Last season was an unsuccessful one for the East Clarendon High School varsity Wolverines’ football team.
“We were 1-10 and made the playoffs because we do have a tough schedule,” said Coach Scott Cook. “Then, we went down to Cross.”
The Wolverines faced a pretty strong non-region schedule in 2016, Cook noted.
“As a matter-of-fact, the two teams that played for the 1-A State Championship, we played them in back-to-back weeks,” he said. “That was Lamar and Lakeview.”
The team’s injury count didn’t help much, either.
“We had a lot of injuries,” said Cook. “No excuses, though: The next guy stepped up. That helped up, because it’s the guys who are coming back this year who are prepared. So, they are more prepared for what’s getting ready to take place.”
When comparing this year to 2016, Cook said the “commitment level” is what has changed the most for the team.
“There’s the want and the will to change things around here,” said Cook. “I would say that’s one thing that’s really taken place around there. The mindset of these young men, they know what we expect from them on a daily basis.”
Cook said the team will be relying heavily on players like Ashton Mixon, who will play at middle linebacker, H-back and tight end.
“Ashton got hurt last year in the first game against Johnsonville,” said Cook. “He started as a freshman as our middle linebacker and, last year, as a sophomore until he got hurt in the first game. He’ll be back this year with us at full speed. That’s key.”
Mixon is key to the team’s leadership, Cook said.
“He’s a leader; he works hard in the weight room and on the field,” he said. “Last year, about halfway through the year, we had Tyjhai Calvin, who will be a sophomore this year.”
Calvin moved into the running back role for the Wolverines in 2016, Cook said.
“Then, we moved him to quarterback, and he did a good job,” said Cook. “This year, he’ll go back to running back. He works hard, and he’s giving us a chance at running back.”
Cook said the team will also look to quarterback Lane Robinson this fall.
“He quarterbacked some in the playoffs for us,” said Cook. “This year, he’s taken the bull by the horns. He’s been to the weight room, worked out, been to passing league with us, and he gets out there with the coaches on his own.”
Cook said the team’s offensive line is made up of a much younger group of players.
“They got to play a lot last year, however,” he said. “Bryson McKenzie is the only senior. He’s worked out every day this summer. He did not miss one workout, and that shows me where his heart is right now.”
Cook said that Hayden Beasley and Dixon McKenzie stepped in last year as freshman and played offensive line against some stiff competition.
“They’ve worked hard this off-season,” Cook said. “Jeb Green is a rising night-grader who will play some offensive line for us as well as some defensive line.”
Cook said his hope for the Wolverines is that the players will continue to get stronger throughout the season.
“This summer, they are finally buying into the weight room and the weightlifting program. You can see it’s taking a little bit of effect, but its nothing that’s going to happen in a month or two,” Cook said. “That’s something that gradually happens.”
The team has “four or five seniors who are important to the team this year,” Cook noted.
“We’ll have a lot of sophomores and juniors,” he said. “However, those sophomores and juniors played as freshmen and sophomores in our program. So, they’re just growing up. We all want to be measured by our wins and losses, but I think these boys have worked harder in the summer than they did last year.”
He said the team will also need to work on blocking.
“Now, Xs and Os on the field, it’s our blocking,” he said. If our offensive line can sustain their blocking and help us out there, we’ll be fine. Lane is learning the quarterback position, reading the defense and all of that. So, I’m excited about this group.”
Cook is hopeful that Wolverine fans will come out to support his players in 2017, despite the team’s unsuccessful season in 2016.
“If they come and watch the Wolverines play, they will see a bunch of young men who are going to fight together,” he said. “They are going to play hard and give it all they’ve got. It may not be much, but it’s all they’ve got.”
Cook said spectators will find a team whose No. 1 goal is to “praise the Lord.”
“They really respond to that,” he said. “They’re a bunch of young boys who play hard, get after it and do it the right way. That’s the main thing we want to do: Do it the right way.”
