Princeton hopes to take final step toward title in 2022

By Randy Capps

The 2021 season had almost everything Princeton could have wanted. It featured a perfect regular season and a Neuse Six Conference title in its first season as a 2A school. That success led to a No. 1 playoff seed and four straight postseason wins to clinch a berth in the 2A Eastern Championship game.

Unfortunately, Wallace-Rose Hill spoiled the fun with a 34-25 win in front of a packed house at Harvey Brooks Field, ending the Bulldogs’ season with a 13-1 record.

“Our community, and not just our local Princeton folks, but kind of all of Johnston County, was so supportive,” Princeton head coach Travis Gaster said. “We felt like nobody was envious that they weren’t playing and we were. It was like, ‘hey, man, you guys are representing Johnston County now, and we’re going to come watch you and want to see you do well.’ That’s a great feeling. The support from our local community has always been here. Even in bad times. To see the number of people that would come to little-bitty Princeton High School on a Friday night — that was really exciting for the kids to know that they were there for them.

“We had a group that was self-led. We had great leadership on that team, and a lot of the guys that we have coming back were able to be a part of that experience and get a taste of what it’s like playing in really big-time games in the postseason and how exciting and fun that can be. Hopefully, it just makes them more hungry and want to work harder to try to build on what we’ve done.”

What they did was pile up eye-popping points and yardage totals with an offense based on principles as old as the sport itself. The Bulldogs and their modified single wing attack averaged nearly 49 points per game, rushed for a little more than 5,900 yards and averaged a first down on every carry (10.6 yards per attempt).

Those numbers explain why Princeton only threw 23 passes last fall, completing 15 of them.

And while there are individuals who piled up some impressive stats, that sort of production starts at the line of scrimmage.

“With our system, it’s never going to be any different,” he said. “We’ll go as far as our O-line will take us. The offensive line is the heart and soul of our program, and they know their importance. They work hard at being great at what they do.”

Four starters return up front for the Bulldogs, led by Jake Crocker. The senior tackle looms large, both literally at 6-6, 295 pounds, and figuratively for Gaster’s team.

“Any time your best players are your hardest workers, you’ve got a great chance to be successful as a team,” he said.

“Because the rest of the guys just feed off of that. And in Jake’s case, he’s an unbelievably hard worker. He cares about football. In his mind, he feels like he was born to play football. His body size and everything he brings to the table as a natural leader just fit perfectly for what we do. He’s got an opportunity to have another great year. He’s been starting for us since he was a freshman, so we kind of feel like by now, he ought to be the one out there teaching folks and coaching folks instead of us. He’ll have a lot of pressure put on him as a senior, but he’s proven that he’s up to the task.

“Coaching folks like Jake is very rewarding. Because you see him influencing other people. You see people growing, not just for themselves, but in how they influence a large group of people that you’re going to be around for a while. The young people who look up to Jake, they all know who he is. He coaches in our little league program. Those kids all come to watch him play. To them, he’s a giant and he’s a superstar. It’s a great thing playing in a small town and being a big fish. But not letting that go to your head. Continuing to work hard and staying hungry. He checks all those boxes.”

Jaydon Brooks was the primary ball carrier last year, racking up 2,127 yards and 26 touchdowns in his senior season. Christian Perris (1,961 yards, 31 TD) and Brandon Turner (712 yards, 11 TD) are in line to continue the recent trend of high-production running backs in Princeton.

“If you’re a good enough athlete at Princeton High School to stand out, then we have to put you in a position to be successful,” Gaster said. “Those guys normally start out on the defensive side of the ball. They play corner for us, or safety. Then, as they gain our trust, we put them in a position to carry the ball for us. Unlike most programs where even a stud tailback might carry the ball 14-15 times a game, for us, it’s more than likely you’re going to carry the ball 30 times.

“They’ve earned it well before you guys see it. They’ve proven themselves in practice because we practice pretty heavy. We want them to get banged around a little bit, know what it feels like to get hit with the ball in their hands. By the time they get out there and the lights are on, they know they’ve got a great offensive line and an offensive system, and they’re ready to take advantage of that. Brandon and Christian both work their butts off in the weight room, and they’re proud to be able to go out there and try to complement what we’re doing on offense. When they need to break tackles, they can break tackles. And they’re fast enough kids to where, when they need to run away from people, they can do that, too.”

Peyton Mitchell has the tough task of replacing Paul Edens at the “Fred” position. He’ll be charged with throwing the occasional pass, but will spend most of his time lead blocking for Perris or Turner. He’s also the third-leading returning tackler after posting 84 of them as a junior, to go along with a team-high four interceptions.

Andrew Rose had a breakout junior season with 93 tackles in 2021, while Jack Harrow added 89.

“Andrew’s a kid that’s grown considerably in terms of football IQ,” Gaster said. “He’s always been an athletic kid, but it really clicked for him last year. He had a nose for the football all year long. And he’s fast enough where we can line up up at safety, 10-12 yards off the ball, and he can still make plays near the line of scrimmage. Not everybody’s able to do that.”

The versatility of being able to call on Perris and Turner at times is a key part of the Bulldogs’ defensive plan as well.

“When you line up to play East Duplin, you don’t need as many defensive backs,” he said. “You better have enough D-linemen and linebackers who love to hit and don’t mind getting hit in the mouth. But then when you line up to play Eastern Wayne and the athletes they’re going to have out there, you better have folks that can do it all. Having that mix is key for us. On offense, you are who you are. But on defense, you have to change based on who you’re facing.”

The only real question mark facing Princeton is how to replace Mckinley Uzzell, who signed with UNC Pembroke, at kicker and punter.

“He was such an asset that we haven’t had since I’ve been here, and that was year eight,” Gaster said. “We’ve had consistent kickers, but we haven’t had a guy who could kick and punt and kickoff at a very high level. What he brought to the table was such a luxury. When you look at the analytics of football, teams that start on their 20 (after a touchback on a kickoff) and have to go 80 yards, the numbers are against them to just score points, much less a touchdown. When you give them the ball on the 40-yard line, that number starts creeping up. He never played a snap of defense for us, but we counted him as a defensive player because of what he did for us.

“At this level, with special teams, you never know what you’re going to get — and you better be flexible. We’ll piece it together, see who can do what and try to put the best product out there we can.”

Princeton is the prohibitive favorite to win another Neuse Six title this fall, but Gaster is taking nothing for granted.

“Our goal as a team never changes,” he said. “We want to be a champion. We’ve always said you get two chances to do that. If you can ever do it twice, it will be a season you won’t ever forget. You can be a conference champion and you can be a state champion. You don’t have to have one to be the other, but that normally puts you on the right path.”

See Princeton's 2022 schedule here: https://www.maxpreps.com/nc/princeton/princeton-bulldogs/football/schedule/