FALLING ROCK, W.Va. — On the first day of official preseason training camp, the Herbert Hoover Huskies took a brief five-mile road trip. Head coach Joey Fields brought his team to the former home of the Huskies, Joe Eddie Cowley Field in Falling Rock, just down the hill from their current school campus in Elkview.
“We are appreciating what we do have now,” said Fields. “This community does, because they have been through it. But also the players that are in this locker room need to know that as well. This is actually our first time being back since our last practice before we headed to Wheeling in 2022.”
With a mix of returning veterans and talented first-year players, the Huskies have playmakers at various spots on the field. It all starts with junior quarterback Peyton Grigsby. As a sophomore, he passed for 3,219 yards with 36 touchdowns against just six interceptions.
“The second year being in this offense, being around a lot of guys that he played with last year and he has played with before, it is going to do a lot of wonders for us as far as a football team and offensively.”
“He has done nothing but improve,” said Herbert Hoover senior Colton Tawney. “He’s a great quarterback, great arm, great legs. There’s nothing you can really take away from him. He’s a great guy and a great quarterback.”
Senior Kno’Sean Hampton and junior Lance Williams combined to reel in 73 passes for 1,241 yards last fall. They return to lead a deep unit of wideouts.
“You add Turay Rush, Takye Porter and Aiden Barnett,” Fields said.
One of the state’s top Class of 2027 recruits has joined the Herbert Hoover program. David Robinson earned first team All-State honors in his junior season at Capital. Robinson will take his game to Army West Point next year.
“The benefits after football, I am going to have to put the football down eventually,” Robinson said. “So I was thinking after football so I could be financially stable. That was one of the programs that could help me do that.
“Whenever it is time, crunch time, whenever we really need points on the board or extra yards, I feel like that’s where I will be needed most. I am ready to take that on.”
“We’ll play multiple running backs. But [Robinson] is a kid that could be as good at quarterback as he is a running back or a receiver as he is,” Fields said. “You see that with him getting the opportunities that he is getting at the next level. That’s not just because he showed something this one time or he has these measurables. That’s because of the type of work ethic and the type of person and student that he is.”
A handful of starters return to an offensive line that is still searching for depth behind a solid first unit.
“Tristin Shaffer is a three-year starter. He’s back and he played for us in a state championship game as a freshman, being a quarterback in eighth grade the year before. That’s a tough kid.” Fields said.
Herbert Hoover has won eight playoff games in the last four seasons while advancing to the state championship game twice. There is no doubt what elusive goal is squarely in sight of the Huskies.
“I make jokes with the coaching staff that we are tired of taking home the silver. We want to compete for the gold,” Fields said. “But that is easier said than done. It takes sacrifice from players. It takes a little bit of luck. And it takes taking it one practice and one game at a time. Hopefully we are putting ourselves in the right position to be able to play on Thanksgiving weekend with four quarters to go from the first weekend in December.”