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Day: August 27, 2021

FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Hilburn takes over alma mater, ready to lead Seneca

Posted on by Lucas Davis

Seneca football has a new look heading into the 2021 season, as Cody Hilburn has taken over the program of his alma mater after spending the last 10 years with Carthage football.

“It’s different when you get to come home,” Hilburn said. “That is where my kids go to school, they always have, but it’s special getting to come home and coach where you graduated from.”

“Anytime there is a change, it adds to the excitement,” Hilburn added about his team’s readiness for the upcoming season. “Also, add the excitement of the new field turf almost being done, and the community is on fire right now. We are ready to get going.”

Hilburn is taking over for former coach Ryan McFarland, who is now the offensive coordinator for Webb City. Hilburn, working under head coach Jon Guidie, was a part of plenty of successful teams while with the Tigers, including the school’s first ever state title run in 2019. That experience on the sidelines, including the successes of helping to build a program will go a long way for Hilburn as he takes over the Indians’ program.

“I loved my time at Carthage, and I told Coach Guidie there is really only one job I would consider leaving Carthage for and it happened to be the Seneca job,” Hilburn said. “We did some great things at Carthage. They have a great program. Because I was there for so long, I got to see what championship football looked like, and that is kind of the model (we want to use here).”

Highlighting the list of returners for the Indians include senior Ethan Fritchey (QB), senior Jaxson Graham (RB, all-Big 8), senior RB/LB Dane Napier (all-Big 8 LB), senior OL/DL Tanner Nesvold, senior OL/DL Brock Hultman, senior OL/DL David Cooper, junior OL/DL Chris Alexander, senior TE/LB Gabe Commons and junior WR Conner Ackerson.

“Those are some guys who have done a good job of leading this football team all summer,” Hilburn said. “I count on them in the locker room and to make some plays this fall.”

Additional players who figure to make an impact at the varsity level include junior RB/LB Lincoln Renfro, junior RB/LB Dominick Wheeler and junior TE/DB Jordan Allen.

Hilburn plans to run an offense similar to what Carthage runs, a two-back spread with multiple looks. The focus, though, will be making sure the offense is built around the Seneca players and not forcing the players into the wrong fit.

“I think we have some good kids who are committed and bought in to be playing our best football by Week 10,” Hilburn said of the mindset of his team leading into the season. “I think we are going to continue to grow each and every week. We have a ton of inexperience, so we are still trying to get kids in the correct spot and figure out what their roles will be.”

Seneca opens the season at home against Marshfield at 7 p.m. on Friday. 

“All we preach to our kids is to get better every day,” Hilburn said. “Let’s get better by at least one percent every single day and see where we are at by the end of the year.”

FOOTBALL WEEK 1: How to watch Joplin at Webb City

Posted on by Jason Peake

 

The 2021 prep football season is here with another highly-anticipated matchup between Joplin and Webb City in Week 1. This year’s contest is slated for 7 tonight at Webb City’s Cardinal Stadium. 

Joplin has earned wins over Webb City in back-to-back season openers. Will the Eagles make it three straight or will the Cardinals put a halt to the streak? We’ll find out tonight.

Expect a playoff atmosphere and a large crowd at Cardinal Stadium.

If you can’t make it to Webb City, or don’t want to deal with the large crowd, there are two ways to watch tonight’s game. 

The Joplin broadcast is through Fox Sports Joplin’s website here: https://foxsportsjoplin.com/ 

KNEO’s Webb City broadcast will be here: Sports (kneo.org)

 

FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Carl Junction looks to build up experience along the way for upcoming season

Posted on by Lucas Davis

After graduating all but eight total starters from last year’s team, Carl Junction football will be using 2021 as a season for growth in the program.

The Bulldogs finished last season with a 6-6 record and graduated a bevy of experience. Carl Junction returns three starters on offense — all along the offensive line — and five starters on the defensive side of the ball with more than 30 players figuring to step into more meaningful roles at the varsity level.

“You go through all the summer weightlifting, conditioning and football camps to get to this point and I think the kids are definitely excited to play,” said Carl Junction coach Doug Buckmaster. “It’s time to play a game, so I am just happy that we have reached this point.”

“We lost a big group of seniors last year,” Buckmaster added. “We have a fairly large senior class this year. But in saying that, we are still going to be a young, inexperienced football team. We may go through some growing pains. I definitely feel like there is a bright future ahead. You don’t ever like saying this is a rebuilding year or something like that because we feel like we can go out and compete and play well in our conference. We just lack numbers and the depth that we’ve had in the past.” 

Returning starters on offense for the Bulldogs are senior LT Darris Hill, senior RT Kameron Bennett and junior center Ross Craig. 

Highlighting the players expected to make an impact at the varsity level on the offensive side of the ball this season for the Bulldogs is senior QB Kyler Perry, junior RB Chance Benford, senior WRs Shane Diskin, Jordan Woodruff, and Dalton Mills, junior WR Nathan Planchon and sophomore WR Dexter Merrell. Filling out the rest of the offensive line figures to be junior LG Josh McDermott and senior RG Michael Phipps.

The returning starters for Carl Junction on the defensive side of the ball are Phipps at defensive tackle, senior DE Josh Cory, senior OLB Carter Kennedy, junior OLB Braxton Dodds and junior DT Donnie Keith. Filling out the projected starters on the defense is sophomore CB Kyler Stewart, junior CB Ayden Bard, junior safeties Arlen Wakefield and Tony Stewart, sophomore linebackers Johnny Starks and Bentley Rowden and Hill at nose tackle. 

“Our defensive side of the ball should be our strength,” Buckmaster said. “We have four or five returning starters on that side of the ball. Some of the kids who are stepping in to replace the ones we lost a year ago have a chance to be as good or better than what we played at in certain positions last year. And we were a pretty good football team on the defensive side last year.”

Carl Junction opens the season at 7 p.m. Friday with a home game against Willard.

“If we can keep them healthy, they are going to get better,” Buckmaster said about what he wants to see in terms of progression this season from his Bulldogs. “We just need to play well early in our schedule in the first three weeks. We need to go out and win a few football games. If we do that, it can set us up for a good season. And we have a good opportunity the first three weeks to put some wins on the board.”

FOOTBALL PREVIEW: First-year Neosho coach Brandon Taute has team focusing on winning each day

Posted on by Lucas Davis

Neosho football will look quite different in 2021.

The Wildcats finished 2020 with an 0-10 record but the upcoming season is a clean slate with Brandon Taute taking over the program as the new head coach. Taute is the former offensive coordinator for Joplin. With the Eagles, Taute was in charge of a prolific scoring offense that resulted in some of the best success the Joplin program has ever seen. Now, Taute brings that success to Neosho.

“I am excited,” Taute said. “We have an awesome group of kids. I have a great coaching staff with me and the community has been super accepting and supportive of us. I am excited for what we have going and what we’re building for the future.

“(My time at Joplin) was huge for me. I got to work with some really good coaches in Joplin, and I got to work with some really good athletes. I learned so much in my time there, stuff that I took from each coach that I worked with. Coach (Curtis) Jasper was such an awesome head coach to work for. He let you take on so much responsibility and ownership of what you’re doing. Being able to work under him and with the guys I worked around really set me up for this opportunity.”

Since taking the helm, one of Taute’s biggest focuses has been changing the culture. Of course, following a winless season, it can be difficult to change the players’ mindset. 

“Since Day 1, we talked about focusing on today and getting better today,” Taute said. “Our goal was to be better than we were yesterday. … We challenge the kids to ask themselves if they are better than they were yesterday. If they can answer yes to that question, then we are taking steps in the right direction. 

“All of the wins and losses will take care of itself. We haven’t talked about goals in terms of number of wins, it’s all been about focusing on the moment and seizing the opportunities we have. We can’t look at things like practice, or time in the weight room or speed development as something they have to do, but as an opportunity they have to get better. And the kids have bought into it. They are super high-character kids and I am really excited about their development.”

When a new coach takes over, that generally means there will be a system change. Offensively, the Wildcats will be switching to the spread offense, much like Taute ran while with the Eagles. Of course, the plan is to ultimately fit the offense — which will be run by new offensive coordinator Dayton Whitehead, who came over from Joplin with Taute — to the players’ skills on that side of the ball.

“It is going to be similar to what we’ve done in Joplin,” Taute said. “We have a really good group of (coaches) who buy into the philosophy of what we are doing. … We will adapt as the year goes on and our offense will tweak every week to fit the kids we have. We have a pretty good grasp right now, but that will change week to week when we see how the kids perform under the lights.”

With several seniors coming back to the defensive side of the ball, Neosho plans to keep much of the prior defensive scheming in place under holdover defensive coordinator Erik Yoakam.

“Coach Yoakam was the DC for the last four years here at Neosho,” Taute said. “They have a group of coaches who are familiar with each other and the system they are running. … The kids are familiar with the defense he runs and that has been a huge help to us. With a whole new offense and teaching the kids new terminology, it’s nice not to have to do that on both sides of the ball.” 

Neosho brings back returning starters DL/OLB Marcus Duncan, OLB Tristen Linders, WR/DB Isaiah Green, OL/DL Nico Olivares, OLB/RB Collyn Kivett, RB Talon Mitchell, OL Seth Green, WR/DB Logan Whetzell, QB Evan Haskins and OL Pete Houk.

Other players expected to contribute heavily at the varsity level this season includes LB Jeremiah Cobb, DB Aidan Howell, DL Hunter Stockton, DL/OL Eric Renner, OLB/RB Jared Siler, DB/WR Landon Werneke, DB/RB Noah Reed, DE/TE Andrew Rupert and OL Carter Baslee.

Neosho opens the season on the road against Republic with a 7 p.m. matchup on Friday.

FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Joplin ready to get back to playing with consistency in 2021

Posted on by Lucas Davis

Joplin is coming off an up-and-down season a year ago, but the Eagles’ main focus in 2021 is getting back to playing the consistent football they’ve grown accustomed to.

Last year, Joplin finished with a 6-5 overall record, 5-4 in the Central Ozark Conference. The biggest issue for the Eagles was putting together a complete four quarters of football. The good news for Joplin is the Eagles are returning 14 starters as well as several more key contributors with a rejuvenated mindset and high expectations for the 2021 season.

“I think we learned a lot last year,” Joplin head coach Curtis Jasper said. “There were a lot of ups and downs during the season. Except for four plays in the district (semifinal) game (against Raymore-Peculiar), I thought we played really well. Those are the things that we talked about all offseason, all the little things adding up to big things. That is what we have stressed, and that’s what the leadership on this team has stressed.

“Hopefully, those things pay big dividends because here’s the thing, the COC is a tough conference. If you don’t have all of the little things right, you are going to have a roller coaster year like we had last year because there are just too many good teams out there.”

Joplin quarterback Always Wright drops back to pass in the Eagles’ jamboree. Photo by Shawn Fowler.

How do you get back to making sure you do the little things correctly? It all starts with preparation. And that doesn’t mean just on game day, that means getting back to taking every practice, weights day or film session as seriously as possible. 

“I think our preparation is important, having the mental mindset of wanting and being able to prepare properly in a normal fashion,” Jasper said. “Having that opportunity and understanding what it takes a little more all adds up.”

Highlighting the returning starters on the offensive side of the ball—which is now ran by new offensive coordinator Jacob Hewitt, formally of Staley—is senior quarterback Always Wright, senior WR Bruce Wilbert, senior WR LT Atherton, junior WR Terrance Gibson, senior OL Dawson Phillips and sophomore OL Dontrell Holt.

Expected to have a big impact for the Eagles at the varsity level on the offensive side of the ball is junior WR Hudson Moore, a Carthage transfer, senior OL Zach Harthan, Stone Karcher, Jett Steele and Trenton Smith, sophomore WR All Wright, sophomore RB Quin Renfro, junior RB Drew VanGilder, senior WR Jack Standley and senior WR Isaac Meadows. 

“I expect him to continue his growth and maturation at the position that we saw last year,” Jasper said of returning quarterback Always Wright. “He had a tremendous year that I honestly don’t think got the credit it deserved. There were a couple of turnovers that stick out in peoples’ minds because of the time and place, but if you look at his touchdown to interception ratio, and how he took care of the football, he had an amazing year. We just look forward to him continuing to build on that.

“It’s great to have Bruce back after he missed some time following the Webb City game (last season),” Jasper added. “It’s also great having Hudson come on over. He is a great young man who is fun and has fit right in. We really like both Quin and Drew splitting those running back reps. They’ve both done a fantastic job.”

“We have three lineman up front from last year in Dontrell, Dawson and Harthan, and Jett Steele and Trent Simon have worked their absolute tails off and have looked good.”

Joplin’s Luke Vieselmeyer makes a play in the Eagles’ jamboree. Photo by Shawn Fowler.

Returning defensive starters include senior DL Donovahn Watkins and Gunner Price, senior DE Joe Jasper, senior LB Robert Kelly as well as senior defensive backs Donovyn Fowler, Korey Read, Ethan Overstreet and Luke Vieselmeyer.

Also expected to contribute heavily at the varsity level on the defensive side of the ball is junior LB Draven VanGilder, sophomore LB Jonathan Williams, senior DB Ben Williams, junior DE Blake Farmer, junior DL Josh Lowe, junior DL Luke Gunn, senior LB Yael Herrera, Ty Beebe, Brylan Patton and senior DB Gustavo Onate.

“Korey is a tremendous player,” Jasper said. “So is Evan Overstreet. And Donovyn Fowler, you saw his athleticism all spring track season. Vieselmeyer is just a tough, gritty kid.

“Up front defensively, we have four seniors and a junior and two more juniors who rotate in, all guys who had a ton of experience last year. The front and back ends of the defense return a ton of experience.

“We like our linebackers a lot too. They are hard-nosed kids who will come downhill. Draven VanGilder and Jonathan Williams are a couple of young linebackers who are doing a great job.”

Joplin opens the season with a matchup against a team that has grown to be one of the Eagles’ biggest rivalries since joining the Central Ozark Conference—Webb City. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Cardinal Stadium. Joplin is 2-1 against Webb City since joining the COC, falling in 2018-19 before winning each of the past two seasons.

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