rushed for 1,668 yards and 18 scores.
“We have Tre back and we are going to try to put him in a couple different positions to see if we can utilize his abilities,” Haught said. “We will look a little bit different but I still think that we can be extremely explosive because we have some young guys up front and I really like what they are starting to show.”
The Rebels feature a run-heavy offense but Ethan Haught excelled as an every-game starter at quarterback in his freshman season. He accounted for 17 total touchdowns.
“He matured extremely well,” Haught said. “What helped him is he had a great group of guys that could take a lot of pressure off of him. He threw the ball well enough to where that was an added threat. I thought for his youth he was extremely composed and handled himself extremely well.”
In just two seasons, Ritchie County has become a top contender in the Class A championship picture with a shift in confidence and postseason experience in their corner.
“The kids were hungry but they were unsure of themselves,” Haught said. “They were really excited when things went well and it just built upon that. The kids we have now have been there, seen what it has taken to be successful but they still have pretty lofty goals.”