With the turning of the calendar to August, it’s obvious around high schools in our region that the 2010 prep football season has arrived. The Avery Vikings look to build upon a 5-7 season in 2009, a three-win improvement from the previous season, and contend for the school’s first conference title since 2005.
The 2010 edition of the Western Highlands Conference appears to be as competitive as it has been in the past
Before tangling with the competition in the
Let’s take a moment and breakdown a trio of teams who have often found their way to the top of the Western Highlands Conference standings over the past four seasons.
OWEN WARHORSES (2009 record: 4-3 in conference, 6-6 overall)The Owen Warhorses bounced back from its first losing season in eight years to finish with a .500 overall mark in 2009. Veteran head coach Kenny Ford is chomping at the bit for his group of Warhorses to again rise to its perch atop the conference that it held for so many seasons in the 90s and early portion of the last decade.
Owen will have to restock its arsenal quickly from a club which had a blend of youth and experience a season ago. Graduated from the club is former all-conference running back Andy Coleman, but the team returns a veteran starting quarterback in Kaleb Fowler, who bounced back from a broken collarbone in 2008 to run for almost 500 yards and threw for 900 yards in 2009.
“Our starting quarterback returns with an experienced backfield due to playing time,” the coach said during summer workouts. “We have a group of kids returning that did get a lot of playing time last season at a number of positions on offense and defense.”
The Warhorses return only 10 lettermen from last year’s club, and will return just three starters on offense and four on defense.
“A couple of strong JV seasons showed that these kids know how to win and that’s what is expected of them,” the coach added. “If everyone does their job and understands both sides of the ball, good things could happen to this team.”
Two-year starter Jay Banks will anchor the offensive lines for the club from Swannanoa, and the team will look to runners like Austin Davis (500 yards rushing in 2009) to step up early and take pressure off Fowler.
Avery defeated Owen 14-7 on a rainy Homecoming night in 2009. The Vikings will travel to Owen on September 24th.
POLK
Each season it seems that any conversation regarding the best teams in the Western Highlands Conference has to include Coach Bruce Ollis’s Polk County Wolverines.
Polk improved on a 7-win season in 2008 to earn a 10-win 2009 campaign and tie Mountain Heritage for top record in the
The cupboard in
Polk’s Hybrid I-formation offensive attack served it well in its first season as a 2A member of the Western Highlands Conference.
The Wolverines return Conference Offensive Player of the Year Andre Overholt at quarterback and defensive back. The 5’10”, 160-pound senior ran for over 1,000 yards last season and 15 touchdowns. Overholt threw for over 500 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2009, while snagging six interceptions on defense.
Senior linebacker J.J. Maxwell will again anchor the Wolverine defense. Maxwell was named 2A All-State by North Carolina Prep Football News and registered 154 tackles to lead the team last season.
The Wolverines have amassed 69 victories and three conference championships over the past seven seasons, and could very well add another ten-win season in 2010, as well as a deep run in the state playoffs.
If the Wolverines have any Achilles’ heel it may be depth. The club has multiple players who play both offense and defense, so health will be key. The team will also need to complement Overholt by having an additional running back emerge to take pressure off the signal-caller from time to time.
The Hendersonville Bearcats answered its fourth round playoff push in 2008 with an 11-win season in 2009, falling to
Hendersonville
If there was any silver lining to the loss of its best player, the Bearcats saw a number of other players step up to the plate and assume leadership positions that will even greater benefit the team in 2010.
Western Highlands Conference Special Teams Player of the Year Desmond Whiteside returns for his senior season. The speedster will likely play at various offensive positions, but may see extended time behind center triggering the Bearcat offensive attack. Whiteside ran for 12 touchdowns and over 1,000 a season ago, while returning three kickoffs for touchdowns and adding six interceptions on defense.
Anchoring the defense will be senior LeQuan Young, who was named 1A All-State by NC Prep Football News and was the 2009 Western Highlands Defensive Player of the Year. Young tallied over 100 tackles for the second straight season and amassed 14 sacks last year to lead the conference.
Hendersonville
Read next week’s edition of The Avery Journal-Times as we preview the four remaining teams in the Western Highlands Conference.
