Bulldogs counting on newcomers to produce
A big reason for Strong's run to the state championship in their first year of eight-man football was because of the triumvirate of quarterback Quincy Shelton, running back Treveon Daniels and tight end Byron Maze.
As the Bulldogs head into Year 2, they will have to find a way to replace graduated seniors Daniels and Maze, but they do have Shelton, a senior who was the MVP of the state championship game, back to lead the offense.
“Quincy had a fabulous junior season,” Strong coach Jason Porter said. “He was named AllDistrict, All-State and was the MVP of the state championship game. He will be our team leader. He has a very high football IQ. We are gonna open up the playbook more this year with him. Quincy obviously has a plus arm, but he is a very shifty runner as well. I look for him to have an outstanding season.”
Sophomore Kaiden McHenry is slotted in as the backup at quarterback.
The Bulldogs will be relying on sophomore Germyren McHenry to shoulder the load in the backfield with Daniels departing.
“Germyren moved up after junior high was done last year and had some solid runs,” Porter said. “He is the cousin of last year's All-State running back Treveon Daniels, so he learned a lot from him through our state championship run.”
Porter added that the Bulldogs will likely add more depth with some freshmen moving up to the varsity squad once conference play begins.
“That will bolster our numbers in the backfield,” Porter said.
The Bulldogs will certainly miss Maze, but they have an abundance of wide receivers with senior Shundarius Shelton back after playing a key role in Strong's run last year.
Fellow seniors Kanye Hawkins and Nekobi Williams are in the mix, as are juniors Cedrick Brown, Amari McHenry and Treyvon Andrews.
Kaiden McHenry and sophomore John David Darden could also see playing time with fellow sophomore Jamarion Mitchell tight end. slated to play at
“This is our largest group numbers-wise,” Porter said. “In eightman football, it helps to have a lot of wideouts to flip in and out if you are gonna go with the spread offense. I feel really good about the mix we have as far as the young guys and the older guys coming back.”
Another key component from last year's squad that graduated is Jayme Correa, who was a twoway standout on the offensive and defensive lines.
The Bulldogs will be counting on sophomore
Ja’Kiem Woods to play at center with senior Devin Osgood at left guard and freshman DanQuez Crayton at right guard.
“We will be shuffling in some of the skill guys in the preseason to see who can help us there,” Porter said. “Last year, we spent half the season with a cornerback at left guard. That’s just how eight-man football is. I think we have some ninth-grade linemen that could move up and help us as well.”
The Bulldogs had one of the most explosive offenses in the eight-man ranks a year ago thanks to their balance, and Porter said that will be crucial again in 2022.
“We have to be balanced like we were last year,” Porter said. “We were about 50/50 run-pass the entire year. Having a proven quarterback coming back is a plus. We are gonna have to have some of the young guys step in to some key roles for us to be successful.”