Young Titans hoping for banner season
For the first time in many years, Jacksonville coach Victor Joyner will not have a player named Appleby on his squad. All-state performer Tyree Appleby graduated after leading the Titans to a 15-15 record and a spot in the second round of the Class 6A state tournament. Appleby was a four-year starter for Jacksonville. Prior to that, Raheem Appleby was a standout performer for the former Red Devils. “We’ve got a predominantly young team with some upperclassmen with some experience,” he said. “We’ve got to incorporate some younger, more inexperienced kids in there with them and find that right mix of people who are going to step up and produce. That is kind of where we are.” The Titans return two starters from last year’s squad. They are junior post Joe Phillips and senior post Christian White. “Both of them are post men, and with Joe being a three-year starter, he has the most game experience,” Joyner said. “We’re going to feed the post. In the past, we’ve been so guard-oriented, with most of our scoring coming from the perimeter. We’re going to try to highlight those kids (Phillips and White) because they are experienced and a whole lot better than they were. Hopefully, we can get some paint scoring around the basket with a good mix of outside scoring also. We’re definitely looking for those two to be a threat inside.” Joyner listed seven others on his team who could make significant contributions for his team to be successful. They are
senior Braylon Hawkins, senior Antoine Davis, junior Michael Terry, senior Caleb Kendrick, freshman R.J. Maxwell, freshman Jordan Maxwell and sophomore Jerry Williams. “Braylon is my sleeper right now,” Joyner said. “And what I mean by sleeping is if he ever wakes up, he can really play the game if he’ll play with passion and energy all the time. He has the skill set to do it. If he gets his mentality right, he’ll be able to help us.” Joyner said Davis can play either guard position. “He’s a speedy, quick kid,” Joyner said. “He’s really aggressive off the dribble. We’re counting on him.” Terry is switching to point guard from shooting guard. “He’s learning a new position,” Joyner said. “The good thing is he’s about 6-3. He’s trying to make that transition. If he can make that transition, he’s going to help us a lot.” Kendrick is one of the best shooters Joyner has ever coached, he said. “Caleb is probably 5-1, 5-2, but he’s got the biggest heart I’ve ever coached, and we’re counting on him to step in there,” Joyner said. Joyner said he is counting on the 6-3 R.J. Maxwell to give him some minutes this season. “We’re going to try to incorporate him in there also,” the coach said. Jordan Maxwell is R.J.’s cousin and will play power forward. “We’re looking for him to move up a little bit,” Joyner said. Joyner said Williams can get some playing time this season. “If he will come on and stay focused, he can get some big minutes,” Joyner said. “We’ve just got some young kids that we’ve got to throw out into the fire and get their nose busted a couple of times early on in the season, and hopefully, they will be able to fight back,” Joyner said. The Titans, previously the Jacksonville Red Devils, won two state titles in the past under Joyner, who is optimistic about his team’s chances this season. “You go into every season being optimistic,” he said. “They work hard. That is what I like about this team. We haven’t had a lot of emotional outbursts, no emotional kids like I’ve had in the past two or three years. They come into the gym and are working hard. “They understand that their names are not household names. They want to make their names household names, but they have to do it together as a team.” Joyner said the sky is the limit for this year’s Titans squad. “If they pull together as a team, they can make some serious noise,” he said. “I’m expecting to go out every day, and it’s something new with them every day. For these young kids, it’s going to be something new. I hope the fans come out and watch these young kids grow with my seniors and upperclassmen and see if they can mesh together. “It’s going to be interesting. It’s the first time I’ve been in this position in a long time where you’ve got guys who have got to come out and make a name for themselves. They are gung-ho. They are working hard. They are going to take us for a ride.” Jacksonville will open the season at Little Rock Mills on Nov. 7. Other nonconference matchups include Little Rock eStem, Monticello, Pine Bluff and Little Rock McClellan. Their blended conference includes games against Little Rock Fair, Sylvan Hills, Maumelle, Little Rock Parkview, Little Rock Hall and Little Rock Christian. Joyner said he has been working so hard with the team getting ready for the season that he hasn’t really looked at the schedule. “I’ve been so focused on these guys every day in practice that I haven’t even looked down the schedule,” Joyner said. “We start out with Mills. That is a big rivalry for us. With these kids, and I say this every year, it is a game to watch. It doesn’t matter who plays because, hopefully, these kids are going to grow every game, so it’s going to be interesting to watch us play anybody.”