Pigskin Roundup 2015 | Page 52

CLASS 3A REGION 6 OHATCHEE INDIANS 2014 brought one of the greatest seasons in school history to Glencoe High School. The Yellow Jackets won a region title, advanced to the North Alabama Championship game of Class 3A, and finished with a final record of 13-1. The loss of talent and experience off that team is massive, including numerous All-State players, Pigskin Roundup All-Stars, and over 4,200 yards of total offense from the backfield. In total, Glencoe lost 16 off last year’s team that produced the school’s best season in over 40 years. However, it would not be wise to count out the Yellow Jackets in 2015. The Jackets have 64 players on the roster, another large senior class of 16 players, and this team still has talent. The 2015 season will be another step towards the rebuilding process under head coach Scott Martin. The second year coach enters his second season with the Indians with a lot of optimism for his bunch. The Indians return talente d quarterback Taylor Eubanks who started last season. Eubanks is joined by fellow junior Austin Tucker in the backfield. Tucker recorded close to 1,000 yards as a sophomore running back in 2014. Wide receiver Blayde Crump is one of only eight seniors for this year’s team. “Blayde has turned a corner,” says head coach Scott Martin. “He’s always been one of our better players, but this spring and summer, he’s stepped up and taken more of a leadership role on the team, and that’s always important.” Fellow senior Sean Barnett started as an offensive lineman last season, but will move to linebacker and fullback this year. “We don’t have a lot of seniors, but the ones we do have are making contributions for sure.” said Martin. Ohatchee will have to try and replace the talented all-state selection Hunter Barclay who became the first player in program history to play in the North-South All-Star game. Meanwhile, the Indians overall team numbers are growing and the future looks extremely bright. 52 guys will dress for the varsity this season and another 27 seventh and eighth graders are expected to rise in the program. The Indians begin the season against Southeastern. GLENCOE YELLOW JACKETS TAYLOR EUBANKS Fullback SCHEDULE 8/21 Southeastern..............Home 8/28 Open 9/04 Westbrook Christian.....Away* 9/11 Piedmont..................Home* 9/18 Ashville....................Away* 9/25 Cherokee County.........Away 10/02 Weaver.....................Home* 10/09 Glencoe....................Away* 10/16 Pleasant Valley...........Home* 10/23 Walter Wellborn..........Away* 10/29 Ragland....................Home COACH SCOTT MARTIN... “I feel like we answered some questions in the spring. We experimented with things and got a lot out of our practices. Our guys have done a great job competing and we’re looking forward to the upcoming year.” The Yellow Jackets return all but one offensive linemen and Head Coach Lee Ozmint states that this is as good a line as he has ever had at Glencoe. That line includes Jeff Ford, Luke Long, center Bailey Britt, and Oxford High School transfer Trevor Owen. Long and Owen will also man down positions on the Jackets’ three-man defensive front. The task of replacing Dylan Stone at QB was aided by the development of Chase Wilson (a transfer from Chelsea) and Pace Ozmint in the spring. Wilson and Ozmint will split time at QB, with Ozmint also seeing lots of time at receiver. The backfield will also feature bruising fullback Taylor Daugherty and tailback Austin Bush. Ozmint says Bush is the fastest player in the team with great breakaway speed. Bush’s brother Aaron will also contribute in the backfield. The defensive strength will be in the back end where the entire secondary returns intact, led by Ozmint, an All-State player at free safety. Daugherty will also start at inside linebacker TAYLOR DAUGHERTY Fullback SCHEDULE 8/28 Plainview................. Home 9/04 Walter Wellborn......... Away* 9/11 Westbrook Christian.... Home* 9/18 Piedmont................. Away* 9/25 Hokes Bluff............... Home 10/02 Ashville................... Home* 10/09 Ohatchee................. Home* 10/16 Weaver.................... Away* 10/23 Pleasant Valley.......... Away* 10/30 Cleburne County......... Away and Coach Ozmint says he is one of the best ‘backers ever at Glencoe. Other linebackers to watch include Noah Hauk and Zach Cowley. Overall, Coach Ozmint believes this will actually be one of the physically strongest teams he has had at Glencoe. He thinks all of Class 3A, Region 5 will be improved with Piedmont and Walter Wellborn as top contenders along with Weaver. COACH LEE OZMINT... “This could be one of the toughest teams I’ve ever coached, but we have a long way to go.”