John Lucas is now in charge of the College Heights Christian School football program as it enters its second year of existence.
An assistant coach last season, Lucas took charge of the program this summer after Travis Burk stepped down after leading the Cougars through Year 1.
“My interests in the position grew from witnessing the efforts and how much progress and the successes this group of young men accomplished in just one year,” Lucas said. “Also, the support from the school board, superintendent, athletic director, faculty and parents is unique and unrivaled. All of whom have a love for Jesus and each other.”
In 2022, College Heights recorded one win in its inaugural season of 8-man football.
“Being a first-year program, the kids learned a ton about the game of football, how to play the game and how to compete,” Lucas said. “There are many challenges when starting a first-year football program. These athletes had limited exposure to a sustained weight lifting program. The physicality of football was the biggest challenge.”
The Cougars have a large group of returning two-way starters in 2023, all of whom gained valuable experience last fall.
With that, Lucas expects the Cougars to take a big step forward in Year 2.
“Our football knowledge has improved,” Lucas said. “We’re not a big, physical team, but we do have some speed at the skill positions.”
Dual threat junior quarterback Logan Decker returns after passing for 2,160 yards and rushing for 888 yards as a sophomore. An all-district performer, the 6-foot Decker passed for 33 touchdowns and ran for another 12 in ’22.
Coach Lucas noted Decker will be an improved player in ’23.
“The two areas Logan has improved are confidence in his abilities at QB and physical strength,” Lucas said. “These will improve his on-field leadership in running the offense, vocal command and his overall game management.”
Senior wide receiver Caleb Quade (6-4, 180) is back after recording 957 receiving yards with 16 touchdowns last season on the way to earning all-district recognition.
Also back at wide receiver are sophomore Cannon Miller, senior Colsen Dickens and junior Levi Durling.
Another all-district performer, the 5-11 Miller had 745 receiving yards with nine touchdowns to go along with 227 rushing yards. Dickens had 147 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Senior Matt Williams, Miller, Durling and Dickens are running threats.
Other possible receivers are sophomores Corbin Cronenwett, Jadon Smith, Jace Bowen and Nick Pfeffer.
Senior Kye Miller, juniors Tate Angel, Kaleb Kennedy and Caleb Hipple and freshman Max Long are offensive linemen.
The Cougars return a solid group on defense.
Williams, Durling, Decker, Cronenwett, Bowen and Dickens are linebackers.
Quade, Dickens, Cannon Miller, Brodrick Burns, Jadon Smith, Anderson Smith and Aiden Cummins are defensive backs.
Freshman Hunter Marsh joins the above mentioned offensive linemen on the D-line.
Coach Lucas said seniors Quade, Dickens, Williams and Kye Miller have taken on leadership roles.
“These men lead by example by doing things the right way, both on and off the field,” he said. “Everything they do, from their christian service, academically in the classroom and setting the example in the weight room, are exceptional examples in leading. These qualities will translate to the field in making us a fundamentally sound and improved football team.”
As far as keys to success, Lucas said they’re simple.
“For us to be successful, we must improve our play up front on both sides of the football,” Lucas said. “The O-line and D-line must be fundamentally sound and disciplined in their techniques. We must improve our physical play, both offensively and defensively. Offensively, we need to be able to run the football. Defensively, we need to improve our tackling techniques, plus be physcial through contact.”
Coach Lucas is confident the Cougars have the pieces in place to have a solid season.
He added the goals for the season are clear.
“We’ll use football as a platform to honor Jesus in all aspects of our program,” Lucas said. “Our hope is for people to bump into Jesus through our conduct, both on and off the football field. We’ll honor him by competing, playing to our highest potential and through our best efforts plus having fun playing the game.”
WEEK 1 IS HERE
College Heights will begin the ’23 season on Friday at Rich Hill.
