Spartans looking for answers entering fall

Prior to the season, Mountain Brook High School head football coach Chris Yeager had more questions than answers.

Who is going to play on the offensive line? Are the seniors going to lead the team? What will the identity of this year’s team be?

Those are all valid questions following the departure of a 36-player senior class that helped lead the Spartans to a 9-3 season in 2018 and a second-round playoff berth. The nine wins were the most for Mountain Brook since 2012, when the Spartans went 12-2.

In the middle of last summer, Yeager said those seniors flipped a switch and propelled the team to a great season.

On the offensive line, the only two returnees with experience have battled injuries throughout the spring and summer. 

As far as the team’s identity goes, there are a few constants at Mountain Brook regardless of scheme and team dynamic.

“The thing we’ve always had success with is playing real smart, playing disciplined, playing hard,” Yeager said. “Those are universal, should never change.”

Yeager said the 2019 team’s talent level is comparable to last fall’s and that the Spartans have “the ingredients” to be a very good football team. He’s hopeful that the winning ways of the program, which has won 25 games combined over the last three seasons, will have a positive effect on the players stepping into new and bigger roles this time around.

OFFENSE

The natural progression for junior quarterback Strother Gibbs is to become a better all-around quarterback in his second season as the starter, and Yeager sees no reason why he shouldn’t be able to do just that.

Gibbs was instrumental in the Spartans’ punishing ground game last fall, complementing graduated running backs AJ Gates and Daniel Wilbanks by providing a threat to keep the ball and pick up key yards as well. The rushing attack was so good that Gibbs wasn’t required to throw many passes in the latter half of the season, but he’ll be asked to do more with his arm this year.

“I think Strother can have an incredible season, but we’ve got to protect him,” Yeager said. “He understands big-picture concepts better and can have intelligent conversations about what the defense is doing.”

Mountain Brook will have a couple of new feature running backs this fall, with Sam Higgins and Michael Brogan expected to share the load of the carries. Higgins has contributed some the last few years but will take on a much bigger role this fall. 

In the passing game, Gibbs will have a host of new targets out wide, with guys like Paulson Wright, Ben Savage and Jay 

Rucker among the receivers looking to step in. But Gibbs will rely on tight end Crawford Golden, who has the versatility to line up in several places and is an elite blocker and pass catcher. Yeager said he may even carry the ball some as well.

“Crawford’s got to be a big part of our offense,” Yeager said.

On the offensive line, question marks are plenty. Andrew Fleming and Beau Hubbard return some experience but spent much of the offseason overcoming injuries. 

DEFENSE

Mountain Brook’s defense shaved 10 points per game off what it allowed during the 2017 season, after new defensive coordinator Robert Evans arrived from Hoover and revamped a Spartans defense that surrendered just 14 points per contest. 

“On defense, I feel like we’ve got 11 to 12 guys that can step up and play,” Yeager said.

Yeager said he feels great about the cornerstones of the secondary, where Will Yarbro, Logan Brewer and Blake Pugh provide the Spartans with steady leadership. All three of those guys could also see some playing time at receiver.

“We’ve got to get our best guys on the field,” Yeager said.

Rhyne Hogue and James Nichols will also garner snaps on the back end of the defense. Up front, Braxton Wetzler has moved over from the offensive line to play nose tackle, while Ford Kelly also returns as a contributor with experience. William O’Leary is in the mix too. 

Clark Griffin and Will Baynes are back at linebacker, with Matt Holloway looking to step in as well. Yeager also mentioned Win Horn, Calvin Wilbanks and Ethan Shunnarah as players hoping to crack the rotation.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Atkins Roberts returns and can handle all of the kicking duties, despite Yeager hoping another player steps into one of those roles to provide some relief. Roberts and Aidan Hood combined to give Mountain Brook one of the most consistent kicking tandems in the state last fall. Hood signed with Birmingham-Southern College.

“(Roberts) may be the strength of everything we’re doing,” Yeager said.

SCHEDULE

Mountain Brook plays in arguably the toughest region in the state, with Class 7A, Region 3, always proving to be challenging. The Spartans get region foes Tuscaloosa County, Oak Mountain, Hewitt-Trussville and Hoover at home. They will travel to Spain Park, Vestavia Hills and Thompson. 

Outside of the region, Mountain Brook hosts Northridge and Center Point to begin the season and heads to Gardendale for the finale.