Gridiron 2023

Football Preview August 2023

Team Previews

• Elizabethton

• Happy Valley

• Hampton Bulldogs ready to bare teeth in 2023

• Unaka

• Cloudland

Mills Greenhouse and Landsc ape

Our community is a team. And we’re its biggest fans.

At Carter County Bank, we love being under the Friday Night Lights and being part of this community. We are proud to be at the heart of it all and are committed to supporting you through a wide variety of products and services. We are here for your financial goals, field goals, and beyond. We are Carter County’s Bank and always root for the home team.

High school football rallies community like no other sport

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

High school football is returning to Carter County and no other sport rallies the communities that make up the county more than football.

Whether it’s just getting out on a Friday night to enjoy time with family or coming together as a large gathering for a tailgate party, football has a way of giving people something to look forward to after a tough week at the office or in the home.

It’s a place where you can let your hair down and take out frustrations and anxiety by screaming your lungs out for your favorite team instead of those closest to you.

Football is a great tool for unity as often there are so many things that look to divide rather than to bring together such as football does with hundreds of fans attending each game to show their support.

The game itself is often the talk early Sunday morning before church services begin and on the job as guys and gals can joke back and forth with their co-workers who might be supporting the opposing team.

It also brings communities together like glue when a player, cheerleader, or coach may be injured during the course of the contest. Many

On The Cover

Robin

Johnson Star Correspondent

Ivan

Sanders

communities even drop their colors when they hear of another county team where something tragic could have happened.

Maybe football wasn’t intended to do all of these things initially, but the sport has proved to be so much more than just a sport. It has become an institution to many who actually mark the days off calendars leading up to the first kickoff of the season.

In this football tab, we have tried to give an overview of the season for each of the five teams in Carter County by talking with the head coaches. We have also featured a running back from each school, much like we did with quarterbacks in 2022.

You will find team rosters, schedules, photos of your team, cheerleaders, and head coaches from each school.

It is our hope that you will keep your football tab close by and take it to the game to identify the players who are taking the field.

The Elizabethton Star wishes the best of luck this season to the Cloudland Highlanders, Elizabethton Cyclones, Hampton Bulldogs, Happy Valley Warriors, and Unaka Rangers in the 2023 season.

May your goals be reached and your season be injury-free. And may each one, no matter what the record may be at the end of the season, know what you bring to your respective community.

Table of Contents

ready to bare teeth in 2023

Photo by Larry N. Souders Gridiron include several key elements including players and cheerleaders. Local schools are ready for another great season in 2023.

Star Photos by: Larry N. Souders, Ivan Sanders and Tameula Trivett Layout/Design

Elizabethton Preview

Elizabethton Cylones

Elizabethton Cyclones

Getting out of the gate fast key for Cyclones in 2023

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

The 2022 season didn’t exactly get off on the right foot for the Elizabethton Cyclones and that was something that wasn’t lost on their head coach during the offseason heading into a new season in 2023.

That is something that the whole Cyclone coaching staff and players have been focusing on leading to the kickoff against Science Hill.

“I think the biggest part of the 2023 season is just the word ‘grit’ - how tough we are going to be,” said head coach Shawn Witten who enters his 17th season as head coach. “Obviously, the

HEAD COACH:

Shawn Witten

COACHING STAFF:

Michael Grindstaff, Jordan Harrison, Terrence Turner, Devin Whitehead, Ryan Witten, Zach Allgood, Travis Hurley, Chandlor Mullins, Carter Everett, and Nic Miller

schedule is tough and the 4A playoff is tough. The road there never changes. Are we going to be tough enough in the hard situations in the fourth quarter to beat the really good teams.

“We figured ourselves out last year and found a way. We used some of the other games to

get better and at the end of the year we were a hot football team. Right now, its just how quickly we can get out of the gate and have enough grit to win the first game and the second game to get into the meat of our season. The reasonable expectation is trying to grow each and every day.”

The one thing that is on the Cyclones side in 2023 is a large group of seniors who have been in and through the fire. And in the last six years, teams that have been senior laden are the ones who have been able to overcome all challenges to make it to the state championship.

“I am really proud of our team,” Witten said. “Last year we had 13 seniors and this year we have 19. I believe the difference in 4A is in 2017 and 2018 when Greeneville won it, they had 25 to 30 seniors and in 2019, 2020, and 2021 we had 20-plus seniors. You are not relying on younger kids when you have that. In high school football, seniors matter.”

The Cyclones have strengths

Shawn Witten

and especially on the defensive side of the football. One thing that the Cyclones also have in the new season is a strong kicking core led by junior Caleb Campbell and freshman Will Bowers.

“We played Anderson County and had the opportunity to go for the win with a kick and we decided not to and the game went into overtime and we ended up losing,” said Witten. “Those things early in the season can be a difference maker for us. At the start of the season last year, we had been driving the football against Science Hill and had been marching down field and we tried a field goal and missed it. It makes a huge difference to get the kickers going early.”

Elizabethton has a tough road ahead as the conference basically hasn’t changed except for the addition of Cherokee and Northview Academy coming

back into Class 4A The Cyclones also have picked up two tough non-conference teams in Morristown West and Dobyns-Bennett.

“Northview Academy has moved up and the league is good,” Witten said. “Cherokee has moved down and I think that 4A stays the same. The other region down there - South Doyle and Fulton, can they push Anderson County. They have lost a lot but got a good quarterback who transferred in. Greeneville is super talented and super tough. We have a couple of new people on the schedule and I think its been about 20 years since we played Morristown West in a real game and about 14 years since we played DobynsBennett. I know my granddad would probably like to kill me right now with us playing Science Hill and Dobyns-Bennett on the same schedule.

“The last couple of years we

have only had nine games and the best teams in Northeast Tennessee needs to be playing each other and Greeneville is playing

Alcoa and its kind of what you have to do. The difference for us is we have a little space between these tough games.”

Cyclones 2022 Results

Running Back Focus

Holzer closes out career as running back for Cyclones

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

Senior Kaleb Holzer has been a part of Elizabethton Cyclone football for all four of his high school years and has looked forward to the day when he could get a chance to showcase his abilities at the high school level for the Cyclones.

He sat back and watched others go before him like Cade Russell and Nate Stephens, but in 2023 Holzer will finally be getting the majority of the reps as the starting running back for the Cyclones.

“I think it will be pretty challenging to take the lead,” said Holzer. “Sitting behind a great running back in Nate and Cade, I think that I will be good to go. However, the physical change from playing the inside linebacker position to the running back, you have to learn the plays again at running

back, it’s just a whole process.”

Holzer said that his focus has definitely changed with the knowledge of knowing that he is shifting from his role as the middle linebacker in 2022 to running back for the upcoming season.

“Our main focus has been to just getting everybody together and getting the chemistry together,” Holzer said. “We have some new linemen coming in and a new quarterback coming in and it’s all about getting that chemistry working this season.”

An advantage for Holzer will be having a strong, experienced group of linemen up front leading the way on each snap.

“There are some big boys and I think that as fast as I am, I just need to be patient and let the block set up and I think that with my speed, I just get it going after that,” said Holzer.

Star Photo/Ivan Sanders

Elizabethton senior Kaleb Holzer will be the spotlight running back for the Cyclones in 2023.

Cyclone Varsity Cheerleaders

Front row: Paige Shelby, Rebekah Hardin, Lindy Simerly, Rheagan Haynes.

Second row: Hope Shelby, Madison Holly, Mallory Grindstaff, Kyleigh Elliott.

Third row: Lainey Snodgrass, Xandi Crockett, Abbey Ferguson, Sophia Mckeehan

Back row: Tuffy, Grace Whaley, Bethany Wellnitz, Olivia Fields, Sophie Peterson, Shaylee Grindstaff, Stormy.

Happy Valley Preview

Happy Valley Warriors

Happy Valley Warriors

Jarrett says time for Warriors to have sense of urgency

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

For the last 35 to 40 years of his life, Happy Valley Warrior head coach Jason Jarrett has known what it means to have the pride of donning maroon and white as a Warrior. One could say that if he bleeds, the blood would come out maroon rather than red.

Jarrett admittedly isn’t very happy with how his football team has approached their previous seasons and in 2023 is trying to instill into his team what it means to win verses entering a game expecting to lose.

“We have to be a lot more

HEAD COACH: Jason Jarrett

COACHING STAFF: Hunter Buchanan, Randy Ferrell, Austin Hicks, Greg Hyder, Steve McKinney, Brandon Mottern and Bryton Westmoreland

disciplined and unselfish with a whole lot more intensity and pride,” said Jarrett. “I feel like these guys have got to learn how to win. There have been so many times that we have been in close football games when we dropped a touchdown pass with four minutes

left to play or had a lead and lost in the last two minutes of the game.”

The Warriors enter the 2023 campaign with the expectation of winning a conference championship and advancing to the playoffs at the end of the regular season.

This year an additional team has joined the conference to make it a six-team league with the addition of Eagleton College and Career Academy from Maryville.

“Region 1-2A is an extremely tough conference,” Jarrett said. “From what we have heard, Eagleton is a really tough football team. Also, West Greene is coming off one of their best seasons in a while and are dropping from 3-A, while Cumberland Gap is a very disciplined team. We are looking to compete and the kids have been working hard to compete for that championship.”

Jarrett explained that being unselfish is not about an individual,

Jason Jarrett

but is in such things as being disciplined and not jumping offsides and staying focused during the game. It’s about being tough no matter the circumstances of the game being played.

“We need to have that sense of toughness - we have not been that physically or mentally tough the last couple of years,” said Jarrett. “When something goes bad, like a ball taking a bad bounce, you can just sense the air going out of our players and the stadium. We are going to be facing teams that are more athletic and bigger than we are. When we stay ahead of the chains and are mentally focused, we can play really good football. We need to have leaders step up among the players and have a voice because you tend to listen to people your own age, so they need to lead by example.”

The Warrior coach believes that he does have the pieces to create a good football team but still needs the glue to bring all the pieces together.

“We need an overhaul,” said Jarrett. “In life, you win and lose every day. It’s like we come out expecting to lose. When you lose, you grow. Small schools run in cycles and I dare say that all male sports combined have won 25 games over the last couple of seasons. We want Happy Valley football to break that cycle, so it’s time to show up, shut up, and put up.”

Warriors 2022 Results

Running Back Focus

The silent leader Sowards leads

by example, not words

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

Happy Valley senior running back Joseph Sowards was just getting acclimated to the running back slot in the 2022 season after moving from playing on the line previously and had turned in several big games for Coach Jason Jarrett before disaster struck.

Sowards was carrying the football late in the season and a hit on the knee caused a torn ACL, which ended Sowards season just shy of reaching 1,000 yards on the season. The young man was devastated but that didn’t stop him from continuing to hit the weight room and work through physical therapy to prepare for 2023.

“I just want to go out there and be as good as I was last year and even better,” said Sowards. “It’s going to be tough. I have been trying to work harder on the field and in the weight room and trying to transition that to the field. I am just trying to do the little things to get better, such as making the right reads and steps

as well as staying on the block to follow. Also, learning to read the defense better while I am running and just the basic fundamentals.”

And while most coaches like players to have a voice in leading a team, what Sowards says to his team is not so much what comes out of his mouth but what comes out of his heart when he is on the field.

“I just want to lead by example and share with my teammates what needs to be done and I don’t talk that much,” Sowards said. “I want them to see what I do on the field and how I work out in the weight room and try to follow my example. I am just a quiet leader.”

One thing that the Warrior running back has his sights on achieving 2,000 yards rushing in a career. He is currently about 1,100 yards from doing so.

“My goal is to reach that number and to win a conference championship,” said Sowards.

Star Photo/Ivan Sanders Warrior senior running back Joseph Sowards is looking to get back in a groove after suffering a season-ending ACL tear in the 2022 season.

The 2023 Happy Valley Cheerleaders

From top to bottomJon Perry, Juley Nieminski, Arwen Ganious, Kortlin Bennett, Gracie James, Bella Garmon, Keturah Richardson, Alexia Campbell, Jaydon Brummitt, Hannah Smith, Kaydence Carroll, Sadie Ramsey (Coach), Kaylyn Simerly, Natalie Schneider, Aleah Fields, Natalie Cline and Maliyah Green.

Hampton Preview Hampton Bulldogs

Hampton Bulldogs Bulldogs ready to bare teeth in 2023

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR

CORRESPONDENT

Nothing much has changed in the Hampton community as far as football goes, as 2023 looks to be another year of reloading with a new group of seasoned seniors who were part of the first team to make it to a state championship game a couple of years ago and are hoping to do so again to wrap up a stellar football career as a Bulldog.

The only thing changing is some of the faces in different roles. Even with the departure of Levi Lunsford, who carried the brunt of the offense last season, the Bulldogs will be looking to

HEAD COACH:

Michael Lunsford

COACHING

STAFF:

James Cable, Ora Hyder, Gary Keith, Mike Lunsford

be a multi-dimensional offense in 2023 to get more players involved.

“I think this year will be a little bit different,” said head coach Michael Lunsford. “We won’t have a runner who carries the football near as much as Levi (Lunsford) did last year. Levi was built to carry the football over

and over and people got tired of trying to tackle him. I think this year that we will probably use more weapons which will make us a little more versatile on offense and give us an opportunity to get some other kids involved.”

Lunsford will be hanging a lot of his offense on senior quarterback Dylan Trivett. Although

Trivett got off to a rocky start in 2022, Lunsford believes he can be a key contributor in 2023.

“Last year, Dylan got off to a bad start where he hurt his hands and wasn’t able to run the ball and wasn’t able to get involved in so much of the offense for so long that it changed what we wanted to be last year really,” said Lunsford. “I do think this year that Dylan has the opportunity and the experience now to be a focal point of our offense. We will go as far as Dylan and Dom (Burleson) will take us. They just have to be consistent.”

The head coach will be looking to a strong group of seniors to provide the leadership to help carry the Bulldogs back to Chat -

Michael Lunsford

tanooga and another shot at the gold ball.

“It’s a new group of seniors and a new group of leaders,” said Lunsford. “These kids a lot of times have been winning and playing well and have been getting to play a lot, but these guys haven’t had to be like the leaders of the team. These guys have accepted that role and are letting it come natural to them to become a leader because what they don’t realize is that people are watching them regardless whether it’s good, bad, or ugly. These guys are really going to have to step up and become good leaders.”

Region 1-2A has a lot of unknowns this season with the addition of Maryville’s Eagleton College and Career Academy as well as West Greene dropping down from Class 3-A to Class 2-A.

“It’s really hard to tell - I know South Greene will have a good football team and I expect Happy Valley to be a much improved team,” Lunsford said. “I don’t know how Cumberland Gap and the new team Eagleton will be because they haven’t played a varsity game yet. We are lucky that we don’t play them until the seventh week of the season. At least we will have a little bit of an idea before we get there. And then with West Greene moving down from Class 3-A to Class 2-A will have a lot of kids and I expect them to have a good program.”

Bulldog 2022 Results

Running Back Focus

Burleson brings different element to table as Bulldog running back

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

In 2022, the equation was simple for the Hampton Bulldogs - put it into the belly of Levi Lunsford and mix in a few passes here and there.

Now, Lunsford has graduated and another back will step under the primetime Friday night lights in Hampton, who brings a totally different approach to the game in junior speedster Domnique Burleson.

Burleson is a young man who hasn’t had the limelight shining on him like Lunsford but that is about to change as the running game will change from the ground and pound mentality that Lunsford brought to one of utilizing the speed that Burleson provides.

“I have just been focusing and taking practice one day at a time,” Burleson said. “ I think that it’s important to show my coaches and team that I can do it.”

Burleson knows that his success will rely on the linemen up front and acknowledges that the running game starts with what happens up front.

“It starts with our linemen,” said Burleson. “It’s in the heart it’s not about the size when running the football. Also, when you come here on Friday night, it’s just the energy that the crowd brings. I just plan on working hard to help my team win football games.”

The young back will be looking to bring his own energy to the turf at JC Campbell Stadium as he provides electrifying runs to make it difficult for the opposition.

Star Photo/Ivan Sanders

Domnique Burleson will be bringing a different style of running to the Hampton backfield in 2023.

Bulldog Cheerleaders

Front (L-R) Isabella McCoury, Keagan Campbell (Captain), Briley Curtis, and Maleah Scalf. Second row (L-R) September Dejoode, Jessa Hampton, Emma Hughes, Bella Setlock, Hannah Smith (Co-Captain), Raegan Ashley, Bridgit Sarrett, Lexi Taylor, Bailey Moss, and Bella Fair. Back (L-R) Emma Weir, Brooke Elliott, Madison Boling, Sydney Covington, Briley Davis, Laken Johnson, Anna Hatley, and Nalei Deloach.

Unaka Preview

Unaka Rangers

Unaka Rangers

Unaka looks to challenge for regional title in 2023

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

When O’Brien Bennett landed on the campus of Unaka High School as the new football coach, there was one thing and one thing only on his mind and that was to build a program into a contender for a regional title.

The new coach wasn’t oblivious to the fact that the road to such a title would wind its way up to Roan Mountain where the Cloudland Highlanders had dominated the Region 1-A landscape for several years.

It took a lot of tough loving and culture change in teaching players not only how to play but how to win. Move forward to 2023 and the Unaka Rangers may have

HEAD COACH:

O’Brien Bennett

COACHING STAFF:

Jake Jones, John Kosko, Joey Parlier

one of their best opportunities yet to win that regional championship.

“These guys know that and realize that they have a lot of responsibility on them,” said Bennett. “The program has gone to places that it has never gone before and they don’t want to let those guys down that laid that foundation. They want to keep

building and moving forward.”

One of the reasons that the Rangers will have a shot at the top is that they return a core group of linemen which Bennett knew would be one of the strengths because of the number of players coming in with a lot of experience.

However, Unaka will also be seeing a new quarterback under center as multi-year state perform-

er Landon Ramsey has graduated and understudy Brynin Repass will now slide into that role.

“I think these kids have really adopted the next man up mentality,” said Bennett. “They know they have great big shoes to fill. A couple of years ago, we had this conversation about Landon when he was coming in to replace John Boy (Ramsey). Guys last year like Joe Z Blamo stepped in to replace Devin (Ramsey) so you know in small-school football you have to have the next man up mentality.”

Along with Cloudland, Bennett sees another formidable roadblock in North Greene as the Huskies have continued to learn and grow. The coach knows how important each regional contest will be from beginning to the end of the

O’Brien Bennett

“Cloudland has won it the last how many ever years that we have had it, so you have to put them at the top until someone takes them off,” said Bennett. “The championship game runs through Roan Mountain. I think that North Greene is better and will have a real good chance to compete for it. We hope that we are playing Cloudland week 11 and we are hoping when we go up to Roan Mountain that we are playing for a region title.

“That is our goal when we play our regional games. We want to make sure we win them and win them one at a time because every single one of them is like a region title game. So, we are hoping by week 11 that we are playing and have a lot of excitement and a lot of buzz playing for a regional title in Roan Mountain.”

Rangers 2022 Results

Running Back Focus

Greenless steps into new role for Rangers

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

There is no doubt that Unaka Ranger junior Ayden Greenless is a gamer. After playing wide receiver and tight end during his earlier playing years, Greenless will be stepping into a much deeper role for Coach O’Brien Bennett’s team when he lines up behind Ranger quarterback Brynin Repass as the running back in the Rangers offensive scheme in 2023.

“I am really excited for it,” said Greenless. “I can’t wait to see what comes. I fully trust our quarterback and believe in everything he can do. We all come after hours and put in time on the field together, so I think that we will be all right.”

For a first year running back, it probably is the best time to do so, as Unaka has a very deep, experienced line that should provide several

opportunities for big burst runs for Greenless.

“I just don’t want to doubt my line because they are everything that I need,” said Greenless. “Everything they do will affect me as they create my holes on Friday nights, so I am going to have to respect them with everything that I have.”

In such a key role, Greenless knows the importance of being a team leader and is prepared to step up and do whatever he can to encourage his team to move forward, no matter what the circumstances might be.

“I am going to pick up my teammates when they need it,” said Greenless. “We can’t get down on ourselves like we did a couple of times last year, but I honestly think that if we keep each other’s shoulders up and our heads up, I think that we will be all right.”

Star Photo/Ivan Sanders

Ayden (AJ) Greenless will be looking to provide leadership to the Unaka Rangers from his running back position in the 2023 season.

Ranger Cheerleaders

Front row (L-R) Kylee McCall, Kimberly Proffitt, and Mackenzie McCall.

Second row (L-R) Alisha, Madison Markland, Emma Davis, and Emma Slemp.

Back (L-R) Makenzie Fuller, Makenzie Sampson, Mollie Buckles, Scarlet Salinas, and Madison Warren.

Cloudland Preview

Cloudland Highlanders

Cloudland Highlanders

Small in numbers, Cloudland still will be a handful for opposition

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR

CORRESPONDENT

Totaling only 18 players, the Cloudland Highlanders may not look like the Cloudland of old but a word of warning to the wise would be don’t judge the book by its cover as one thing the Highlanders will bring and that is a ton of heart to the football field in 2023.

Gone is running back Gage McKinney, who single-handedly put up some gaudy numbers in 2022, rushing for over 2,000 yards as a senior. Now, the backfield will feature a very young backfield as freshman Grayson Cole will fill

HEAD COACH:

Zac Benfield

McKinney’s spot. Kyle Birchfield will line up as a fullback.

“Grayson Cole is only 14 years old but he has a great work ethic,” Highlander coach Zac Benfield said. “He is going to be up for the job.”

The running game, as always,

will be the butter that covers the bread for the Highlanders, as Benfield is a run first, pass second type of coach.

“I am always run and then pass. If we can’t run the football, we are probably going to have a tough time winning, that’s just

how it is,” said Benfield. “Bryce (Birchfield) and Kingston (Cole) have worked hard on throwing the football at quarterback, but we are still run heavy and always will be.”

Cloudland has always been a team steeped in tradition when it comes to football on Roan Mountain and even though this year’s team from the outside doesn’t look like some of the teams of old, the blue and gold tradition still will continue to press the team forward.

“They fit in line with the good tradition from the size and experience standpoint,” said Benfield. “A lot of our offensive line has a lot of experience having one year

Zac Benfield

or more under the belts. We have got to learn how to be consistent and coming to practice and working hard. We also have to be consistent in what it takes to win regardless of where they are position-wise. If the kids get that vision that we are here to win, we will start to line up with those successful traditions that we have had in the past.”

One thing that impresses the Cloudland coach is the work ethic that is prevailing day in and day out. That ethic runs from not only the upperclassmen, but all the way down to the youngest players on the team.

“We have a lot of kids with a good work ethic with a lot of juniors and freshman,” said Benfield. “Auston Caraway works his butt off. Having kids that love to be there and love to play and work hard is a blessing. It’s a good bunch.”

One of the challenges for the team that has been at the front of the pack in Region 1-A this season will be the fact that every team is starting to level the playing field talent-wise which will force the Highlanders to bring a much higher level of their A-game to the table in 2023.

“The league is getting better,” Benfield said. “In the last couple of years, Region 1-A has been kind of down. I look for North Greene to be a whole lot better and I look for Unaka to be better - O’Brien Bennett has changed the culture there and they are looking good. Cosby is going to be good and Jellico is still going to be iffy. Hancock Co. has restarted their football program and I know those kids will have something to prove as well.”

Highlanders 2022 Results

Running Back Focus

Freshman Cole looking to fit mold of past Highlander running backs

BY IVAN SANDERS STAR CORRESPONDENT

Cloudland High School always has been known for having some of the tough-nosed running backs in Region 1-A. Last season, Gage McKinney was a man among men as he put the Highlanders on his back on his way to over 2,000 rushing yards.

Now, McKinney has moved on, so where do the Highlanders turn their sights on the next man up to fill some big shoes at the running-back slot?

The answer comes in the form of a young man that has yet to play his first snap at the varsity level but also a young man that has proved he is cut for the position during the middle school season.

That young man is freshman Grayson Cole.

“I have been focused on just getting better coming into my freshman year,” Cole said. “I have been working to

understand the offense and preparing to play at this level because it’s a big step up from the middle school. It’s a lot of pressure coming up to the high school level.”

As in the past, the great Cloudland running backs have always had the boys up front opening the way. This season is no different as Cole knows he will be depending on the experienced front line to make his life easier.

“The front line does a great job of blocking and giving me the room to run,” said Cole. “I just plan on running to the best of ability and do the best to help my team win football games. The challenge will be going up against older kids. I am still young and a lot of these kids have had two to three experiences already at this level.

I want to be the best I can be and help us to win games. I have been working out more and probably will have a couple more padded shirts.”

Star Photo/Ivan Sanders

Freshman Grayson Cole will be looking to get his high school career off with a bang in the 2023 season on Roan Mountain.

Head Coach - Zac Benfield

Highlander Cheerleaders

Front row (L-R) Katelynn Simerly, Harley Cates, Tate Shaw, and Izabella Christman.

Second row (L-R) Zoe Gardner, Clarissa Wilson, Mackenzie Johnson, Allie Miller, Mackenzie Moro, Kaydence Sweat, and Makenzie Street.

Third row (L-R) Hallie Wilson, Peyton Preswood, Kendra Childers, Makenzie Foster, Carley Gouge, Kaylin Morgan, Reagan Turbyfill, McKenzie Wooten. Not pictured: Hannah Tomberlin.

Johnson

Contributed Photo/Tameula Trivett

Longhorn 2022 Results

Class 3A State Playoffs

READY FOR FOOT BALL SEASON?

Check out the Elizabethton Star’s print and online editions for all the local Friday Night Lights coverage!

Your local, hometown newspaper will keep you up to date this football season with photos, scores, rankings, game highlights and previews all season long.