Mountaineers open their 101st year of football Friday with a home game against Shelby’s Lions

Kings Mountain’s Mountaineers will open their 101st season of football Friday night when their longest rival, the Shelby High Golden Lions, pay a visit to John Gamble Stadium. Kickoff is at 7:30.

The two teams have one of the longest rivalries in the state, dating back to the mid 1920’s.

This will be Mountaineer coach Strait Herron’s first taste of the match-up but he’s heard a lot about the past and knows this will be one of his team’s toughest opponents.

“I saw them in the jamboree and they are very well coached,” Herron noted. “They have a lot of speed and they’ve got a lot of playmakers. We’ll have to be really sound with what we do to give ourselves any chance to win.”

One of Kings Mountain’s big issues going into the game is deciding on a starting quarterback. The new coaching staff has been working with three prospects.

“We’ve tried to give them equal time” during the jamborees, Herron said, “but I might mention to Coach (Jamie) Bolton to go with the senior (Kandan Zollo) first, then the junior (Darreon DixonValez) and then the sophomore (TJ Armstrong). We have to figure it out soon. This is not an easy decision.

“We not only have the issue of figuring out who will be the starter,” he said, “we need to figure out some kind of system before we play. We’re going to see who is ready Tuesday. We’ve got just four days to get prepared. We have a lot to work on. The worse part of this week is that we do not have enough videos to study the other team. We’re going in blind. You have to coach on the fly.”

Regardless of who’s at quarterback, Herron said “every player on the team has to do their own job.”

The Mountaineers have one of their biggest lists of returning starters in years. Previous starters who are back on varsity for the second or third year include running back Robert Kendrick, defensive back Zay Smith, wide receiver Isaiah Banks, the very versatile JaQualyn Sanders who can play almost any position on the field, senior linebacker Jason Melton, safety /linebacker CJ Houser, defensive end Curtis Simpson who has already committed to the UNC Tar Heels, junior Xzorion Lenair, snapper Gabe Short, last year’s leading rusher Teddy Jeffries, Tyler Furman, kicker Max Thompson, receiver Immanuel Feemster, linebacker Micah Ward, defensive lineman Javier Curry, linebacker Rodney Unnasch, guard Alex Jackson, and lineman Matt Rikard. From what he’s learned about Shelby, Herron said the Lions “have a lot of speed and a lot of playmakers. Speed always makes a good defense have to really work. Shelby throws the ball really well. Their speed can really put you in a bind.”

Herron is accustomed to big games. In South Carolina, where his teams won five state championships, he played against some powerful 4A and 5A teams and already knows about the tough competition his team is going to face in the likes of Shelby,

Burns, Crest, South Point and others.

“The great thing about games like this one Friday is that it’s non-conference and it doesn’t matter as far as playoffs,” he said. “It’s the conference games that matter. This game is critical for the kids, though, and that’s the way it should be.”