Spartans hope veteran defense, offensive line can keep momentum going

By RANDY CAPPS

Coming from E.E. Smith High School in Fayetteville, Deron Donald was no stranger to challenging coaching jobs when he took the reins at Smithfield-Selma before the COVID-delayed 2020 football season.

The Spartans finished with a 2-5 mark in the spring of 2021 and followed that up with an 8-4 record last fall.

“We lost a lot offensively, but we still have some pieces,” he said. “We only lost one offensive lineman. Anytime you have a veteran O-line, you’ve got a chance. We may not be able to throw it all over the ballpark, but if those guys can block down and move their feet, we’ll be OK.”

Gerard Sanders figures to get the first crack at the starting running back spot, after logging 96 yards on 17 carries in spot duty on offense last fall. He also piled up 63 tackles and recorded an interception at safety.

“He’s one of those guys who’s kind of waited his turn, but I think he’s going to do some great things for us,” Donald said. “He’s going to start at safety as well. He’s done what he needed to do in the weight room to get bigger, stronger and more explosive. And he’s running track to make sure he can carry that load. We don’t always have the numbers, so some of our guys do have to go both ways.”

With last year’s starter, Dashawn McCullough, heading to Lane College, there’s also a help wanted sign hanging at the quarterback position.

“There’s going to be somebody new at the helm at quarterback,” he said. “We have three guys pushing for that spot. We haver rising senior John Renfrow, and he’s done a great job just being a leader and just does what’s expected. He’s a very cerebral kid, and he’s athletic as well. ... Then we have rising junior Jayden Brinkley, who starts in the secondary. He’s a great athlete as well. When he has that ball in his hand, he can mesh it and run it. And we have a rising sophomore, Dwight Nesbitt. Great athlete, probably an 11.2 100 (meter) guy, so he can move. He’s young, but he’s in the mix.”

Isaiah Dawson and Martez Anderson should be the starters at wide receiver after combining for 36 catches and almost 500 yards in 2021.

“They’re both explosive,” Donald said. “They can go get it. Isaiah Dawson went to VTO Camp (recently) and won the fastest man award. He ran a 4.4, so that’s pretty fast.”

Seven starters return on the defensive side of the ball, including leading tacklers Jalill Howell (115 tackles, 23 tackles for loss) and Jaylen Stancil (101 tackles, 35 tackles for loss). Throw in Michael Hightower, who had 80 tackles, and Joshua Hightower, who had 61 stops and 27 tackles for loss, and you have quite a few building blocks for what should be a solid defense.

“Those guys can go,” he said. “We’re stronger defensively because we have more veterans coming back on that side of the ball.”

“We’ve got a good chance to do some good things this year,” Donald said. “We’re looking forward to pushing for a conference championship. That’s the goal. We don’t focus so much on just that. I was talking to (UNC assistant head coach for defense) Gene Chizik when he came to the school, and he said, ‘We don’t talk about championships much. We talk about habits and behaviors.’ I kind of took that from him. So we try to make sure our habits and behaviors are positive and we’re doing things the right way. Everything else will take care of itself.”

See the Spartans' schedule here: https://www.maxpreps.com/nc/smithfield/smithfield-selma-spartans/football/schedule/