08-13-2011, 06:52 AM
http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll...308120114/
Everywhere you look on the Beechwood football team, there is a senior. That bodes well for a program that has produced 11 Class A state championships, two under head coach Noel Rash, who took over the Tigers in 2007 and promptly led them to back-to-back titles.
Beechwood advanced to last yearâs Class A state semifinals with 10 seniors on the roster. Rash will have nearly twice as many this season, with 15 of 22 positions, plus kicker, being manned by a returning senior starter.
Beechwood will feature abundant size and quickness all over the field, in addition to an overflow of senior leadership, but none of it matters if the Tigers fall short in other areas, according to their coach.
⢠Class A team previews
âWe have big and fast players for 2011,â Rash said. âBut none of that will matter if we donât have the mental focus and maturity needed to carry us through 15 weeks.â
Aiding the cause will be an experienced senior standout in every position area. In the backfield, tailback Cameron Vocke is bigger and faster, thanks to his first-year involvement with the track team, for whom Vocke finished 11th in the 100-meter dash at the state meet.
Vocke ranked second among small-school rushers last season with 1,883 yards. He averaged a whopping 11.8 per carry and scored 32 touchdowns while adding 13 catches for 218 yards.
His versatility will take pressure off first-year starting quarterback Taylor Davis, who will be throwing to 6-foot-6 senior wide receiver Corey Cruse and senior receiver Alex Brennen in offensive coordinator Greg Hergottâs multiple-I scheme.
Three senior offensive linemen, led by huge Brett Eyckmans and senior tight end Dane Everett, return to the trenches. Four senior starters are back along the six-man defensive front, including tackle Josh Bradley and end Darrick Brilz. âOur linemen must dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball,â Rash said.
Senior Joe Staten is one of the areaâs premier linebackers. Vocke and Brennen man the secondary. Senior Joey Nussbaum returns as the kicker and leader of special teams. Leading returning receiver Max Nussbaum, who plays fullback, slot receiver and linebacker, and a fellow junior, receiver/safety Gage Erdman, also return.
The Tigers, with their state title hopes, are clearly the class of the district, but everybody else is assured of making the playoffs.
Bellevue won a playoff game last season but is operating under its third head coach in three years. Dayton also has a new coach following a winless season. Ludlow lost just three seniors, but starting quarterback and leading rusher Burt Pouncy transferred to Holy Cross.
Beechwood, 41-3 against the region under coach Rash, defeated Bellevue, Dayton and Ludlow by an aggregate score of 159-14 during the regular season and smashed Bellevue 63-7 in the second round of the playoffs. The Tigers lost by 24 to eventual state champion Mayfield in the semifinals. Mayfield lost 15 seniors and returns nine for this season.
âThis team has a chance to do something special,â Rash said of his senior-led Tigers. âAnd that is saying a lot considering the huge success of so many teams in the past.â
Everywhere you look on the Beechwood football team, there is a senior. That bodes well for a program that has produced 11 Class A state championships, two under head coach Noel Rash, who took over the Tigers in 2007 and promptly led them to back-to-back titles.
Beechwood advanced to last yearâs Class A state semifinals with 10 seniors on the roster. Rash will have nearly twice as many this season, with 15 of 22 positions, plus kicker, being manned by a returning senior starter.
Beechwood will feature abundant size and quickness all over the field, in addition to an overflow of senior leadership, but none of it matters if the Tigers fall short in other areas, according to their coach.
⢠Class A team previews
âWe have big and fast players for 2011,â Rash said. âBut none of that will matter if we donât have the mental focus and maturity needed to carry us through 15 weeks.â
Aiding the cause will be an experienced senior standout in every position area. In the backfield, tailback Cameron Vocke is bigger and faster, thanks to his first-year involvement with the track team, for whom Vocke finished 11th in the 100-meter dash at the state meet.
Vocke ranked second among small-school rushers last season with 1,883 yards. He averaged a whopping 11.8 per carry and scored 32 touchdowns while adding 13 catches for 218 yards.
His versatility will take pressure off first-year starting quarterback Taylor Davis, who will be throwing to 6-foot-6 senior wide receiver Corey Cruse and senior receiver Alex Brennen in offensive coordinator Greg Hergottâs multiple-I scheme.
Three senior offensive linemen, led by huge Brett Eyckmans and senior tight end Dane Everett, return to the trenches. Four senior starters are back along the six-man defensive front, including tackle Josh Bradley and end Darrick Brilz. âOur linemen must dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball,â Rash said.
Senior Joe Staten is one of the areaâs premier linebackers. Vocke and Brennen man the secondary. Senior Joey Nussbaum returns as the kicker and leader of special teams. Leading returning receiver Max Nussbaum, who plays fullback, slot receiver and linebacker, and a fellow junior, receiver/safety Gage Erdman, also return.
The Tigers, with their state title hopes, are clearly the class of the district, but everybody else is assured of making the playoffs.
Bellevue won a playoff game last season but is operating under its third head coach in three years. Dayton also has a new coach following a winless season. Ludlow lost just three seniors, but starting quarterback and leading rusher Burt Pouncy transferred to Holy Cross.
Beechwood, 41-3 against the region under coach Rash, defeated Bellevue, Dayton and Ludlow by an aggregate score of 159-14 during the regular season and smashed Bellevue 63-7 in the second round of the playoffs. The Tigers lost by 24 to eventual state champion Mayfield in the semifinals. Mayfield lost 15 seniors and returns nine for this season.
âThis team has a chance to do something special,â Rash said of his senior-led Tigers. âAnd that is saying a lot considering the huge success of so many teams in the past.â