Mavs spend spring drills on new start
After overhaul, Meadows has Morton Ranch focused on fall
Some years, almost every starter is returning, and their coaches can focus on fine-turning or adding wrinkles.
This wasn’t one of those years for Morton Ranch.
“We basically had to start over – both on offense and defense,” coach Dave Meadows said.
“We only had about two or three guys coming back on each side of the ball, and that was it. And we felt like we knew who was going to come through, but you usually get a surprise or two along the way.”
The Mavericks made strides solidifying their two-deep roster in spring football, which ended with last Thursday’s spring game.
One of the biggest holes, especially in their option attack, was at running back.
The competition is still open, but Meadows says they may have found the successor to Dartavious Dixon on the track, where junior Damian Fountain focused all his efforts through last fall.
Junior Micah White and sophomore Anthony Williams are in the mix, too.
“(Fountain’s) a total newcomer to us,” Meadows said.
“Actually, (William) Gully, our track coach, had a lot to do with us getting him. He steered him over to us, and I think he’d always wanted to be a football player. It’s just a little bit here, a little bit there kept him from doing it.
“But he’s got good speed (and) he’s a powerful kid who seems to make good decisions, which means he has good instincts with the ball.”
White, with a handful of varsity carries last season, has the most experience. Williams was a junior varsity back.
They’ll take handoffs from quarterback Nicolas Hernandez, one of the few returners.
“He’s more of an athlete than ever and threw the ball exceptionally well, made reads exceptionally well – all the things that option quarterbacks have to do,” Meadows said. “He’s at the top of the list.”
Junior Railyn Rhodes quickly solidified his place at fullback this spring.
The offensive line was another matter entirely.
Only three linemen return, and the most experienced, guard Ra’Shon Clark, missed spring with a back injury, leaving tackle Chris Coleman and guard Harvey Lail to work with multiple combinations.
“The offensive line was a thrill a minute for the first two weeks of spring because we never had the same guys available … but finally we ended up feeling really good about the guys we had there,” Meadows said.
“In fact, we think we’ve got six or seven or eight guys now because of having to play different guys all the time.”
Sean Greer and Hunter Sanders emerged as potential answers at right tackle.
“Greer really looked really good, and he’s a freshman right now, so the fight he put up with the older guys out there was pretty impressive,” Meadows said.
Defensively, Tavion Jamerson continues showing steady improvement.
The junior point guard on the basketball team played varsity football for the first time last season. He started out a cornerback, then moved to outside linebacker, but saw only limited time at both spots.
Meadows said he was physical, moved well and good in space this spring.
“He’s a pretty thick guy for a point guard,” Meadows said. “He’s about 5-11, 200 pounds. He’s playing outside backer and he was dominant this spring, so we’re looking for a great year from him.”
Demarco Braud is leading the race for another linebacker spot, with Jason Eloudior and Josh Jimenez competing. Meadows said safety Deandre Allen looked like one of their best players this spring
“You can tell he’s played it for a year, and he had great confidence,” Meadows said. “He’s going to be our strong safety, which means he plays a lot like a third linebacker in the running game. He was just a pain for the offense all spring.”