P AGE 20 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
Friday Night Hype
Final 2018 Clermont County Stat Leaders Passing Yards
Receiving Yards
1. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 2081 2. Hunter Johnson (Milford) 2077 3. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 894 4. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 643 5. Loghan Kelley (Williamsburg) 547
1. Dylan Poff (Bethel-Tate) 2. Dylan Hughes (Milford) 3. Jake Ayler (Milford) 4. Gauge Dunn (Bethel-Tate) 5. Jack McDonough (New Richmond)
Passing Touchdowns 1. Hunter Johnson (Milford) 2. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 3. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 4. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 5. Luke Lytle (New Richmond)
O D D P A G E S
21 12 7 6 5
1. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 2. Austin Graves (Goshen) 3. Hunter Slusher (Goshen) 4. Gabe Kilgore (Bethel-Tate) 5. Nathan Martz (Batavia)
1532 1471 1106 1021 1003
1. David Pride (CNE) 2. Neil Dahlheimer (CNE) 3. Gabe Kilgore (Bethel-Tate) 4. Kyle Smith (Bethel-Tate) 5. Michael Whittington (BT)
13.5 11 7.5 6.5 6
Interceptions 26 18 16 14 12
1. Albert Cory (CNE) 2. Deven Williams (Batavia) T-3. Luke Rayburn (CNE) T-3. Owen Martin (Milford) T-3. Gage Bullock (West Clermont)
Receiving Touchdowns 1. Gauge Dunn (Bethel-Tate) 2. Dylan Hughes (Milford) 3. Randy Hammons (New Richmond) 4. Several tied with four
163 97 96 93 81
Total Sacks
Rushing Touchdowns 1. Cameron Kells (Milford) 2. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 3. Noah Macko (Bethel-Tate) 4. Jason Griffin (Batavia) 5. Kaleb Moell (Batavia)
2019 Clermont County High School Football Preview
Total Tackles
Rushing Yards 1. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 2. Cameron Kells (Milford) 3. Jason Griffin (Batavia) 4. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 5. Drew McKibben (Williamsburg)
948 669 613 588 555
6 4 3 3 3
Kicking (Total Points) 8 7 5
1. Grace Ertel (Milford) 2. Cameron Null (West Clermont) 3. Luke Lytle (New Richmond) 4. Corbin Richardson (Batavia) 5. Willow Kenneda (Williamsburg)
44 35 32 29 24
Returning players in italics
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P AGE 2 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 19
Turpin, Kings tied atop ECC Coaches Poll
Wildcats: Young team ready for 2019 season Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 8
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Milford Eagles were the highest-ranked Clermont County team in the 2019 Eastern Cincinnati Conference Coaches Poll, earning a total of 30 points to place third.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Last season, the Kings Knights rolled to a perfect 70 record in Eastern Cincinnati Conference play, clinching a postseason berth and a league crown. If the results of the 2019 Clermont Sun Coaches Poll are any indication, they’ll have company at the top this season. The Turpin Spartans joined Kings at the top of our 2019 poll, with both teams earning 37 points in the voting. Turpin received one more first-place vote than Kings (3-2). Voting for Kings was consistent throughout, with the Knights earning two firstplace votes and three secondplace nods. Turpin received a third-place vote, a second-
place vote and three firstplace votes. Milford came in third in the poll. Three of the voters picked the Eagles to place third, with the squad earning votes in second place and fourth place to complete their total. Anderson edged West Clermont for fourth place. The Redskins received votes in third, fourth, fifth and seventh. West Clermont was picked as high as third by one voter and as low as fifth by another. Walnut Hills, Loveland and Withrow rounded out the final three teams. Coaches poll voting began on Thursday, August 1 and concluded Friday, August 23. Points were awarded on a 1-8 scale, with first-place votes awarding eight points.
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2019 ECC Coaches Poll Results T-1. Turpin (3) T-1. Kings (2) 3. Milford 4. Anderson 5. West Clermont 6. Walnut Hills 7. Loveland 8. Withrow
37 37 30 22 20 16 13 5
One of Williamsburg’s premier playmakers is on the defensive side of the ball. Dakota Roberts finished last season tied for the team lead with 4.5 sacks. He also forced a fumble and recovered another. For his play last season, he was named a third-team all-state performer by the Ohio Preps Sportswriters Association, and he hasn’t missed a beat since the end of last season, according to Ward. “He has not missed a lifting since November,” Ward said. “He is a proven player and should only be better than before. His work ethic [and] drive is very high.” Roberts and Kelley are two of the Wildcats’ plethora of talented seniors. Williamsburg has 12 seniors listed on the roster, including 2018 first-team all-conference selection Joseph Stillwell, secondteam performers in Seth Howard and Dyllan West, and kicker Willow Kenneda. They’ll be aided in their quest for a National Division title with a handful of younger players. Braden Kelley, a junior, is listed as a running back and a cornerback this season. Eddie Slatterly is expected to play corner and wide receiver for the team this season, while junior Garrett Mason is projected to help anchor the team’s offensive and defensive lines. As the Wildcats prepare to open the regular-season on the road against Batavia on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m. , Ward set out expectations for the team on and off the field. “Our expectations are, as always. make great decisions and tough choices everyday in life,” Ward said. “Be the best person and role model you can be at all times. Win [the] SBAAC. Win [Division VI] playoff games.”
Williamsburg Wildcats 2019 Football Roster
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Williamsburg senior Loghan Kelley has a new number this season, as he switches from 12 to 3 for 2019.
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#
NAME
POSITION
GRADE
2 3 5 7 10 12 15 16 17 18 20 22 23 28 30 32 34 41 44 45 48 50 52 54 55 56 59 62 65 72 73 74 76 79 85 88
Teddy Conley Loghan Kelley Eddie Satterley Trystan Gries Willow Kenneda Dylan Rowland Nick Patterson Carter Fink Kyle Dolby Jace Canter Braden Kelley Mason Thomas Nate Milton Chris Selm Ashton Herren Levi Kritzwiser Shawn Drake Evan Pence Dakota Roberts Trent Kellerman Jarrett Thatcher Brayden Cummins Jacob Kendle Conner May Seth Howard Josh Smith Matt Bishop Casey Bach Robert Wendel Joseph Stillwell Andrew Hatter Garrett Mason Ryan Terrell Cody Harrison George Paine Dyllan West
QB, S QB, CB WR, CB QB, S K WR, CB WR, S RB, S QB, CB QB, SS RB, CB RB, S RB, LB RB, LB RB, CB RB, S RB, LB TE, S OL, S RB, LB TE, LB C, DL OL, DL OL, LB OL, LB OL, DL OL, DL C, LB OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL TE, CB TE, CB
Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Senior Junior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Senior Sophomore Senior Junior Junior Senior Junior Junior Senior
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E V E N P A G E S
CMYK P AGE 18 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 3
Williamsburg ready to turn heads in ‘19
Falcons, Wildcats named SBAAC favorites 2019 SBAAC American Coaches Poll Results
Williamsburg Wildcats
2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D
Batavia
1. Clinton-Massie (3) 2. New Richmond 3. Goshen 4. Western Brown 5. Wilmington 6. Batavia
St. Bernard (6 PM)
9/13
Riverview East
9/20
Hillsboro
9/27
Dayton Christian
10/4
Fayetteville
10/11
Blanchester
10/18
East Clinton
10/25
Bethel-Tate
11/1
CNE
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2019 SBAAC National Coaches Poll Results
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P A G E S
The Williamsburg Wildcats enter 2019 coming off a 2018 campaign in which the team went 3-7 overall, 2-3 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 season was a campaign full of firsts for the Williamsburg Wildcats’ football team. The squad played in front of a packed Abrams Stadium for the first time last season, following con-
struction of the new seating, concessions and weight room facility at the field. Additionally, the year was the first for the team under new head coach Chad Ward. As such, last season was one where both the Williamsburg staff and players learned a lot. “I would say last year was
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a learning process for our kids and coaches,” Ward said. “We had to learn a lot things about our players as coaches and vice versa. We had tough learning moments at times and also had some really good times during the season. We had a few games we thought we could have won to improve our record
but we just did not get it done.” Williamsburg finished last season 3-7 overall and 2-3 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play. Both of those marks were improvements over the 2017 season, in which the Wildcats finished
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1-9 overall and 0-5 in the league. A lot of that improvement had to do with the play of Williamsburg’s senior class. Drew McKibben cracked 1,000 yards for the Wildcats last year, finishing the season fifth overall in the SBAAC. His 10 touchdowns were good for ninth in the league, but like the rest of his senior class, he left his mark on more than just the stat sheet. “Their biggest impact was definitely the leadership some of them shown for years in our program,” Ward said. “Several of the players were three-year starters and had been a big part of our program on and off the field.” The returning group of Wildcats will have a bit of a new look on the offensive
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23 19 15 11 9 7
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
side of the ball. Counting McKibben, the team’s top three runners from 2018 are gone in 2019. Loghan Kelley returns offensively for Williamsburg, having recorded eight total touchdown passes last season (four throwing, four rushing). That turnover has sparked some slight changes in the team’s offense, though the modifications aren’t going to be too drastic, according to Ward. “We did switch a little bit but we will still have a lot of same plays [and] identity we have had for past few years,” Ward said. “We are just looking to put some of our playmakers in the best spots we can.” See Wildcats, Page 19
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Clermont Northeastern Rockets received two first-place votes in the Clermont Sun’s 2019 SBAAC National Division Football Coaches Poll, but finished one point behind Blanchester for first place.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Two Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference teams won outright titles with undefeated seasons in 2018. According to voters in the 2019 Clermont Sun Coaches Poll, both squads will repeat again as champions. Last season, ClintonMassie out-scored opponents 210-9 in league play. The Falcons sweps all five games against American Division teams, and they also swept all of the firstplace votes in the coaches poll. Clinton-Massie was also chosen to place second once. New Richmond finished
last season 3-2 overall in league play, falling to Western Brown and the Falcons. That 3-2 mark was good for a second-place tie with Goshen last season. This season, the Lions earned enough points to finish in second place, just ahead of the Warriors. Three ballots placed the Lions in second, with a fourth vote for third. Goshen earned two fourth-place votes, but came in third in the poll. Western Brown placed as high as third and as low as fifth in balloting. Batavia received sixthplace votes in all but one ballot. The Bulldogs were placed as high as third. Blanchester’s margin of
victory in the National Division poll was razorthin. Four of the six schools are within three points of first place, while the other two schools both tied for fifth. Last season, the Wildcats rolled to a 5-0 record, as only Bethel-Tate cracked double-digits against the team in league play. This season, the Wildcats are one of three teams with a new head coach. Brandon Sammons resigned the position in October of 2018, and assistant coach Jon Mulvhill was promoted to replace him. East Clinton also has a new head coach, as the Astros lost Jeremy Yankey to a sudden resignation last
season just before the team’s week eight game against Bethel-Tate. Andy Olds was an assistant on the Astros’ staff last season, and he enters 2019 as the team’s new head coach. A third school in the division also has a new head coach. Fayetteville is now led by Wayne Stacy, who joined the program earlier this summer. Stacy replaces Kevin Finch. The Clermont County teams have consistency up and down the program, from the coaching staff to the rosters. While some players were lost to graduation, Bethel-Tate, CNE and Williamsburg all are slated to return a core group of
1. Blanchester (2) 2. CNE (2) 3. Bethel-Tate (1) 4. Williamsburg T-5. East Clinton T-5. Fayetteville players from 2018. The uncertainty throughout the league led to some inconsistent voting results. Blanchester was picked to win the league by two coaches, but they were also chosen to place fourth by two others. Bethel-Tate was selected anywhere from fifth place (once) to first place (once) with two third-place finishes in between. Clermont Northeastern had the unusual distinction of being the only team in any of the three polls to earn
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both a first and last-place vote. The Rockets were also picked second and third by voters. Williamsburg had arguably the more consistent result of any team, with Clermont County’s Wildcats earning two second-place votes, a third-place vote and two fourth-place votes. Voting was conducted from Thursday, August 1 to Friday, August 23. Points were awarded on a 1-6 scale, with first-place votes resulting in six points, and so on.
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P AGE 4 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 17
Bulldogs looking to build on six-win season
Wolves: New faces in new places for West Clermont Continued from page 16
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Batavia Bulldogs started the 2018 campaign 5-0 in non-league play before losing all but one of their five conference games.
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BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 Batavia Bulldogs were, as head coach Scott Donaldson put it, so close. Batavia finished last season 6-4 overall, 1-4 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division play. With two games left in the season, Batavia needed a win to clinch a spot in the postseason. The team’s first chance came at home against Goshen, where a missed extra point resulted in a 21-20 loss. One week later, a 29-14 defeat at the hands of the Western Brown Broncos ended the team’s season. “If we convert there, we're in the playoffs,” Donaldson said. “If we beat Western Brown, we're in the playoffs.”
This year’s Batavia team looks a lot different. The squad lost 16 seniors last year, including running back Jason Griffin and quarterback/linebacker Kaleb Moell. “That’s a ton to replace,” Donaldson said. “We have a much, much smaller team this year, numbers-wise. We're going to have to rely on our speed.” Even with the reshaping of the Batavia roster, the returning players offer experience in Batavia’s system. “We're another year into the system, so everybody's a little smarter,” Donaldson said. “We can kind of change things up as far as offensively and defensively, it's a little smoother. I don't think we'll have to think as much, we can just react.” The players that due return for the Bulldogs are going to have to take on
expanded roles in 2019. For some, that includes time on both sides of the ball. “We're going to have to have a lot of two-way players this year, there's no way around it,” Donaldson said. “We were kind of blessed last year, no one on the offensive line had to play defense. They were rested all the way through the game. I think the juniors that are there and the sophomores are ready to step up.” One such sophomore is Max Applegate, who is listed on the team’s roster as a quarterback and defensive back. Kellen Epps, a sophomore tight end/linebacker, and Max Stewart (halfback/linebacker) are also slated to play key roles for the team at various skill positions. See Bulldogs, Page 5
Batavia Bulldogs 2019 Schedule 8/30
Williamsburg
9/6 Gamble Montessori 9/13
CNE
9/20
Bethel-Tate
9/27
Fayetteville
10/4
Wilmington
10/11
New Richmond
10/18
Clinton-Massie
10/25
Goshen
11/1
Western Brown
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son. Those two athletes join guys like Luke Mentzel, Trevor Click and Howie Bingham on the defensive side of the ball, along with corner Devon Boykin. That defensive unit has several tough tasks at hand this season, starting with a week two game against Winton Woods. However, Ayers and the Wolves aren’t looking ahead to anyone this season. “We have to go 1-0 every week,” Ayers said. “Each week, take it week by week. We can’t look past that. We’re not experienced enough. We’ve taken that mentality to our staff. We want to be 1-0 in the first scrimmage, 1-0 in the second. We want to keep that mentality.” West Clermont opens the season at home on Friday, August 30 against Hamilton. The team’s week four game at Turpin is part of the 2019 Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown, and it opens the final season of league play in the eightteam version of the ECC. Lebanon, Winton Woods and Little Miami are scheduled to join the league in 2020, while Withrow is slated to depart for the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference.
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West Clermont Wolves 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 3 4 4 5 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 15 16 17 18 19 19 20 21 22 22 23 24 24 25 25 26 27 27 28 28 29 29 30 31 32 33
Name Chris Kennedy Kaden Samson Stoney Hamilton Evan Seebohm Austin Kresser Adriel Orona Tyler Slone Peyton Bryant Kyle Seebohm Cody Sunday Donte Turner Jr Nathan Taylor Will Turner Alex Henriques Ryan Brown Malcolm Peterson Dauvieon Williams Nolan Lucas Tommy Jetter Kyle Walker Jake Ransbottom Hayden Payer Gage Bullock Jackson Miller Xander Kraemer Austin Fultz Justin Hicks Bryan Hertel Cameron Mahaffey Zach Lacy Devon Price Josh Hogan Landen Earley Tyler Taktak Mason Steinker Dylan Wise Alex Howe Caleb Stepp Zach Moats Noah Smith Brandon Holder Devon Boykin Preston Meier Kacey Berryhill Nate Goins Jacob Towner Marcus Johnson Mateo Coldiron Madicke Jobe
Position DB RB DB C RB RB/C WR/DB DB DL TE/LB QB QB DB S RB C WR QB WR WR/K RB C OLB C WR ILB LB/TE DB LB DB RB/LB RB RB/LB DL QB/DB RB/DB TE WR/LB RB DB INJ DB LB K LB DL RB ILB DL
Grade Junior Sophomore Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Junior Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior
# 34 35 36 39 42 44 46 50 51 51 52 52 53 54 54 55 55 56 56 57 59 60 61 62 64 64 70 71 72 73 73 74 74 75 76 77 77 78 79 80 80 81 82 85 88 92 93 98 99
Name Nick Abdelmassiah Nate Cox Trenton Pinnick Austin Duckwall Shayne Clephane Luke Mentzel Trevor Click Casey Wheeler David Utley Don Souders Matthew Anderkin Kanen Messer Memphis Meyer Howard Bingham John Michael Thompson Landon Reveal Dillon Volkering Ethan Jesse Andrew Sandefur Zach Smith Lance West Corey Henson Eli Ritter Jaxson Frysinger Nick Henning Joseph Epstein Luke Haverkamp Aaron Fucito Dylan Maple Steven Botts Devin Crespo Brandon Turner Nick Housinger D.J. Colley Ethan Brown Matt Botts Nate Woodall Elijah Thomas Eric Simpson Xavier White Conner Joseph Riley Barth Melvin Flores Andrew Henriques Guy Schwaller Eddie Whitby Landon Fussnecker Xander Knox Logan Toft
Position DL DB RB DB DL ILB ILB OT/DT DL DE OL C/G OL OL/DL DT/OT OL G ILB DT/C OL DL DL OL OL DL DT DT/OT OL OL OL OT/DT OL OT OL GUARD OL OT/DT OL DT/OT DL LB/RB TE DB TE DB DL DL DL DL
Grade Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Freshman Freshman Junior Junior Sophomore Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Junior Sophomore Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore
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CMYK P AGE 16 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 5
Defense key for West Clermont in 2019
Bulldogs: Young team ready for 2019 season Continued from page 4
West Clermont Wolves
2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D P A G E S
Hamilton Winton Woods
9/13
Lebanon
9/20
Turpin*
9/27
Walnut Hills
10/4
Loveland
10/11
Anderson
10/18
Withrow
10/25
Milford
11/1
Kings
Home Away *Skyline Crosstown Showdown PHOTO /PROVIDED
The West Clermont Wolves graduated 32 seniors off a 2018 squad that finished the season 4-6 overall, 3-4 in Eastern Cincinnati Conference play. The Wolves defeated Hamilton, Walnut Hills, Loveland and Withrow last season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2019 season marks the third year of existence for the West Clermont Wolves’ football program, and this year’s team looks
177 West Main Street Amelia, OH 45102 513-753-6130
drastically different than either of the last two. Last season, the Wolves finished the year 4-6 overall, 3-4 in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference. Head coach Nick Ayers said the team’s record was not
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where they had hoped it would be, and he credited that to the team not winning games he felt they should have. “We were a little bit disappointed in our win-loss record,” Ayers said. “We were there to win some games, we lost three games by a total of nine points. In the end, we didn’t coach well enough to win those games, we didn’t make plays to win those games. Hopefully, we’ve learned from it.” One year later, the Wolves will see what lessons they learned from 2018, and they’ll do so with new faces all over the gridiron. “We graduated 32 seniors,” Ayers said. “We’re a little bit inexperienced. We’re anxious to get that experience this week.” All that change in a short amount of time can make things difficult for football
programs, and while Ayers did acknowledge the difficulties, he noted the players and their attitudes have made it easier. “It’s a challenge, but it’s been a fun challenge,” Ayers said. “This group has worked tremendously hard this offseason and done amazing things. We’re hoping that the work translates over to wins, because everyone works hard. Our competition is pretty tough.” West Clermont lost quarterback Hunter Eads, running back Ryan Cann and Chayse Gambrell, among others. This season, the team has a new face under center: Dante Turner Jr. “We’re going to center the offense around him and make him a dual threat to run and throw,” Ayers said. “We have some really good receivers in Tyler Sloane and Kyle Walker. We’ve got some really good running
backs in our rotation.” Ayers also noted one of the team’s priorities offensively is to play mistakefree football. The team is also changing up the tempo this season offensively. “We’re looking to make it a little more dynamic,” Ayers said. “We’re not going to huddle. The tempo of the game will be dictated by us. We won’t go really slow, we won’t go really fast. We’ll change it up at different times, and we hope that gives us an advantage and a bit of diversity in the offense will help tremendously.” On the other side of the ball, Ayers believes the team’s defense will once again be a strength in 2019, thanks in large part to defensive coordinator Donnie Wilson “Our defense is always going to be good with [Wilson] running the
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
defense for you,” Ayers said. “The kids that are there are a little bit smaller than last year, but I think we have more speed on that side of the ball. They run to the football really hard, they tackle well. They’ve done really well in our scrimmages. That’s one thing we do well, we always have good defense.” West Clermont held teams under 20 points in six games last season. Even with the large number of graduates in 2019, the Wolves return plenty of defensive talent. The team also has a pair of transfers on the defensive side of the ball in 2019. Madicke Jobe, a defensive lineman, joins the team from Wisconsin, while junior defensive back Payton Bryant joins the team from Moeller this seaSee Wolves, Page 17
playing both ways this season. He’s part of Batavia’s talented sophomore class. “He's going to be good on both sides of the ball," "Offensive line and defensive line. The sophomores have some talent, there's no doubt about it. Now they have to show it on the varsity level and be more consistent at it." Upperclassmen like Dan Hellman, Alex Jones and Luke Scaggs are slated to take on roles in the backfield for Batavia this season, as the squad looks to replace Griffin. “[He] was our big-play guy,” Donaldson said. “This year, we're just going to have to rely on running back by committee and hit them with different sets. We've got a couple tricks up our sleeve, that's for sure.” Moell finished last season with well over 100 tackles, far and away tops on the team. Without his presence in the middle of Batavia’s defense, Donaldson noted the Bulldogs are going to have to use some of their new-found speed. “We're just faster overall," Donaldson said. "That should make up for a lot of ills. We don't have [Moell] in there, a monster in the middle, but we definitely have a lot of speed that flies around.” Ideally, Donaldson and the Bulldogs would have their eyes on making the postseason, and Donaldson believes the team can make the playoffs in 2019, despite the team’s youth. “We're so young," Donaldson said. "I truly believe, yes, if everything falls just right, but how often does that happen? It depends on all the other teams also, what they lost. I think we should be about the same, but I tell the kids, 'We're more than a two-man team. We're 22.' I think we'll be alright.”
Batavia Bulldogs 2019 Football Roster
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Batavia’s Drew Mentzel rolls out of the pocket in a scrimmage against Hillsboro on August 23, 2019.
One of the more notable developments during Batavia’s offseason came on the field, literally. The school installed a turf field, which held a soft opening on Friday, August 23 for a scrimmage against Wilmington. The full-blown event is scheduled for the teams’ regular-season opener on Friday, August 30 against Williamsburg. “We're excited to open that up and play our games on
there," Donaldson said. "We were the only school in our side of the conference that didn't have a turf field. We're keeping up with the Jones' now, we've got our turf.” Batavia’s turf will get a workout this season, as the football team is slated to play six games at home. The Bulldogs’ week two contest against Gamble Montessori has been moved back to Batavia due to construction on the new Stargell Stadium.
# 1 3 4 5 7 8 9 11 13 14 16 18 21 22 26 30 31 32 36 43 45 48 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 62 64 70 73 77 78 80 94
NAME Zach Duncan Max Applegate Blake Casey Drew Mentzel Daniel Hellman Alex Jones Kyler Myers Kellen Epps Luke Scaggs Luke Thompson Skylar Haas James Bethel Mason Marx Connor Harris Will Moorehead Max Stewart Austin McCarthy Gary Graves Dez Wallace Blake Martin Terry Henize Mikey Vance Keith Williams Christian Walters Bryce Jones Nathan DeFrank CJ Okoronta Will Green Josh Manz Isaac Hattar Kaydem Selm Zach Brown Cullen Watson Nehemiah Squire Jr. Christian Decker Cory Wright Cannan Sheets Alex Byrd Jackson Byrd
POSITION WR, S QB, DB FB, ILB QB, DB RB, DB RB, DB WR, DB TE, OLB RB, CB WR, DB DB WR, DB HB, DB WR, DB HB, DB HB, OLB RB, LB FB, OLB HB, CB RB, LB TE, LB TE, DL OG, DL OL, DL OL, DL C, DL OL, DL OL, LB OT, DL C, DT OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OT, DL OL, DL OL, NG OL, DE TE, LB K, DB
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GRADE Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Sophomore Senior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Freshman Freshman Senior Junior Junior Senior Junior Sophomore Junior Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Senior Sophomore
P AGE 6 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 15
Bethel-Tate working to rebound in 2019
Lions: New Richmond seeking playoff spot Continued from page 14
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The Bethel-Tate Tigers finished 4-6 overall, 3-2 in the Southern Buckeye Academic and Athletic Conference’s National Division in 2018.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Coming off a 2017 campaign that saw the BethelTate Tigers post a perfect 10-0 record, it would have
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been logical for fan expectations to be sky-high heading into 2018. However, the Tiger team that took the field last season looked little like their 2017 counterparts, as the
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315 Plane Street Bethel, OH 45106 513-734-2228
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team finished the year 4-6 overall and 3-2 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play. The disparity between the two teams was in large part due to graduation. Between 2017 and 2018, the Tigers graduated 17 players, including quarterback Seth Becker, wide receiver Chris Wheeler and a host of other crucial players. As such, the Tigers had several holes to fill in 2018, and the varsity experience gained by those players will be crucial to the team’s plans in 2019, according to head coach Jeff Essig. “We relied on them, a lot of freshman and sophomores at the time to lead our team and help those seniors last year,” Essig said. “It was a difficult season, especially after you come off a great one like that in 2017,
but we got a lot of experience with our young guys, so we’re excited about this season.” That experience hopefully will soothe some of the Tigers’ first-game jitters as they prepare to face Bellbrook at home on Friday, August 30. “They’ll have butterflies, but every player that’s going to start for us on offense has started at least six or more varsity games already,” Essig said. “Offensively, we only lost a running back and a left tackle to graduation. On defense, we lost Gabe Kilgore, our all-state defensive tackle, so that’s one to fill.” Bethel-Tate returns most of an offense that averaged just over 26 points per game last season. The Tigers were led by Alex Manz, who finished third in the league last season with 2,0781 passing
yards. His 12 touchdowns were fifth in the league, and Essig says the team plans on chucking the ball around the field again in 2019. “That’s what we like to do,” Essig said. “Our kids seem to enjoy it, and at a small school where we share a lot of athletes, that’s kind of our way of getting the athletes to come out. We’ve gotten some basketball guys again, and we’ve got some more wrestlers.” The Tiger football and wrestling programs have had a symbiotic relationship for the past few seasons, according to Essig. “We really like our wrestlers, they’re a tough group,” Essig said. “We’ve always done a great job with our wrestling program at Bethel, I like getting those See Tigers, Page 7
Bethel-Tate Tigers 2019 Schedule 8/30
Bellbrook
9/6
New Richmond
9/13
Scott (KY)
9/20
Batavia
9/27
CHCA
10/4
East Clinton
10/11
CNE
10/18
Blanchester
10/25
Williamsburg
11/1
“Our linebacking corp is probably one of our strongest units,” Burke said. “[Mitchell] Williamson has had a great career for us, he'll be at MIKE linebacker. We have Gage Shepherd and Avery Skaggs back there. All of them have had tremendous careers so far and have played well for us, we're excited about that.” In the secondary, Jack McDonough, Cody Feldkamp and Jacob Crawford will be three of the team’s defensive backs. “Those guys have all had varsity time for us and played big games," Burke said. "We're looking for our defense to be pretty solid. We've got some younger guys up front on our defensive line, anchored by Jason Ackerman. He's been tremendous for us." Overall, Burke said the team’s defense is solid and progressing well. They’ll need to continue to progress if the Lions hope to contend for a Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference title, which will likely run through ClintonMassie, according to Burke. “Until they prove otherwise, that's who the team in our league is to beat, and rightfully so,” Burke said. “I think Goshen is the only one to beat them since they joined the league.” The league is strong from top to bottom, according to Burke. “I think our league continues to get stronger," Burke said. "It's set itself up to be a premier league in southwest Ohio." New Richmond begins the 2019 season with a home game against Indian Hill on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m.
New Richmond Lions 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 36 37 39 40
Name Matthew Duty Luke Lytle Tyler Sininger Chad Tracy Kadin Pollard Austin Sharp Jack McDonough Jacob Farrell Trane Light Cody Feldkamp Jack Moore Jacob Crawford Damien Daugherty Austin Suttle Isaiah Bowman AJ Metzger Tanner Skaggs Christian Orse Bo Snider Parker Hammons Laurence Smith Mitchell Williamson Brady Payne Randy Hammons Landen Patton Jacob Duty Zane Naegele Jayden Seal Matthew Abner Andrew Royalty Avery Skaggs Joshua Tremper Chuck Miller Trent Dunaway Owen Wiebell Nathaniel Daniels Cohen Schaefer
Position RB/LB QB/DB WR/DB RB/WR/DB WR/DB WR/SAF DB/WR WR/SAF WR/DB/K WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB QB/DB WR/DB WR/DE QB/DB WR/SAF RB/LB RB/LB QB/LB WR/SAF WR/LB RB/LB WR/SAF WR/DB RB/DL TE/DL TE/LB WR/SAF WR/LB WR/DB OL/DL WR/LB WR/DB
Grade
#
Freshman Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Senior Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Freshman Senior Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Senior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman
41 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85
Name Gabe Shepherd Elijah Brazeal Elijah Burkholder Tyler Noble Andrew Washburn Brayden Bayless Logan Young Seth Fischesser Jayden Naegele Wyatt Thompson Ethan Boyer Logan Waters Cody Boshears Maverick Ellington Zach Fredricks Jack Thompson Dallas Duncan Sean Miller Tommy Troy Cole Deavers Corydon Ward Luke Abbott William Foster Brian Strunk Mark Carroll Brandon Cole Steven Curless Chris McClanahan Matt Isbell Jason Ackerman Austin Elam Ian Zimmer Kaden Iker Andrew Hawkins Jacob McCulley Lucas Jones Hunter Studor
Position
Grade
RB/LB OL/DL OL/DL WR/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB OL/DL WR/DB
Junior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Senior Sophomore Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Freshman
Fayetteville
Home
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Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
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E V E N P A G E S
CMYK P AGE 14 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 7
NR hopes to return to postseason in ‘19
Tigers: High-powered offense returns several players Bethel-Tate Tigers 2019 Football Roster
O D D P A G E S
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The New Richmond Lions finished 2018 7-3 overall, but a late-season loss to Western Brown kept the team out of the playoffs.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The New Richmond Lions’ football team enters a new era of sorts in 2019. For the first time in six
177 West Main Street Amelia, OH 45102 513-753-6130
seasons, the squad will be without an Anderson on the roster following the graduation of Josh Anderson this may. Anderson and his older brother Tyler were main-
200 Western Avenue New Richmond, OH 45157 513-553-4132
315 Plane Street Bethel, OH 45106 513-734-2228
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stays on the sidelines for the team over the last halfdozen years. Last season, Anderson led the Lions to a 7-3 record, but the team missed the postseason. That results was not what the team was looking for, according to head coach Patrick Burke. “We didn't really feel like we lived up and played to our standards that we set for ourself,” Burke said. “It wasn't a bad year, but we had the goals of making the playoffs and we came up short.” This year’s team has been using last year’s results as fuel as they prepare for the season. “Our kids have been hungry and talking about being the gold standard and doing it better than we've ever done it before,” Burke said. “We're excited for the season.”
With the departure of Anderson, the Lions lose a player who set 32 offensive records during his four-year career. Replacing a player of that caliber is difficult, but the Lions have plenty of returning talent on the field. “We bring back a lot,” Burke said. “Even the ones that weren't true starters all had varsity experience.” One position group in particular is expected to be stronger this season: the wide receivers. “The guys that were sophomores and freshman last year are now juniors and sophomores, and I think we'll see more production out of our receivers,” Burke said. “I think that was one of our weak spots last year, and we had to rely so heavily on Josh's legs. I think this year you're going to see an offense that is more balanced, which opens up our
playbook a little more and allows more kids to get the ball. I think we'll be more experienced and battle tested this year.” Luke Lytle saw some time in the at quarterback for New Richmond last season, and he beat out sophomore Bo Snider for the starting job this season. Both quarterbacks had solid showings, according to Burke, and Snider is likely to make an impact defensively and as one of the team’s wide receivers this season. “He's a good athlete, and he's not somebody that we can keep off the field,” Burke said. Defensively, the team’s linebackers are slated to be one of the team’s strengths this season, according to Burke. See Lions, Page 15
New Richmond Lions 2019 Schedule 8/30
Indian Hill
9/6
Bethel-Tate
9/13
Monroe
9/20
Talawanda
9/27
Norwood
10/4
Western Brown
10/11
Batavia
10/18
Wilmington
10/25
Clinton-Massie
11/1
Goshen
Home
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Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Bethel-Tate senior quarterback Alex Manz finished last season with 12 touchdown passes and over 2,000 passing yards. Continued from page 6
kinds of guys. I think Coach [Tom Donahue] does a great job with the program there, he really enjoys it when we’re able to bring his wrestlers in for wrestling season already in shape.” Manz has weapons to work with, as Bethel-Tate returns a pair of talented receivers in sophomore Gauge Dunn and senior Dylan Poff. Poff and Manz are members of a senior group that has special meaning to Essig. “This is the first group to come through our program for what we’ve been doing,” Essig said. “We’ve been working hard with Alex
since he was a freshman to get him to this point. He’s gotten to see two pretty good guys go ahead of him with Wheeler his freshman year and we were lucky enough to have Becker come back his sophomore year.” Manz finished last season with 30 interceptions, incluiding four in th team’s opener at Waynesville. “The first game was kind of rough,” Essig said. “With what we do, you’re going to throw some interceptions, but at the same time, you’ve got to make smart decisions with the football. We’ve worked on that, he spent some time in the offseason and went and got some more
training, and he looks great this year.” He’ll look to lead the Tigers to victory in a league that is dealing with a few changes up and down the standings. “Our side of the league is going to be interesting,” Essig said. “There’s some coaching changes, and some new offenses and some new defenses that are going to be different from what we’ve normally seen out of some of our teams. With the experience we have coming back, I think we’ll be able to compete with anyone.” Bethel-Tate’s opener against Bellbrook at home on Friday, August 30 is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
# 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 28 30 32 33 50 51 54 55 57 58 60 62 63 64 65 69 72 75 76 77 80 99
NAME Alex Manz Nick Owens Blake Stiles Ethan Carter Mikey Molloy Logan Owens Aaron Sandker Connor Glenn Austin Brookenthal Gauge Dunn Peyton Herzner Dalton Saylor Chris Long Jaycob Storer Trent Grigsby Colby Fancher Hank Williams Seth Vining Kyle Smith Dylan Poff Dylan Stern Wyatt Burton Ashton Wolfe Cole Grigsby Norman Darnell Jr Korbin Dearing Patrick Kilgore Luke Frondorf Owen Mattes Caleb Lanigan Christian Jobe Jacob Hatfield Ethan Molloy Kyler Abrams Dillyn Williams Jayce Glenn Hunter Darnell Noah Iker Windell Ward Gavin Smith Nate Ball Joey Black Eli Ryan
POSITION QB, DB WR, CB WR, DB WR, DB RB, LB RB, LB WR, DB WR, DB WR, DE WR, DB RB, DB RB, DB WR, DB WR, CB WR, DB WR, DB RB, LB QB, DB WR, DE WR, LB RB, DL WR, DB QB, DB RB, LB RB, LB OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL
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GRADE Senior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Sophomore Junior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Senior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Junior Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Senior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Junior
P AGE 8 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 13
CNE returns experience, talent in 2019
Eagles: Milford reloads after historic ‘18 run Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 2
CNE Rockets 2019 Schedule 8/31
Clark Montessori
9/6
Madeira
9/13
Batavia
9/20 Summit Country Day 9/27
Hillsboro
10/4
Blanchester
10/11
Bethel-Tate
10/18
Fayetteville
10/25
East Clinton
11/1
Williamsburg
Home
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PHOTO / PROVIDED
Clermont Northeastern finished 7-3 in 2018, good for second in the Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conferenceʼs National Division. The Rockets posted a 4-1 record in league play last season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The Clermont Northeastern Rockets football team has spent the last two seasons just on the outside of the playoff picture. In 2017, CNE finished the year 6-4 overall, about five computer points out of a playoff spot.
Last season, the team drew even closer. finishing 10th place in the final standings. The squad tallied 11.95 points in 2018, less than .15 points out of the playoffs. While head coach Jeremy Fishback would have liked to make the postseason in 2018, he was nonetheless happy with how the season
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turned out. “It was a good season,” Fishback said. “I was proud of what the boys accomplished. I wish we would have gotten an opportunity to make a run at the playoffs, but the points weren’t there.” CNE returns a lot from last season’s team. Three of the five Rockets to earn first-team all-conference honors are back in 2019, along with a second-team honoree and two honorable mentions. The returning players have looked good despite a handful of changes during the offseason. “So far, so good,” Fishback said. “We’ve moved some things around, new personnel. We’ve revamped the offense based on the personnel we have. There’s a lot of changes, but we’re coming along.” The process of getting everyone up to speed goes a lot quicker if the players are willing to learn, and Fishback believes his team
has been just that. “They show up consistently and go to work. So far, they’ve been like sponges absorbing the knowledge myself and the staff have given them,” Fishback said. “They’re on the right track.” Fishback and the Rockets are on a bit of a new path this year. The team plans on doing some different things offensively than in years past. “We’ve opened up the offense a little more,” Fishback said. “We opened some things up based on the speed we have, some of our height. We’re going to play more towards are strengths and utilize our offensive linemen a little more than we have in the past.” Fishback said the plan is for the Rockets to pull the offensive line more than in years past, allowing the blockers to do more for the runners. That’ll be a boost to the Rockets’ running attack,
which is already aided by the return of the team’s top two rushers from 2018, Dakota Hawk and Cole Joslin. Joslin is nearing the alltime career rushing yardage mark at CNE, according to Fishback. He, along with fellow returnees David Pride and Damian Bowen, are slated to have big years on the gridiron for CNE. Speaking of big, the Rockets have a new face on the roster in 2019. Skyler Schmidt, a 6-foot, 8-inch forward on the CNE basketball team, has joined the squad and is listed as a wide receiver and defensive end. While he hasn’t played varsity football for the Rockets in the past, Schmidt is no stranger to the football field. “He’s not new to football, but he’s new to this team,” Fishback said. “He’s going to be playing in a wide receiver spot, I look for him to make some plays along with Kris Jenkins. There’s quite a bit of talent, it’s going to be a matter of
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
spreading it around and who’s got the hot hand for what game?” Even with the time away from the game, Schmidt has more than held his own so far for CNE, according to Fishback. “He’s done really well,” Fishback said. “I look forward to using him more in our offense and defense both.” Schmidt will be joined on the defensive line by a trio of players with varying levels of varsity experience. Austin Pottorf, a 6-foot, 2inch senior, didn’t play for the Rockets as a junior, but he’s back on the team this year. He’ll be joined by J.T Scheppard and Max Ansteatt, the latter of whom was a second-team all-league selection in 2018. “Those two had a really good year for us last year,” Fishback said. “We’ve got
He's our backup quarterback, and we'd have no problems with Vince. We'd lose his catching, he's pretty good. He's fast, and he's 6-foot-4. You can't coach height." Defensively, Grippa said the Eagles’ defenders have made moving the ball difficult during scrimmages and practices. “I think the strength of our team will be the front six of our defense,” Grippa said. “We have a lot of experience back, and they've done really well in the scrimmages that we've had. We can't move the ball on them, so...” Grippa’s defensive coordinator is his son, Jimmy. The duo have a tough week one task ahead of them, as they are slated to host Princeton on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m. "That'll be fun," Grippa said. "We have as tough an opener as anybody in the city going against Princeton. They've got two guys going to Ohio State, another one or two going to UC.” Recruiting rankings aside, Grippa believes the Eagles can hang with the Vikings, thanks in large part to that playoff win last season. “We'll have our hands full,” Grippa said. “Fairfield had more of those big-name guys than us, but we answered the bell. We played right with them. We're excited. “ Grippa noted that he hopes his 2019 team is able to continue a trend the last two teams have. “It's a grind,” Grippa said. “One of the things I'm really proud of the last two years is that my teams have gotten better each week. We've played our best football at the end. I want that to happen again.”
Milford Eagles 2019 Football Roster #
NAME
POSITION
GRADE
#
NAME
POSITION
GRADE
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42
Max Ward Bryson Chambers Jacob Cook Dakota Frank Caleb Johns Jack Beyer Dallas Adams Aaron Roesch Chase Hodge Vince Ringland Chase Duesing Mason Clark Hunter Johnson Justin Eglian Jack Muthig Trent Hodge Grace Ertel Noah Earley Marc Ditullio Justin Bell Cameron Hemmert Payton Bauer Jack Stout Mason Roy Daniel McCoy Tahj Price Jack Kline Jordan Lewis Ray Clayton Hunter Pflanz Jaeden Cantor Jayvin Beverly Ian Worthington Mackeon Buchanon Luke Lewis Jaxon Stickle Charlie Versic Anthony Carlisle Hector Camacho Lucas Bowling Matthew Widner
DB TE, DB WR, DB DB RB, DB RB WR, DB TE WR, DB WR TE, DL QB, DB QB WR, DB WR, DB RB, DB K WR, DB RB, DB DE LB WR, DB DB RB, LB RB, DB WR DB WR WR, DB WR, DB LB DB RB, LB DE RB, LB RB, DB WR, LB DB WR LB DB
Senior Junior Junior Senior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Junior Senior Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Sophomore
43 44 45 47 48 49 50 52 53 55 56 57 58 59 60 62 64 66 69 70 71 72 73 75 75 76 77 78 79 81 83 84 88 91 92 93 95 96 97 98 99
Anthony Addison Isaac Donovan Gabe Ditullio Garrett Byram Anthony Davidson Ayden Fitzgerald James Crouch Jared Peterson Dylan Stoutenborough Nicholas Klenk Brandon Edwards Michael Lutson Trevor Ings Wesley Prather Mark Gibson John Hackler Hunter Braun Connor Brown Lucas Forrest Lucas Hardoerfer John Mickler Haidyn Oberschlake Parker McBeth Logan Bartholomew Mike Dermody Jack McKenney Benjamin Lane Hayden Harvey Clayton Kemmeter Kenneth Watkins Ibrahima Niang Landon Forrest Cory Eggemeyer Anthony Kachulkin Dustin Berger-Noland Duncan MacRae James McBeth Dylan McMasters Joey Cutting Mar'Quon Roberson Cam Zoromski
DB TE, DL TE, LB WR, DB OL, DL WR, DB OL, DL OL, DE OL, DL RB, DL OL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL OL OL OL OL, DL OL DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL QB, DB WR, DB WR, LB WR, DB DL DL LB OL OL OL DL OL, DL
Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Senior Senior Junior Junior Sophomore Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Senior Sophomore
See Ro ckets , Page 9
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E V E N P A G E S
CMYK P AGE 12 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 9
New-look Milford squad seeks leaders
Rockets: Experienced squad hoping to take next step Clermont Northeastern Rockets 2019 Football Roster
Milford Eagles 2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D P A G E S
Princeton Dunbar
9/13
Loveland*
9/20
Walnut Hills
9/27
Loveland
10/4
Anderson
10/11
Withrow
10/18
Kings
10/25
West Clermont
11/1
Turpin
Home Away *Skyline Crosstown Showdown PHOTO /PROVIDED
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
The Milford Eagles rallied from a 35-7 deficit to stun Fairfield and earn the schoolʼs first-ever playoff victory in 2018.
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Traditional Funeral & Cremation Services Pre-Planning Available 741 Center Street Milford, Ohio 45150 513-831-3172 www.evansfuneralhome.com
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Trester Auto Parts 995 Highway 28 Milford, Ohio (1 mile north of 275)
Good Luck To All Teams! PHONE: (513) 831-9141
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BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 Milford Eagles football team accomplished something no other Milford team had ever done. And they did it in spectacular fashion. Milford rallied from a 357 second-half deficit, scoring 32 straight points to stun Fairfield 39-35 and earn the school’s first-ever playoff victory. The win was the team’s ninth in the season, marking the first nine-win season for the Eagles since 1986. The team’s three losses came to playoff schools, as the Eagles fell to Colerain, Kings and Kettering Fairmont last season. “We played a tough schedule," head coach Tom Grippa said. "We answered the bell when we needed to. I think we, as a program, grew from
that experience. Being down so much and rallying, that was all the kids.” This year’s team has just as much talent as their 2018 counterparts, but there is still one thing that may be missing, according to Grippa: leadership. Grippa recounted a tale from his first game as Milford’s coach, a 42-39 win over Oak Hills in August of 2017. “We're down three with four minutes left in the game and the ball," "We huddled to go out, first play, we're at the 25-yard line. I said, 'Blake [King], let's take it down.' He said, 'I've got this, coach.' Do we have that kind of confidence?" King graduated after that 2017 season, but other Eagles have stepped up in the past. "Dustin Laudermilk did that for us many times the
last two years,” Grippa said. “I think we have a good team, but it's the intangibles and leadership qualities. Do we have that, and that has yet to be seen.” Fret not, Eagles fans. Grippa noted the reason he has yet to see that trait in this year’s team is because the team hasn’t played a game yet. That’s not the type of thing you can learn in a scrimmage, according to Grippa, and as such it makes it difficult to get a read on the Eagles until the games actually count. “We could fall back to average or we could win the league again,” Grippa said. “I don't know where we'll be in that spectrum.” Milford’s league title hopes likely ride on the arm of senior quarterback Hunter Johnson, who has had a solid offseason, according to Grippa.
“[He’s] played exceptionally well,” Grippa said. “The problem is, on offense, he and Brandon Edwards are the only two kids with any experience. There are a lot of young kids, and we're trying to figure out what they can do. We're trying to figure out the skill set.” To top it all off, Edwards is currently injured. The lack of returning options offensively has allowed other Eagles to step up, and Vince Ringland has done just that. Ringland is the team’s backup quarterback, but this season he’ll be catching the passes instead of throwing them. "He looks really good at receiver," Grippa said. "He was too good not to play. He's our backup quarterback, and we'd have no problems See Eag l es , Page 13
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Clermont Northeasternʼs Cole Joslin rushed for 950 yards as a junior in 2018. Heʼs closing in on the schoolʼs career rushing yardage record. Co nti nued fro m pag e 8
Fishback said. “We’ve got quite a bit of talent.” Talent can only take you so far, however. The Rockets are also willing to listen to the coaching staff, which is crucial in the team’s succes. “They’re a good group of respectable kids,” Fishback said. “They listen, they’re coachable, and that’s the key.” CNE did lose a handful of players from last season’s team, with the linebacking corp taking arguably the hardest hit. Linebackers Luke Rayburn and Gavin Hickey both graduated earlier this year, and younger play-
ers will be asked to step into those roles. “It’s going to take us a couple games to get that rhythm down, to get that responsibility, ” Fishback said. “I think they’ll be just fine. We’ve got a lot of speed on the edge, it’s just getting that linebacker play downhill, reading keys and responsibilities. That takes a little practice, but I think they’ll get there.” CNE has five non-league games before starting league play against Blanchester the first week of October, so they have plenty of time to work out the kinks. That will also give the team a chance to see how
things start to shake out with other schools in the National Division, as three of the six schools enter this season with new head coaches. ‘It makes it tough on your programs when you have those kinds of changes,” Fishback said. “Little changes, like tweaking the offense or defense around. When you change the whole program, that’s when you start from scratch. It takes a little time to get the consis-
# 1 3 5 6 10 12 13 15 20 21 23 25 32 39 43 44 45 51 53 58 64 65 67 68 69 72 74 75 78 81 82 84
NAME Landon Amann Keagan Braun Hunter Virers Zack Hopkins Damien Bowen Kris Jenkins Brad Mcintyre Logan Pottorf Dakota Hawk Cole Joslin David Pride Skyler Schmidt Albert Cory Carter Corey Jacob Groeber Jarod Glancy Jay Jay Stricker Daniel Lichtenberg J.J Kerns J.T Sheppard Mason Butler Wesley Wilson Hayden Mattes David Mancini Donnie Franz Steve Norton Austin Pottorf Max Anestatt Chase Holtzclaw Damion Kistler Lane Young Zack Case
tency and get everybody back on the same page.” The Rockets are one of the few teams in the state of
POSITION QB, CB RB, SS TE, DE RB, ILB QB, S WR, CB WR, CB WR, OLB RB, OLB RB, OLB WR, CB TE, DE RB, NG SE, CB G, NG K, CB LT, NG OG, DL C, DT OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL WR, CB K WR, OLB
Ohio that do not open play on Friday, August 30. CNE’s first game is one day later, on Saturday, August
GRADE Junior Junior Junior Freshman Senior Sophomore Freshman Junior Senior Senior Senior Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Junior Senior Senior Freshman Freshman Senior Freshman
31. They are slated to travel to Withrow High School to take on Clark Montessori at 7 p.m.
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CMYK P AGE 10 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 11
Miller, Warriors ready to contend in ‘19
Warriors: Goshen enters season with new coach Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 0
O D D P A G E S
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The Goshen Warriors finished 2018 6-4 overall and 3-2 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division play. Greg Miller takes over as the teamʼs head coach for the 2019 season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The Goshen Warriors open the season on Friday, August 30 against McNicholas, and for the first time in quite some time, they’ll do so with a new head coach roaming the sidelines. Greg Miller took the head coaching reins from Ryan
George, who departed the team over the summer. Miller has been on Goshen’s staff for the last five seasons, and that experience has helped him as he switches roles in 2019. “It's been a very smooth transition for myself and the program,” Miller said. “Being in the program for the past five years has helped everything.”
Evans Funeral Home John H. Evans • Charles E. Evans • Andrew W. Evans Lewis E. Frith • Mary Lu Roby Jamie Gier • Brian Wikoff • Matthew Strefelt
Traditional Funeral & Cremation Services Pre-Planning Available 741 Center Street Milford, Ohio 45150 513-831-3172 www.evansfuneralhome.com
1944 State Route 28 Goshen, Ohio 45122 513-722-3272 Fax: (513) 831-3179
Character & Excellence in Funeral Service
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Miller has had the full slate of Goshen’s preseason scrimmages and practices to see how the team is progressing, and it would appear things are going well thus far. “We've grown tremendously from day one,” Miller said. “We lost a fair amount of experience with the graduating class, but the guys filling in the roles have stepped up and are going to be ready for this Friday.” Even with the losses from last season’s team, Miller believes this year’s squad has strengths in a few key ares, notably on the defensive side of the ball. “We return 7 guys who started multiple games last season on defense and we return our quarterback (Jack Webster), several wide outs
(Clayton Jones, Jarred Re) and Hunter Slusher in the backfield,” Miller said. Hunter Slusher saw time for the Warriors latest season behind Adam Slusher, Goshen’s leading rusher in 2018. Hunter will be expected to tote more of the load for the Warriors in 2019 as the squad looks to continue a strong run of running back play over the last few seasons. “Hunter Slusher is going to take the bulk of the carries- fitting right in where Adam left off,” Miller said. “Hunter carried the ball 62 times for 6 TDs so he has good experience in the backfield. Jack Webster will also play a vital role in the rushing attack.” Last season, Goshen’s air attack lacked it’s usual effectiveness. Miller acknowl-
edged that, and hopes the team’s passing game can improve in 2019 as a handful of the team’s skill position players are back. “We are hoping to have a much better passing attack this season,” Miller said. “We expect Jarred Re, Clayton Jones and Dylan Ashcraft to step up” Hunter Slusher finished 2018 as Goshen’s leading receiver, but he only had 14 receptions for 226 yards. Adam Slusher was second on the team with just five catches for 139 yards. Re and Jones combined for three catches for 43 yards in 2018. Jack Webster led Goshen in pass attempts last season, finishing with 21 completions in 51 tries. He See Warri o rs , Page 11
Goshen Warriors 2019 Schedule 8/30
McNicholas
9/6
Hillsboro
9/13
Little Miami
9/20
Norwood
9/27
Blanchester
10/4
Clinton-Massie
10/11
Wilmington
10/18
Western Brown
10/25
Batavia
11/1
New Richmond
Home
Away
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
accounted for 217 of Goshen’s 540 passing yards last season and two of the team’s five touchdowns. Defensively, Goshen lost Michael Figgs from last season’s team. Figgs handled the punting duties for the Warriors, but more importantly, he forced three fumbles and intercepted three passes as a safety. That’s not to say the cupboard is bare defensively for the Warriors. The team returns Trevor Adams, who led the squad last season with five sacks. He also recovered two fumbles. Austin McClanahan also returns for Goshen in 2019, following a campaign in which he recorded 2.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. He also recorded an interception. That duo is slated to anchor a defense that enters 2019 as one of the Warriors’ strengths, according to Miller. “We have very high expectations for our defense,” Miller said. “We have had a very strong defense in the past and this might be our best crew yet. Adams and McClanahan are one of the best defensive end duos in Southwest Ohio and Hunter Slusher and Dylan Ashcraft are going to anchor the secondary for us.” Following the opener against McNick, Goshen hits the road for back-toback games. After that, the team starts a stretch of three straight home games, including a date with Clinton-Massie, the reigning Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division Champions. In the two seasons since the
Goshen Warriors 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11/50 13 14 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Name Dylan Ashcraft Hunter Slusher Clayton Jones Tyler Kilgore Logan Lovins Andrew Morris Dylan Dutlinger Darel Carnahan Jake Ulrey Nick Bucksath Jarred Re Elijah Woeste Chase Huff Jack Webster Angus O'donnell Joe Alvarado Matt Ernst Michael Greynolds Tre Mowry Dakota Dutlinger Aidan Bunch Rafael Farris Corey Watkins Deven Pitts Brice Brewer Elijah Calhoun Seth Anderson Tracker Newberry Steven Beckstedt
Falcons returned to the league, they have lost just one conference game: A 3331 defeat in Goshen. That success in league play has made the Falcons the team to beat in the division, as far as Miller’s concerned. However, he also noted that Clinton-Massie may not run away with
Position RB/CB RB/S WR/DB QB/CB RB/LB FB/LB LB RB/S QB/S TE/DE TE, DT WR/DB WR/CB QB RB, OLB WR/LB TE/LB WR/DB RB/S WR/CB RB/S WR/DB WR/CB WR/CB QB/S RB/LB RB/DB K WR/S
Grade Senior Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Freshman Senior Junior Senior Junior Sophomore Junior Freshman Junior Junior Sophomore Freshman Junior Sophomre Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Junior Sophomore Sophomore
things like they have in years past. “It's wide open,” Miller said. Massie has to be the preseason favorite until someone knocks them out of that spot, but I feel this is a year where anyone can take it.”
# 32/66 33 34 40 41 45 48 51 52 53 54 55 58 59 61 62 63 64 65 70 71 73 74 75 76 81 82 83
Name Austin McClanahan Ashton Harris Nathaniel Rinehart Trevor Adams Logan Harrison Marcus Payne Caleb Douglas Cory Seevers Logan Marlowe Craig McKinney Tucker O'Donnell Eric Eickenhorst AJ Kelch Michael Deaton Connor Bucksath Trey Wilson Gage Alloway Noah Bunch Brodrick Brittain Kyle Vanderhorst Austin Grundy Connor Hellenthal Sam Angel Nathan Rechtiene Jacob Embry Joey Rehitene Richard Ballou Mikey Reyes
Position OL/DE FB/LB WR/DB TE/DE FB/LB WR/S TE/LB OL/DE OL/DT OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DT OL/DT K OL/DE OL/DL OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DE WR/CB WR/CB WR/CB
Grade Senior Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Junior Freshman Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Freshman Senior
The Clermont Sun is online at www.clermontsun.com for local news, sports and advertising!
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CMYK
CMYK P AGE 10 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 11
Miller, Warriors ready to contend in ‘19
Warriors: Goshen enters season with new coach Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 0
O D D P A G E S
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The Goshen Warriors finished 2018 6-4 overall and 3-2 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division play. Greg Miller takes over as the teamʼs head coach for the 2019 season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The Goshen Warriors open the season on Friday, August 30 against McNicholas, and for the first time in quite some time, they’ll do so with a new head coach roaming the sidelines. Greg Miller took the head coaching reins from Ryan
George, who departed the team over the summer. Miller has been on Goshen’s staff for the last five seasons, and that experience has helped him as he switches roles in 2019. “It's been a very smooth transition for myself and the program,” Miller said. “Being in the program for the past five years has helped everything.”
Evans Funeral Home John H. Evans • Charles E. Evans • Andrew W. Evans Lewis E. Frith • Mary Lu Roby Jamie Gier • Brian Wikoff • Matthew Strefelt
Traditional Funeral & Cremation Services Pre-Planning Available 741 Center Street Milford, Ohio 45150 513-831-3172 www.evansfuneralhome.com
1944 State Route 28 Goshen, Ohio 45122 513-722-3272 Fax: (513) 831-3179
Character & Excellence in Funeral Service
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Miller has had the full slate of Goshen’s preseason scrimmages and practices to see how the team is progressing, and it would appear things are going well thus far. “We've grown tremendously from day one,” Miller said. “We lost a fair amount of experience with the graduating class, but the guys filling in the roles have stepped up and are going to be ready for this Friday.” Even with the losses from last season’s team, Miller believes this year’s squad has strengths in a few key ares, notably on the defensive side of the ball. “We return 7 guys who started multiple games last season on defense and we return our quarterback (Jack Webster), several wide outs
(Clayton Jones, Jarred Re) and Hunter Slusher in the backfield,” Miller said. Hunter Slusher saw time for the Warriors latest season behind Adam Slusher, Goshen’s leading rusher in 2018. Hunter will be expected to tote more of the load for the Warriors in 2019 as the squad looks to continue a strong run of running back play over the last few seasons. “Hunter Slusher is going to take the bulk of the carries- fitting right in where Adam left off,” Miller said. “Hunter carried the ball 62 times for 6 TDs so he has good experience in the backfield. Jack Webster will also play a vital role in the rushing attack.” Last season, Goshen’s air attack lacked it’s usual effectiveness. Miller acknowl-
edged that, and hopes the team’s passing game can improve in 2019 as a handful of the team’s skill position players are back. “We are hoping to have a much better passing attack this season,” Miller said. “We expect Jarred Re, Clayton Jones and Dylan Ashcraft to step up” Hunter Slusher finished 2018 as Goshen’s leading receiver, but he only had 14 receptions for 226 yards. Adam Slusher was second on the team with just five catches for 139 yards. Re and Jones combined for three catches for 43 yards in 2018. Jack Webster led Goshen in pass attempts last season, finishing with 21 completions in 51 tries. He See Warri o rs , Page 11
Goshen Warriors 2019 Schedule 8/30
McNicholas
9/6
Hillsboro
9/13
Little Miami
9/20
Norwood
9/27
Blanchester
10/4
Clinton-Massie
10/11
Wilmington
10/18
Western Brown
10/25
Batavia
11/1
New Richmond
Home
Away
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
accounted for 217 of Goshen’s 540 passing yards last season and two of the team’s five touchdowns. Defensively, Goshen lost Michael Figgs from last season’s team. Figgs handled the punting duties for the Warriors, but more importantly, he forced three fumbles and intercepted three passes as a safety. That’s not to say the cupboard is bare defensively for the Warriors. The team returns Trevor Adams, who led the squad last season with five sacks. He also recovered two fumbles. Austin McClanahan also returns for Goshen in 2019, following a campaign in which he recorded 2.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. He also recorded an interception. That duo is slated to anchor a defense that enters 2019 as one of the Warriors’ strengths, according to Miller. “We have very high expectations for our defense,” Miller said. “We have had a very strong defense in the past and this might be our best crew yet. Adams and McClanahan are one of the best defensive end duos in Southwest Ohio and Hunter Slusher and Dylan Ashcraft are going to anchor the secondary for us.” Following the opener against McNick, Goshen hits the road for back-toback games. After that, the team starts a stretch of three straight home games, including a date with Clinton-Massie, the reigning Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division Champions. In the two seasons since the
Goshen Warriors 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11/50 13 14 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Name Dylan Ashcraft Hunter Slusher Clayton Jones Tyler Kilgore Logan Lovins Andrew Morris Dylan Dutlinger Darel Carnahan Jake Ulrey Nick Bucksath Jarred Re Elijah Woeste Chase Huff Jack Webster Angus O'donnell Joe Alvarado Matt Ernst Michael Greynolds Tre Mowry Dakota Dutlinger Aidan Bunch Rafael Farris Corey Watkins Deven Pitts Brice Brewer Elijah Calhoun Seth Anderson Tracker Newberry Steven Beckstedt
Falcons returned to the league, they have lost just one conference game: A 3331 defeat in Goshen. That success in league play has made the Falcons the team to beat in the division, as far as Miller’s concerned. However, he also noted that Clinton-Massie may not run away with
Position RB/CB RB/S WR/DB QB/CB RB/LB FB/LB LB RB/S QB/S TE/DE TE, DT WR/DB WR/CB QB RB, OLB WR/LB TE/LB WR/DB RB/S WR/CB RB/S WR/DB WR/CB WR/CB QB/S RB/LB RB/DB K WR/S
Grade Senior Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Freshman Senior Junior Senior Junior Sophomore Junior Freshman Junior Junior Sophomore Freshman Junior Sophomre Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Junior Sophomore Sophomore
things like they have in years past. “It's wide open,” Miller said. Massie has to be the preseason favorite until someone knocks them out of that spot, but I feel this is a year where anyone can take it.”
# 32/66 33 34 40 41 45 48 51 52 53 54 55 58 59 61 62 63 64 65 70 71 73 74 75 76 81 82 83
Name Austin McClanahan Ashton Harris Nathaniel Rinehart Trevor Adams Logan Harrison Marcus Payne Caleb Douglas Cory Seevers Logan Marlowe Craig McKinney Tucker O'Donnell Eric Eickenhorst AJ Kelch Michael Deaton Connor Bucksath Trey Wilson Gage Alloway Noah Bunch Brodrick Brittain Kyle Vanderhorst Austin Grundy Connor Hellenthal Sam Angel Nathan Rechtiene Jacob Embry Joey Rehitene Richard Ballou Mikey Reyes
Position OL/DE FB/LB WR/DB TE/DE FB/LB WR/S TE/LB OL/DE OL/DT OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DT OL/DT K OL/DE OL/DL OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DT OL/DE WR/CB WR/CB WR/CB
Grade Senior Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Junior Freshman Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Freshman Senior
The Clermont Sun is online at www.clermontsun.com for local news, sports and advertising!
Send your Athlete of the Week nominations to gshanklin@clermontsun.com!
CMYK
CMYK P AGE 12 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 9
New-look Milford squad seeks leaders
Rockets: Experienced squad hoping to take next step Clermont Northeastern Rockets 2019 Football Roster
Milford Eagles 2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D P A G E S
Princeton Dunbar
9/13
Loveland*
9/20
Walnut Hills
9/27
Loveland
10/4
Anderson
10/11
Withrow
10/18
Kings
10/25
West Clermont
11/1
Turpin
Home Away *Skyline Crosstown Showdown PHOTO /PROVIDED
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
The Milford Eagles rallied from a 35-7 deficit to stun Fairfield and earn the schoolʼs first-ever playoff victory in 2018.
Evans Funeral Home John H. Evans • Charles E. Evans • Andrew W. Evans Lewis E. Frith • Mary Lu Roby Jamie Gier • Brian Wikoff • Matthew Strefelt
Traditional Funeral & Cremation Services Pre-Planning Available 741 Center Street Milford, Ohio 45150 513-831-3172 www.evansfuneralhome.com
1944 State Route 28 Goshen, Ohio 45122 513-722-3272 Fax: (513) 831-3179
Character & Excellence in Funeral Service
Trester Auto Parts 995 Highway 28 Milford, Ohio (1 mile north of 275)
Good Luck To All Teams! PHONE: (513) 831-9141
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BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 Milford Eagles football team accomplished something no other Milford team had ever done. And they did it in spectacular fashion. Milford rallied from a 357 second-half deficit, scoring 32 straight points to stun Fairfield 39-35 and earn the school’s first-ever playoff victory. The win was the team’s ninth in the season, marking the first nine-win season for the Eagles since 1986. The team’s three losses came to playoff schools, as the Eagles fell to Colerain, Kings and Kettering Fairmont last season. “We played a tough schedule," head coach Tom Grippa said. "We answered the bell when we needed to. I think we, as a program, grew from
that experience. Being down so much and rallying, that was all the kids.” This year’s team has just as much talent as their 2018 counterparts, but there is still one thing that may be missing, according to Grippa: leadership. Grippa recounted a tale from his first game as Milford’s coach, a 42-39 win over Oak Hills in August of 2017. “We're down three with four minutes left in the game and the ball," "We huddled to go out, first play, we're at the 25-yard line. I said, 'Blake [King], let's take it down.' He said, 'I've got this, coach.' Do we have that kind of confidence?" King graduated after that 2017 season, but other Eagles have stepped up in the past. "Dustin Laudermilk did that for us many times the
last two years,” Grippa said. “I think we have a good team, but it's the intangibles and leadership qualities. Do we have that, and that has yet to be seen.” Fret not, Eagles fans. Grippa noted the reason he has yet to see that trait in this year’s team is because the team hasn’t played a game yet. That’s not the type of thing you can learn in a scrimmage, according to Grippa, and as such it makes it difficult to get a read on the Eagles until the games actually count. “We could fall back to average or we could win the league again,” Grippa said. “I don't know where we'll be in that spectrum.” Milford’s league title hopes likely ride on the arm of senior quarterback Hunter Johnson, who has had a solid offseason, according to Grippa.
“[He’s] played exceptionally well,” Grippa said. “The problem is, on offense, he and Brandon Edwards are the only two kids with any experience. There are a lot of young kids, and we're trying to figure out what they can do. We're trying to figure out the skill set.” To top it all off, Edwards is currently injured. The lack of returning options offensively has allowed other Eagles to step up, and Vince Ringland has done just that. Ringland is the team’s backup quarterback, but this season he’ll be catching the passes instead of throwing them. "He looks really good at receiver," Grippa said. "He was too good not to play. He's our backup quarterback, and we'd have no problems See Eag l es , Page 13
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Clermont Northeasternʼs Cole Joslin rushed for 950 yards as a junior in 2018. Heʼs closing in on the schoolʼs career rushing yardage record. Co nti nued fro m pag e 8
Fishback said. “We’ve got quite a bit of talent.” Talent can only take you so far, however. The Rockets are also willing to listen to the coaching staff, which is crucial in the team’s succes. “They’re a good group of respectable kids,” Fishback said. “They listen, they’re coachable, and that’s the key.” CNE did lose a handful of players from last season’s team, with the linebacking corp taking arguably the hardest hit. Linebackers Luke Rayburn and Gavin Hickey both graduated earlier this year, and younger play-
ers will be asked to step into those roles. “It’s going to take us a couple games to get that rhythm down, to get that responsibility, ” Fishback said. “I think they’ll be just fine. We’ve got a lot of speed on the edge, it’s just getting that linebacker play downhill, reading keys and responsibilities. That takes a little practice, but I think they’ll get there.” CNE has five non-league games before starting league play against Blanchester the first week of October, so they have plenty of time to work out the kinks. That will also give the team a chance to see how
things start to shake out with other schools in the National Division, as three of the six schools enter this season with new head coaches. ‘It makes it tough on your programs when you have those kinds of changes,” Fishback said. “Little changes, like tweaking the offense or defense around. When you change the whole program, that’s when you start from scratch. It takes a little time to get the consis-
# 1 3 5 6 10 12 13 15 20 21 23 25 32 39 43 44 45 51 53 58 64 65 67 68 69 72 74 75 78 81 82 84
NAME Landon Amann Keagan Braun Hunter Virers Zack Hopkins Damien Bowen Kris Jenkins Brad Mcintyre Logan Pottorf Dakota Hawk Cole Joslin David Pride Skyler Schmidt Albert Cory Carter Corey Jacob Groeber Jarod Glancy Jay Jay Stricker Daniel Lichtenberg J.J Kerns J.T Sheppard Mason Butler Wesley Wilson Hayden Mattes David Mancini Donnie Franz Steve Norton Austin Pottorf Max Anestatt Chase Holtzclaw Damion Kistler Lane Young Zack Case
tency and get everybody back on the same page.” The Rockets are one of the few teams in the state of
POSITION QB, CB RB, SS TE, DE RB, ILB QB, S WR, CB WR, CB WR, OLB RB, OLB RB, OLB WR, CB TE, DE RB, NG SE, CB G, NG K, CB LT, NG OG, DL C, DT OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL WR, CB K WR, OLB
Ohio that do not open play on Friday, August 30. CNE’s first game is one day later, on Saturday, August
GRADE Junior Junior Junior Freshman Senior Sophomore Freshman Junior Senior Senior Senior Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Junior Senior Senior Freshman Freshman Senior Freshman
31. They are slated to travel to Withrow High School to take on Clark Montessori at 7 p.m.
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CMYK
CMYK P AGE 8 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 13
CNE returns experience, talent in 2019
Eagles: Milford reloads after historic ‘18 run Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 2
CNE Rockets 2019 Schedule 8/31
Clark Montessori
9/6
Madeira
9/13
Batavia
9/20 Summit Country Day 9/27
Hillsboro
10/4
Blanchester
10/11
Bethel-Tate
10/18
Fayetteville
10/25
East Clinton
11/1
Williamsburg
Home
Away
PHOTO / PROVIDED
Clermont Northeastern finished 7-3 in 2018, good for second in the Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conferenceʼs National Division. The Rockets posted a 4-1 record in league play last season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The Clermont Northeastern Rockets football team has spent the last two seasons just on the outside of the playoff picture. In 2017, CNE finished the year 6-4 overall, about five computer points out of a playoff spot.
Last season, the team drew even closer. finishing 10th place in the final standings. The squad tallied 11.95 points in 2018, less than .15 points out of the playoffs. While head coach Jeremy Fishback would have liked to make the postseason in 2018, he was nonetheless happy with how the season
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turned out. “It was a good season,” Fishback said. “I was proud of what the boys accomplished. I wish we would have gotten an opportunity to make a run at the playoffs, but the points weren’t there.” CNE returns a lot from last season’s team. Three of the five Rockets to earn first-team all-conference honors are back in 2019, along with a second-team honoree and two honorable mentions. The returning players have looked good despite a handful of changes during the offseason. “So far, so good,” Fishback said. “We’ve moved some things around, new personnel. We’ve revamped the offense based on the personnel we have. There’s a lot of changes, but we’re coming along.” The process of getting everyone up to speed goes a lot quicker if the players are willing to learn, and Fishback believes his team
has been just that. “They show up consistently and go to work. So far, they’ve been like sponges absorbing the knowledge myself and the staff have given them,” Fishback said. “They’re on the right track.” Fishback and the Rockets are on a bit of a new path this year. The team plans on doing some different things offensively than in years past. “We’ve opened up the offense a little more,” Fishback said. “We opened some things up based on the speed we have, some of our height. We’re going to play more towards are strengths and utilize our offensive linemen a little more than we have in the past.” Fishback said the plan is for the Rockets to pull the offensive line more than in years past, allowing the blockers to do more for the runners. That’ll be a boost to the Rockets’ running attack,
which is already aided by the return of the team’s top two rushers from 2018, Dakota Hawk and Cole Joslin. Joslin is nearing the alltime career rushing yardage mark at CNE, according to Fishback. He, along with fellow returnees David Pride and Damian Bowen, are slated to have big years on the gridiron for CNE. Speaking of big, the Rockets have a new face on the roster in 2019. Skyler Schmidt, a 6-foot, 8-inch forward on the CNE basketball team, has joined the squad and is listed as a wide receiver and defensive end. While he hasn’t played varsity football for the Rockets in the past, Schmidt is no stranger to the football field. “He’s not new to football, but he’s new to this team,” Fishback said. “He’s going to be playing in a wide receiver spot, I look for him to make some plays along with Kris Jenkins. There’s quite a bit of talent, it’s going to be a matter of
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
spreading it around and who’s got the hot hand for what game?” Even with the time away from the game, Schmidt has more than held his own so far for CNE, according to Fishback. “He’s done really well,” Fishback said. “I look forward to using him more in our offense and defense both.” Schmidt will be joined on the defensive line by a trio of players with varying levels of varsity experience. Austin Pottorf, a 6-foot, 2inch senior, didn’t play for the Rockets as a junior, but he’s back on the team this year. He’ll be joined by J.T Scheppard and Max Ansteatt, the latter of whom was a second-team all-league selection in 2018. “Those two had a really good year for us last year,” Fishback said. “We’ve got
He's our backup quarterback, and we'd have no problems with Vince. We'd lose his catching, he's pretty good. He's fast, and he's 6-foot-4. You can't coach height." Defensively, Grippa said the Eagles’ defenders have made moving the ball difficult during scrimmages and practices. “I think the strength of our team will be the front six of our defense,” Grippa said. “We have a lot of experience back, and they've done really well in the scrimmages that we've had. We can't move the ball on them, so...” Grippa’s defensive coordinator is his son, Jimmy. The duo have a tough week one task ahead of them, as they are slated to host Princeton on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m. "That'll be fun," Grippa said. "We have as tough an opener as anybody in the city going against Princeton. They've got two guys going to Ohio State, another one or two going to UC.” Recruiting rankings aside, Grippa believes the Eagles can hang with the Vikings, thanks in large part to that playoff win last season. “We'll have our hands full,” Grippa said. “Fairfield had more of those big-name guys than us, but we answered the bell. We played right with them. We're excited. “ Grippa noted that he hopes his 2019 team is able to continue a trend the last two teams have. “It's a grind,” Grippa said. “One of the things I'm really proud of the last two years is that my teams have gotten better each week. We've played our best football at the end. I want that to happen again.”
Milford Eagles 2019 Football Roster #
NAME
POSITION
GRADE
#
NAME
POSITION
GRADE
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42
Max Ward Bryson Chambers Jacob Cook Dakota Frank Caleb Johns Jack Beyer Dallas Adams Aaron Roesch Chase Hodge Vince Ringland Chase Duesing Mason Clark Hunter Johnson Justin Eglian Jack Muthig Trent Hodge Grace Ertel Noah Earley Marc Ditullio Justin Bell Cameron Hemmert Payton Bauer Jack Stout Mason Roy Daniel McCoy Tahj Price Jack Kline Jordan Lewis Ray Clayton Hunter Pflanz Jaeden Cantor Jayvin Beverly Ian Worthington Mackeon Buchanon Luke Lewis Jaxon Stickle Charlie Versic Anthony Carlisle Hector Camacho Lucas Bowling Matthew Widner
DB TE, DB WR, DB DB RB, DB RB WR, DB TE WR, DB WR TE, DL QB, DB QB WR, DB WR, DB RB, DB K WR, DB RB, DB DE LB WR, DB DB RB, LB RB, DB WR DB WR WR, DB WR, DB LB DB RB, LB DE RB, LB RB, DB WR, LB DB WR LB DB
Senior Junior Junior Senior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Junior Senior Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Junior Junior Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Sophomore
43 44 45 47 48 49 50 52 53 55 56 57 58 59 60 62 64 66 69 70 71 72 73 75 75 76 77 78 79 81 83 84 88 91 92 93 95 96 97 98 99
Anthony Addison Isaac Donovan Gabe Ditullio Garrett Byram Anthony Davidson Ayden Fitzgerald James Crouch Jared Peterson Dylan Stoutenborough Nicholas Klenk Brandon Edwards Michael Lutson Trevor Ings Wesley Prather Mark Gibson John Hackler Hunter Braun Connor Brown Lucas Forrest Lucas Hardoerfer John Mickler Haidyn Oberschlake Parker McBeth Logan Bartholomew Mike Dermody Jack McKenney Benjamin Lane Hayden Harvey Clayton Kemmeter Kenneth Watkins Ibrahima Niang Landon Forrest Cory Eggemeyer Anthony Kachulkin Dustin Berger-Noland Duncan MacRae James McBeth Dylan McMasters Joey Cutting Mar'Quon Roberson Cam Zoromski
DB TE, DL TE, LB WR, DB OL, DL WR, DB OL, DL OL, DE OL, DL RB, DL OL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL OL OL OL OL, DL OL DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL QB, DB WR, DB WR, LB WR, DB DL DL LB OL OL OL DL OL, DL
Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Senior Senior Junior Junior Sophomore Junior Senior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Senior Sophomore
See Ro ckets , Page 9
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E V E N P A G E S
CMYK P AGE 14 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 7
NR hopes to return to postseason in ‘19
Tigers: High-powered offense returns several players Bethel-Tate Tigers 2019 Football Roster
O D D P A G E S
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The New Richmond Lions finished 2018 7-3 overall, but a late-season loss to Western Brown kept the team out of the playoffs.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The New Richmond Lions’ football team enters a new era of sorts in 2019. For the first time in six
177 West Main Street Amelia, OH 45102 513-753-6130
seasons, the squad will be without an Anderson on the roster following the graduation of Josh Anderson this may. Anderson and his older brother Tyler were main-
200 Western Avenue New Richmond, OH 45157 513-553-4132
315 Plane Street Bethel, OH 45106 513-734-2228
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stays on the sidelines for the team over the last halfdozen years. Last season, Anderson led the Lions to a 7-3 record, but the team missed the postseason. That results was not what the team was looking for, according to head coach Patrick Burke. “We didn't really feel like we lived up and played to our standards that we set for ourself,” Burke said. “It wasn't a bad year, but we had the goals of making the playoffs and we came up short.” This year’s team has been using last year’s results as fuel as they prepare for the season. “Our kids have been hungry and talking about being the gold standard and doing it better than we've ever done it before,” Burke said. “We're excited for the season.”
With the departure of Anderson, the Lions lose a player who set 32 offensive records during his four-year career. Replacing a player of that caliber is difficult, but the Lions have plenty of returning talent on the field. “We bring back a lot,” Burke said. “Even the ones that weren't true starters all had varsity experience.” One position group in particular is expected to be stronger this season: the wide receivers. “The guys that were sophomores and freshman last year are now juniors and sophomores, and I think we'll see more production out of our receivers,” Burke said. “I think that was one of our weak spots last year, and we had to rely so heavily on Josh's legs. I think this year you're going to see an offense that is more balanced, which opens up our
playbook a little more and allows more kids to get the ball. I think we'll be more experienced and battle tested this year.” Luke Lytle saw some time in the at quarterback for New Richmond last season, and he beat out sophomore Bo Snider for the starting job this season. Both quarterbacks had solid showings, according to Burke, and Snider is likely to make an impact defensively and as one of the team’s wide receivers this season. “He's a good athlete, and he's not somebody that we can keep off the field,” Burke said. Defensively, the team’s linebackers are slated to be one of the team’s strengths this season, according to Burke. See Lions, Page 15
New Richmond Lions 2019 Schedule 8/30
Indian Hill
9/6
Bethel-Tate
9/13
Monroe
9/20
Talawanda
9/27
Norwood
10/4
Western Brown
10/11
Batavia
10/18
Wilmington
10/25
Clinton-Massie
11/1
Goshen
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PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Bethel-Tate senior quarterback Alex Manz finished last season with 12 touchdown passes and over 2,000 passing yards. Continued from page 6
kinds of guys. I think Coach [Tom Donahue] does a great job with the program there, he really enjoys it when we’re able to bring his wrestlers in for wrestling season already in shape.” Manz has weapons to work with, as Bethel-Tate returns a pair of talented receivers in sophomore Gauge Dunn and senior Dylan Poff. Poff and Manz are members of a senior group that has special meaning to Essig. “This is the first group to come through our program for what we’ve been doing,” Essig said. “We’ve been working hard with Alex
since he was a freshman to get him to this point. He’s gotten to see two pretty good guys go ahead of him with Wheeler his freshman year and we were lucky enough to have Becker come back his sophomore year.” Manz finished last season with 30 interceptions, incluiding four in th team’s opener at Waynesville. “The first game was kind of rough,” Essig said. “With what we do, you’re going to throw some interceptions, but at the same time, you’ve got to make smart decisions with the football. We’ve worked on that, he spent some time in the offseason and went and got some more
training, and he looks great this year.” He’ll look to lead the Tigers to victory in a league that is dealing with a few changes up and down the standings. “Our side of the league is going to be interesting,” Essig said. “There’s some coaching changes, and some new offenses and some new defenses that are going to be different from what we’ve normally seen out of some of our teams. With the experience we have coming back, I think we’ll be able to compete with anyone.” Bethel-Tate’s opener against Bellbrook at home on Friday, August 30 is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
# 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 28 30 32 33 50 51 54 55 57 58 60 62 63 64 65 69 72 75 76 77 80 99
NAME Alex Manz Nick Owens Blake Stiles Ethan Carter Mikey Molloy Logan Owens Aaron Sandker Connor Glenn Austin Brookenthal Gauge Dunn Peyton Herzner Dalton Saylor Chris Long Jaycob Storer Trent Grigsby Colby Fancher Hank Williams Seth Vining Kyle Smith Dylan Poff Dylan Stern Wyatt Burton Ashton Wolfe Cole Grigsby Norman Darnell Jr Korbin Dearing Patrick Kilgore Luke Frondorf Owen Mattes Caleb Lanigan Christian Jobe Jacob Hatfield Ethan Molloy Kyler Abrams Dillyn Williams Jayce Glenn Hunter Darnell Noah Iker Windell Ward Gavin Smith Nate Ball Joey Black Eli Ryan
POSITION QB, DB WR, CB WR, DB WR, DB RB, LB RB, LB WR, DB WR, DB WR, DE WR, DB RB, DB RB, DB WR, DB WR, CB WR, DB WR, DB RB, LB QB, DB WR, DE WR, LB RB, DL WR, DB QB, DB RB, LB RB, LB OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL
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Bethel-Tate working to rebound in 2019
Lions: New Richmond seeking playoff spot Continued from page 14
PHOTO /PROVIDED
The Bethel-Tate Tigers finished 4-6 overall, 3-2 in the Southern Buckeye Academic and Athletic Conference’s National Division in 2018.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Coming off a 2017 campaign that saw the BethelTate Tigers post a perfect 10-0 record, it would have
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been logical for fan expectations to be sky-high heading into 2018. However, the Tiger team that took the field last season looked little like their 2017 counterparts, as the
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team finished the year 4-6 overall and 3-2 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play. The disparity between the two teams was in large part due to graduation. Between 2017 and 2018, the Tigers graduated 17 players, including quarterback Seth Becker, wide receiver Chris Wheeler and a host of other crucial players. As such, the Tigers had several holes to fill in 2018, and the varsity experience gained by those players will be crucial to the team’s plans in 2019, according to head coach Jeff Essig. “We relied on them, a lot of freshman and sophomores at the time to lead our team and help those seniors last year,” Essig said. “It was a difficult season, especially after you come off a great one like that in 2017,
but we got a lot of experience with our young guys, so we’re excited about this season.” That experience hopefully will soothe some of the Tigers’ first-game jitters as they prepare to face Bellbrook at home on Friday, August 30. “They’ll have butterflies, but every player that’s going to start for us on offense has started at least six or more varsity games already,” Essig said. “Offensively, we only lost a running back and a left tackle to graduation. On defense, we lost Gabe Kilgore, our all-state defensive tackle, so that’s one to fill.” Bethel-Tate returns most of an offense that averaged just over 26 points per game last season. The Tigers were led by Alex Manz, who finished third in the league last season with 2,0781 passing
yards. His 12 touchdowns were fifth in the league, and Essig says the team plans on chucking the ball around the field again in 2019. “That’s what we like to do,” Essig said. “Our kids seem to enjoy it, and at a small school where we share a lot of athletes, that’s kind of our way of getting the athletes to come out. We’ve gotten some basketball guys again, and we’ve got some more wrestlers.” The Tiger football and wrestling programs have had a symbiotic relationship for the past few seasons, according to Essig. “We really like our wrestlers, they’re a tough group,” Essig said. “We’ve always done a great job with our wrestling program at Bethel, I like getting those See Tigers, Page 7
Bethel-Tate Tigers 2019 Schedule 8/30
Bellbrook
9/6
New Richmond
9/13
Scott (KY)
9/20
Batavia
9/27
CHCA
10/4
East Clinton
10/11
CNE
10/18
Blanchester
10/25
Williamsburg
11/1
“Our linebacking corp is probably one of our strongest units,” Burke said. “[Mitchell] Williamson has had a great career for us, he'll be at MIKE linebacker. We have Gage Shepherd and Avery Skaggs back there. All of them have had tremendous careers so far and have played well for us, we're excited about that.” In the secondary, Jack McDonough, Cody Feldkamp and Jacob Crawford will be three of the team’s defensive backs. “Those guys have all had varsity time for us and played big games," Burke said. "We're looking for our defense to be pretty solid. We've got some younger guys up front on our defensive line, anchored by Jason Ackerman. He's been tremendous for us." Overall, Burke said the team’s defense is solid and progressing well. They’ll need to continue to progress if the Lions hope to contend for a Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference title, which will likely run through ClintonMassie, according to Burke. “Until they prove otherwise, that's who the team in our league is to beat, and rightfully so,” Burke said. “I think Goshen is the only one to beat them since they joined the league.” The league is strong from top to bottom, according to Burke. “I think our league continues to get stronger," Burke said. "It's set itself up to be a premier league in southwest Ohio." New Richmond begins the 2019 season with a home game against Indian Hill on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m.
New Richmond Lions 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 36 37 39 40
Name Matthew Duty Luke Lytle Tyler Sininger Chad Tracy Kadin Pollard Austin Sharp Jack McDonough Jacob Farrell Trane Light Cody Feldkamp Jack Moore Jacob Crawford Damien Daugherty Austin Suttle Isaiah Bowman AJ Metzger Tanner Skaggs Christian Orse Bo Snider Parker Hammons Laurence Smith Mitchell Williamson Brady Payne Randy Hammons Landen Patton Jacob Duty Zane Naegele Jayden Seal Matthew Abner Andrew Royalty Avery Skaggs Joshua Tremper Chuck Miller Trent Dunaway Owen Wiebell Nathaniel Daniels Cohen Schaefer
Position RB/LB QB/DB WR/DB RB/WR/DB WR/DB WR/SAF DB/WR WR/SAF WR/DB/K WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB QB/DB WR/DB WR/DE QB/DB WR/SAF RB/LB RB/LB QB/LB WR/SAF WR/LB RB/LB WR/SAF WR/DB RB/DL TE/DL TE/LB WR/SAF WR/LB WR/DB OL/DL WR/LB WR/DB
Grade
#
Freshman Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Senior Senior Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Freshman Senior Sophomore Sophomore Freshman Senior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Senior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman
41 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85
Name Gabe Shepherd Elijah Brazeal Elijah Burkholder Tyler Noble Andrew Washburn Brayden Bayless Logan Young Seth Fischesser Jayden Naegele Wyatt Thompson Ethan Boyer Logan Waters Cody Boshears Maverick Ellington Zach Fredricks Jack Thompson Dallas Duncan Sean Miller Tommy Troy Cole Deavers Corydon Ward Luke Abbott William Foster Brian Strunk Mark Carroll Brandon Cole Steven Curless Chris McClanahan Matt Isbell Jason Ackerman Austin Elam Ian Zimmer Kaden Iker Andrew Hawkins Jacob McCulley Lucas Jones Hunter Studor
Position
Grade
RB/LB OL/DL OL/DL WR/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/LB OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB OL/DL WR/DB
Junior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Sophomore Senior Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Senior Sophomore Junior Senior Freshman Freshman Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Freshman
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CMYK P AGE 16 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 5
Defense key for West Clermont in 2019
Bulldogs: Young team ready for 2019 season Continued from page 4
West Clermont Wolves
2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D P A G E S
Hamilton Winton Woods
9/13
Lebanon
9/20
Turpin*
9/27
Walnut Hills
10/4
Loveland
10/11
Anderson
10/18
Withrow
10/25
Milford
11/1
Kings
Home Away *Skyline Crosstown Showdown PHOTO /PROVIDED
The West Clermont Wolves graduated 32 seniors off a 2018 squad that finished the season 4-6 overall, 3-4 in Eastern Cincinnati Conference play. The Wolves defeated Hamilton, Walnut Hills, Loveland and Withrow last season.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2019 season marks the third year of existence for the West Clermont Wolves’ football program, and this year’s team looks
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drastically different than either of the last two. Last season, the Wolves finished the year 4-6 overall, 3-4 in the Eastern Cincinnati Conference. Head coach Nick Ayers said the team’s record was not
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where they had hoped it would be, and he credited that to the team not winning games he felt they should have. “We were a little bit disappointed in our win-loss record,” Ayers said. “We were there to win some games, we lost three games by a total of nine points. In the end, we didn’t coach well enough to win those games, we didn’t make plays to win those games. Hopefully, we’ve learned from it.” One year later, the Wolves will see what lessons they learned from 2018, and they’ll do so with new faces all over the gridiron. “We graduated 32 seniors,” Ayers said. “We’re a little bit inexperienced. We’re anxious to get that experience this week.” All that change in a short amount of time can make things difficult for football
programs, and while Ayers did acknowledge the difficulties, he noted the players and their attitudes have made it easier. “It’s a challenge, but it’s been a fun challenge,” Ayers said. “This group has worked tremendously hard this offseason and done amazing things. We’re hoping that the work translates over to wins, because everyone works hard. Our competition is pretty tough.” West Clermont lost quarterback Hunter Eads, running back Ryan Cann and Chayse Gambrell, among others. This season, the team has a new face under center: Dante Turner Jr. “We’re going to center the offense around him and make him a dual threat to run and throw,” Ayers said. “We have some really good receivers in Tyler Sloane and Kyle Walker. We’ve got some really good running
backs in our rotation.” Ayers also noted one of the team’s priorities offensively is to play mistakefree football. The team is also changing up the tempo this season offensively. “We’re looking to make it a little more dynamic,” Ayers said. “We’re not going to huddle. The tempo of the game will be dictated by us. We won’t go really slow, we won’t go really fast. We’ll change it up at different times, and we hope that gives us an advantage and a bit of diversity in the offense will help tremendously.” On the other side of the ball, Ayers believes the team’s defense will once again be a strength in 2019, thanks in large part to defensive coordinator Donnie Wilson “Our defense is always going to be good with [Wilson] running the
Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
defense for you,” Ayers said. “The kids that are there are a little bit smaller than last year, but I think we have more speed on that side of the ball. They run to the football really hard, they tackle well. They’ve done really well in our scrimmages. That’s one thing we do well, we always have good defense.” West Clermont held teams under 20 points in six games last season. Even with the large number of graduates in 2019, the Wolves return plenty of defensive talent. The team also has a pair of transfers on the defensive side of the ball in 2019. Madicke Jobe, a defensive lineman, joins the team from Wisconsin, while junior defensive back Payton Bryant joins the team from Moeller this seaSee Wolves, Page 17
playing both ways this season. He’s part of Batavia’s talented sophomore class. “He's going to be good on both sides of the ball," "Offensive line and defensive line. The sophomores have some talent, there's no doubt about it. Now they have to show it on the varsity level and be more consistent at it." Upperclassmen like Dan Hellman, Alex Jones and Luke Scaggs are slated to take on roles in the backfield for Batavia this season, as the squad looks to replace Griffin. “[He] was our big-play guy,” Donaldson said. “This year, we're just going to have to rely on running back by committee and hit them with different sets. We've got a couple tricks up our sleeve, that's for sure.” Moell finished last season with well over 100 tackles, far and away tops on the team. Without his presence in the middle of Batavia’s defense, Donaldson noted the Bulldogs are going to have to use some of their new-found speed. “We're just faster overall," Donaldson said. "That should make up for a lot of ills. We don't have [Moell] in there, a monster in the middle, but we definitely have a lot of speed that flies around.” Ideally, Donaldson and the Bulldogs would have their eyes on making the postseason, and Donaldson believes the team can make the playoffs in 2019, despite the team’s youth. “We're so young," Donaldson said. "I truly believe, yes, if everything falls just right, but how often does that happen? It depends on all the other teams also, what they lost. I think we should be about the same, but I tell the kids, 'We're more than a two-man team. We're 22.' I think we'll be alright.”
Batavia Bulldogs 2019 Football Roster
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Batavia’s Drew Mentzel rolls out of the pocket in a scrimmage against Hillsboro on August 23, 2019.
One of the more notable developments during Batavia’s offseason came on the field, literally. The school installed a turf field, which held a soft opening on Friday, August 23 for a scrimmage against Wilmington. The full-blown event is scheduled for the teams’ regular-season opener on Friday, August 30 against Williamsburg. “We're excited to open that up and play our games on
there," Donaldson said. "We were the only school in our side of the conference that didn't have a turf field. We're keeping up with the Jones' now, we've got our turf.” Batavia’s turf will get a workout this season, as the football team is slated to play six games at home. The Bulldogs’ week two contest against Gamble Montessori has been moved back to Batavia due to construction on the new Stargell Stadium.
# 1 3 4 5 7 8 9 11 13 14 16 18 21 22 26 30 31 32 36 43 45 48 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 62 64 70 73 77 78 80 94
NAME Zach Duncan Max Applegate Blake Casey Drew Mentzel Daniel Hellman Alex Jones Kyler Myers Kellen Epps Luke Scaggs Luke Thompson Skylar Haas James Bethel Mason Marx Connor Harris Will Moorehead Max Stewart Austin McCarthy Gary Graves Dez Wallace Blake Martin Terry Henize Mikey Vance Keith Williams Christian Walters Bryce Jones Nathan DeFrank CJ Okoronta Will Green Josh Manz Isaac Hattar Kaydem Selm Zach Brown Cullen Watson Nehemiah Squire Jr. Christian Decker Cory Wright Cannan Sheets Alex Byrd Jackson Byrd
POSITION WR, S QB, DB FB, ILB QB, DB RB, DB RB, DB WR, DB TE, OLB RB, CB WR, DB DB WR, DB HB, DB WR, DB HB, DB HB, OLB RB, LB FB, OLB HB, CB RB, LB TE, LB TE, DL OG, DL OL, DL OL, DL C, DL OL, DL OL, LB OT, DL C, DT OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OT, DL OL, DL OL, NG OL, DE TE, LB K, DB
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CMYK P AGE 4 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 17
Bulldogs looking to build on six-win season
Wolves: New faces in new places for West Clermont Continued from page 16
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Batavia Bulldogs started the 2018 campaign 5-0 in non-league play before losing all but one of their five conference games.
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BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 Batavia Bulldogs were, as head coach Scott Donaldson put it, so close. Batavia finished last season 6-4 overall, 1-4 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference American Division play. With two games left in the season, Batavia needed a win to clinch a spot in the postseason. The team’s first chance came at home against Goshen, where a missed extra point resulted in a 21-20 loss. One week later, a 29-14 defeat at the hands of the Western Brown Broncos ended the team’s season. “If we convert there, we're in the playoffs,” Donaldson said. “If we beat Western Brown, we're in the playoffs.”
This year’s Batavia team looks a lot different. The squad lost 16 seniors last year, including running back Jason Griffin and quarterback/linebacker Kaleb Moell. “That’s a ton to replace,” Donaldson said. “We have a much, much smaller team this year, numbers-wise. We're going to have to rely on our speed.” Even with the reshaping of the Batavia roster, the returning players offer experience in Batavia’s system. “We're another year into the system, so everybody's a little smarter,” Donaldson said. “We can kind of change things up as far as offensively and defensively, it's a little smoother. I don't think we'll have to think as much, we can just react.” The players that due return for the Bulldogs are going to have to take on
expanded roles in 2019. For some, that includes time on both sides of the ball. “We're going to have to have a lot of two-way players this year, there's no way around it,” Donaldson said. “We were kind of blessed last year, no one on the offensive line had to play defense. They were rested all the way through the game. I think the juniors that are there and the sophomores are ready to step up.” One such sophomore is Max Applegate, who is listed on the team’s roster as a quarterback and defensive back. Kellen Epps, a sophomore tight end/linebacker, and Max Stewart (halfback/linebacker) are also slated to play key roles for the team at various skill positions. See Bulldogs, Page 5
Batavia Bulldogs 2019 Schedule 8/30
Williamsburg
9/6 Gamble Montessori 9/13
CNE
9/20
Bethel-Tate
9/27
Fayetteville
10/4
Wilmington
10/11
New Richmond
10/18
Clinton-Massie
10/25
Goshen
11/1
Western Brown
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son. Those two athletes join guys like Luke Mentzel, Trevor Click and Howie Bingham on the defensive side of the ball, along with corner Devon Boykin. That defensive unit has several tough tasks at hand this season, starting with a week two game against Winton Woods. However, Ayers and the Wolves aren’t looking ahead to anyone this season. “We have to go 1-0 every week,” Ayers said. “Each week, take it week by week. We can’t look past that. We’re not experienced enough. We’ve taken that mentality to our staff. We want to be 1-0 in the first scrimmage, 1-0 in the second. We want to keep that mentality.” West Clermont opens the season at home on Friday, August 30 against Hamilton. The team’s week four game at Turpin is part of the 2019 Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown, and it opens the final season of league play in the eightteam version of the ECC. Lebanon, Winton Woods and Little Miami are scheduled to join the league in 2020, while Withrow is slated to depart for the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference.
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West Clermont Wolves 2019 Football Roster # 1 2 3 3 4 4 5 6 7 7 8 8 9 9 10 10 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 15 16 17 18 19 19 20 21 22 22 23 24 24 25 25 26 27 27 28 28 29 29 30 31 32 33
Name Chris Kennedy Kaden Samson Stoney Hamilton Evan Seebohm Austin Kresser Adriel Orona Tyler Slone Peyton Bryant Kyle Seebohm Cody Sunday Donte Turner Jr Nathan Taylor Will Turner Alex Henriques Ryan Brown Malcolm Peterson Dauvieon Williams Nolan Lucas Tommy Jetter Kyle Walker Jake Ransbottom Hayden Payer Gage Bullock Jackson Miller Xander Kraemer Austin Fultz Justin Hicks Bryan Hertel Cameron Mahaffey Zach Lacy Devon Price Josh Hogan Landen Earley Tyler Taktak Mason Steinker Dylan Wise Alex Howe Caleb Stepp Zach Moats Noah Smith Brandon Holder Devon Boykin Preston Meier Kacey Berryhill Nate Goins Jacob Towner Marcus Johnson Mateo Coldiron Madicke Jobe
Position DB RB DB C RB RB/C WR/DB DB DL TE/LB QB QB DB S RB C WR QB WR WR/K RB C OLB C WR ILB LB/TE DB LB DB RB/LB RB RB/LB DL QB/DB RB/DB TE WR/LB RB DB INJ DB LB K LB DL RB ILB DL
Grade Junior Sophomore Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Junior Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Freshman Senior Freshman Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Senior Sophomore Sophomore Senior
# 34 35 36 39 42 44 46 50 51 51 52 52 53 54 54 55 55 56 56 57 59 60 61 62 64 64 70 71 72 73 73 74 74 75 76 77 77 78 79 80 80 81 82 85 88 92 93 98 99
Name Nick Abdelmassiah Nate Cox Trenton Pinnick Austin Duckwall Shayne Clephane Luke Mentzel Trevor Click Casey Wheeler David Utley Don Souders Matthew Anderkin Kanen Messer Memphis Meyer Howard Bingham John Michael Thompson Landon Reveal Dillon Volkering Ethan Jesse Andrew Sandefur Zach Smith Lance West Corey Henson Eli Ritter Jaxson Frysinger Nick Henning Joseph Epstein Luke Haverkamp Aaron Fucito Dylan Maple Steven Botts Devin Crespo Brandon Turner Nick Housinger D.J. Colley Ethan Brown Matt Botts Nate Woodall Elijah Thomas Eric Simpson Xavier White Conner Joseph Riley Barth Melvin Flores Andrew Henriques Guy Schwaller Eddie Whitby Landon Fussnecker Xander Knox Logan Toft
Position DL DB RB DB DL ILB ILB OT/DT DL DE OL C/G OL OL/DL DT/OT OL G ILB DT/C OL DL DL OL OL DL DT DT/OT OL OL OL OT/DT OL OT OL GUARD OL OT/DT OL DT/OT DL LB/RB TE DB TE DB DL DL DL DL
Grade Senior Junior Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Junior Freshman Senior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Freshman Freshman Junior Junior Sophomore Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Freshman Senior Freshman Junior Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Junior Sophomore Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore
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P AGE 18 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 3
Williamsburg ready to turn heads in ‘19
Falcons, Wildcats named SBAAC favorites 2019 SBAAC American Coaches Poll Results
Williamsburg Wildcats
2019 Schedule 8/30 9/6
O D D
Batavia
1. Clinton-Massie (3) 2. New Richmond 3. Goshen 4. Western Brown 5. Wilmington 6. Batavia
St. Bernard (6 PM)
9/13
Riverview East
9/20
Hillsboro
9/27
Dayton Christian
10/4
Fayetteville
10/11
Blanchester
10/18
East Clinton
10/25
Bethel-Tate
11/1
CNE
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2019 SBAAC National Coaches Poll Results
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The Williamsburg Wildcats enter 2019 coming off a 2018 campaign in which the team went 3-7 overall, 2-3 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
The 2018 season was a campaign full of firsts for the Williamsburg Wildcats’ football team. The squad played in front of a packed Abrams Stadium for the first time last season, following con-
struction of the new seating, concessions and weight room facility at the field. Additionally, the year was the first for the team under new head coach Chad Ward. As such, last season was one where both the Williamsburg staff and players learned a lot. “I would say last year was
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a learning process for our kids and coaches,” Ward said. “We had to learn a lot things about our players as coaches and vice versa. We had tough learning moments at times and also had some really good times during the season. We had a few games we thought we could have won to improve our record
but we just did not get it done.” Williamsburg finished last season 3-7 overall and 2-3 in Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference National Division play. Both of those marks were improvements over the 2017 season, in which the Wildcats finished
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1-9 overall and 0-5 in the league. A lot of that improvement had to do with the play of Williamsburg’s senior class. Drew McKibben cracked 1,000 yards for the Wildcats last year, finishing the season fifth overall in the SBAAC. His 10 touchdowns were good for ninth in the league, but like the rest of his senior class, he left his mark on more than just the stat sheet. “Their biggest impact was definitely the leadership some of them shown for years in our program,” Ward said. “Several of the players were three-year starters and had been a big part of our program on and off the field.” The returning group of Wildcats will have a bit of a new look on the offensive
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Games begin at 7 p.m. unless noted
side of the ball. Counting McKibben, the team’s top three runners from 2018 are gone in 2019. Loghan Kelley returns offensively for Williamsburg, having recorded eight total touchdown passes last season (four throwing, four rushing). That turnover has sparked some slight changes in the team’s offense, though the modifications aren’t going to be too drastic, according to Ward. “We did switch a little bit but we will still have a lot of same plays [and] identity we have had for past few years,” Ward said. “We are just looking to put some of our playmakers in the best spots we can.” See Wildcats, Page 19
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Clermont Northeastern Rockets received two first-place votes in the Clermont Sun’s 2019 SBAAC National Division Football Coaches Poll, but finished one point behind Blanchester for first place.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Two Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference teams won outright titles with undefeated seasons in 2018. According to voters in the 2019 Clermont Sun Coaches Poll, both squads will repeat again as champions. Last season, ClintonMassie out-scored opponents 210-9 in league play. The Falcons sweps all five games against American Division teams, and they also swept all of the firstplace votes in the coaches poll. Clinton-Massie was also chosen to place second once. New Richmond finished
last season 3-2 overall in league play, falling to Western Brown and the Falcons. That 3-2 mark was good for a second-place tie with Goshen last season. This season, the Lions earned enough points to finish in second place, just ahead of the Warriors. Three ballots placed the Lions in second, with a fourth vote for third. Goshen earned two fourth-place votes, but came in third in the poll. Western Brown placed as high as third and as low as fifth in balloting. Batavia received sixthplace votes in all but one ballot. The Bulldogs were placed as high as third. Blanchester’s margin of
victory in the National Division poll was razorthin. Four of the six schools are within three points of first place, while the other two schools both tied for fifth. Last season, the Wildcats rolled to a 5-0 record, as only Bethel-Tate cracked double-digits against the team in league play. This season, the Wildcats are one of three teams with a new head coach. Brandon Sammons resigned the position in October of 2018, and assistant coach Jon Mulvhill was promoted to replace him. East Clinton also has a new head coach, as the Astros lost Jeremy Yankey to a sudden resignation last
season just before the team’s week eight game against Bethel-Tate. Andy Olds was an assistant on the Astros’ staff last season, and he enters 2019 as the team’s new head coach. A third school in the division also has a new head coach. Fayetteville is now led by Wayne Stacy, who joined the program earlier this summer. Stacy replaces Kevin Finch. The Clermont County teams have consistency up and down the program, from the coaching staff to the rosters. While some players were lost to graduation, Bethel-Tate, CNE and Williamsburg all are slated to return a core group of
1. Blanchester (2) 2. CNE (2) 3. Bethel-Tate (1) 4. Williamsburg T-5. East Clinton T-5. Fayetteville players from 2018. The uncertainty throughout the league led to some inconsistent voting results. Blanchester was picked to win the league by two coaches, but they were also chosen to place fourth by two others. Bethel-Tate was selected anywhere from fifth place (once) to first place (once) with two third-place finishes in between. Clermont Northeastern had the unusual distinction of being the only team in any of the three polls to earn
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both a first and last-place vote. The Rockets were also picked second and third by voters. Williamsburg had arguably the more consistent result of any team, with Clermont County’s Wildcats earning two second-place votes, a third-place vote and two fourth-place votes. Voting was conducted from Thursday, August 1 to Friday, August 23. Points were awarded on a 1-6 scale, with first-place votes resulting in six points, and so on.
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2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW - P AGE 19
Turpin, Kings tied atop ECC Coaches Poll
Wildcats: Young team ready for 2019 season Co nti nued fro m pag e 1 8
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
The Milford Eagles were the highest-ranked Clermont County team in the 2019 Eastern Cincinnati Conference Coaches Poll, earning a total of 30 points to place third.
BY GARTH SHANKLIN Sports Editor
Last season, the Kings Knights rolled to a perfect 70 record in Eastern Cincinnati Conference play, clinching a postseason berth and a league crown. If the results of the 2019 Clermont Sun Coaches Poll are any indication, they’ll have company at the top this season. The Turpin Spartans joined Kings at the top of our 2019 poll, with both teams earning 37 points in the voting. Turpin received one more first-place vote than Kings (3-2). Voting for Kings was consistent throughout, with the Knights earning two firstplace votes and three secondplace nods. Turpin received a third-place vote, a second-
place vote and three firstplace votes. Milford came in third in the poll. Three of the voters picked the Eagles to place third, with the squad earning votes in second place and fourth place to complete their total. Anderson edged West Clermont for fourth place. The Redskins received votes in third, fourth, fifth and seventh. West Clermont was picked as high as third by one voter and as low as fifth by another. Walnut Hills, Loveland and Withrow rounded out the final three teams. Coaches poll voting began on Thursday, August 1 and concluded Friday, August 23. Points were awarded on a 1-8 scale, with first-place votes awarding eight points.
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2019 ECC Coaches Poll Results T-1. Turpin (3) T-1. Kings (2) 3. Milford 4. Anderson 5. West Clermont 6. Walnut Hills 7. Loveland 8. Withrow
37 37 30 22 20 16 13 5
One of Williamsburg’s premier playmakers is on the defensive side of the ball. Dakota Roberts finished last season tied for the team lead with 4.5 sacks. He also forced a fumble and recovered another. For his play last season, he was named a third-team all-state performer by the Ohio Preps Sportswriters Association, and he hasn’t missed a beat since the end of last season, according to Ward. “He has not missed a lifting since November,” Ward said. “He is a proven player and should only be better than before. His work ethic [and] drive is very high.” Roberts and Kelley are two of the Wildcats’ plethora of talented seniors. Williamsburg has 12 seniors listed on the roster, including 2018 first-team all-conference selection Joseph Stillwell, secondteam performers in Seth Howard and Dyllan West, and kicker Willow Kenneda. They’ll be aided in their quest for a National Division title with a handful of younger players. Braden Kelley, a junior, is listed as a running back and a cornerback this season. Eddie Slatterly is expected to play corner and wide receiver for the team this season, while junior Garrett Mason is projected to help anchor the team’s offensive and defensive lines. As the Wildcats prepare to open the regular-season on the road against Batavia on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m. , Ward set out expectations for the team on and off the field. “Our expectations are, as always. make great decisions and tough choices everyday in life,” Ward said. “Be the best person and role model you can be at all times. Win [the] SBAAC. Win [Division VI] playoff games.”
Williamsburg Wildcats 2019 Football Roster
PHOTO / GARTH SHANKLIN
Williamsburg senior Loghan Kelley has a new number this season, as he switches from 12 to 3 for 2019.
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NAME
POSITION
GRADE
2 3 5 7 10 12 15 16 17 18 20 22 23 28 30 32 34 41 44 45 48 50 52 54 55 56 59 62 65 72 73 74 76 79 85 88
Teddy Conley Loghan Kelley Eddie Satterley Trystan Gries Willow Kenneda Dylan Rowland Nick Patterson Carter Fink Kyle Dolby Jace Canter Braden Kelley Mason Thomas Nate Milton Chris Selm Ashton Herren Levi Kritzwiser Shawn Drake Evan Pence Dakota Roberts Trent Kellerman Jarrett Thatcher Brayden Cummins Jacob Kendle Conner May Seth Howard Josh Smith Matt Bishop Casey Bach Robert Wendel Joseph Stillwell Andrew Hatter Garrett Mason Ryan Terrell Cody Harrison George Paine Dyllan West
QB, S QB, CB WR, CB QB, S K WR, CB WR, S RB, S QB, CB QB, SS RB, CB RB, S RB, LB RB, LB RB, CB RB, S RB, LB TE, S OL, S RB, LB TE, LB C, DL OL, DL OL, LB OL, LB OL, DL OL, DL C, LB OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL OL, DL TE, CB TE, CB
Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Senior Junior Freshman Freshman Junior Freshman Junior Sophomore Freshman Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Sophomore Senior Senior Freshman Sophomore Senior Sophomore Senior Junior Junior Senior Junior Junior Senior
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E V E N P A G E S
CMYK P AGE 20 - 2019 F OOTBALL P REVIEW
Friday Night Hype
Final 2018 Clermont County Stat Leaders Passing Yards
Receiving Yards
1. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 2081 2. Hunter Johnson (Milford) 2077 3. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 894 4. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 643 5. Loghan Kelley (Williamsburg) 547
1. Dylan Poff (Bethel-Tate) 2. Dylan Hughes (Milford) 3. Jake Ayler (Milford) 4. Gauge Dunn (Bethel-Tate) 5. Jack McDonough (New Richmond)
Passing Touchdowns 1. Hunter Johnson (Milford) 2. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 3. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 4. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 5. Luke Lytle (New Richmond)
O D D P A G E S
21 12 7 6 5
1. Kaleb Moell (Batavia) 2. Austin Graves (Goshen) 3. Hunter Slusher (Goshen) 4. Gabe Kilgore (Bethel-Tate) 5. Nathan Martz (Batavia)
1532 1471 1106 1021 1003
1. David Pride (CNE) 2. Neil Dahlheimer (CNE) 3. Gabe Kilgore (Bethel-Tate) 4. Kyle Smith (Bethel-Tate) 5. Michael Whittington (BT)
13.5 11 7.5 6.5 6
Interceptions 26 18 16 14 12
1. Albert Cory (CNE) 2. Deven Williams (Batavia) T-3. Luke Rayburn (CNE) T-3. Owen Martin (Milford) T-3. Gage Bullock (West Clermont)
Receiving Touchdowns 1. Gauge Dunn (Bethel-Tate) 2. Dylan Hughes (Milford) 3. Randy Hammons (New Richmond) 4. Several tied with four
163 97 96 93 81
Total Sacks
Rushing Touchdowns 1. Cameron Kells (Milford) 2. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 3. Noah Macko (Bethel-Tate) 4. Jason Griffin (Batavia) 5. Kaleb Moell (Batavia)
2019 Clermont County High School Football Preview
Total Tackles
Rushing Yards 1. Josh Anderson (New Richmond) 2. Cameron Kells (Milford) 3. Jason Griffin (Batavia) 4. Alex Manz (Bethel-Tate) 5. Drew McKibben (Williamsburg)
948 669 613 588 555
6 4 3 3 3
Kicking (Total Points) 8 7 5
1. Grace Ertel (Milford) 2. Cameron Null (West Clermont) 3. Luke Lytle (New Richmond) 4. Corbin Richardson (Batavia) 5. Willow Kenneda (Williamsburg)
44 35 32 29 24
Returning players in italics
Send your sports news, stats, scores and Athlete of the Week nominations to us! gshanklin@clermontsun.com Clermont Sun Sports Contact: Garth Shanklin Phone: 513-732-2511 Fax: 513-732-6344 Email: gshanklin@clermontsun.com
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A Special Supplement to The Clermont Sun Batavia - Bethel-Tate - CNE - Goshen - Milford - New Richmond - West Clermont - Williamsburg
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