THE GAZETTE
Wednesday, August 28, 2013 r
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BULLIS
Continued from Page B-1 minor in information technology at Rutgers. “I came here from Sligo Middle School to originally play basketball. So it wasn’t until freshman year on [junior varsity] when I played football, but I am glad I did because we’ve really put Bullis football back on the map.” As Bullis, ranked No. 3 in The Gazette’s preseason poll, has won — 23 victories over the past three seasons — the talent level has improved as well. This fall, 17 starters return, including several potential college-level players. Junior running back and Division I-Football Bowl Subdivision recruit Devonte Williams could be the top rusher in the state when the season ends. Sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr. moved down from New Jersey and should be a dual threat this fall. Eight defensive starters, including defensive lineman Julian James, linebacker Chris Aust and defensive back Tyamonee Johnson also return to lead a unit that allowed just over a touchdown per game last year. “It’s not just getting better on the field — that’s a big part and the most important — but our weight room is so much nicer now,” Herron said. “It used to be terrible and now it is upgraded with a lot more free weights. It’s little things like that, having nice facilities, good academics, a nice campus, a family-orientated atmosphere that makes you feel like you are in a real program to attract people.” Added Williams, who is from Howard County: “It’s been a tremendous turnaround since I’ve been here. Everybody is all acclimated to our system and keeping
Bullis Coach Pat Cilento gives instructions to his team during the Aug. 15 practice at the Potomac school. Bullis opens its season Friday. everything running smooth.” When Cilento took over the Bulldogs just prior — in late July — to the 2010 season, he inherited a private school program in need of a shot in the arm. In the
Bullis School junior running back Devonte Williams.
GAMECHANGERS Continued from Page B-1
the body coordination or psychology to be able to manipulate their body midstride.”
Blake Dove Churchill junior linebacker/running back
Run in Blake Dove’s direction. He dares you. Defensive players don’t always get noticed in the same way as 50-yard scampers, but Dove certainly makes his presence known. “Blake is definitely a ball hawk,” Churchill coach Joe Allen said. “He has a nose for the ball and great instincts.” Dove will also be the Bulldogs No. 1 option out of the backfield this fall. Once he reaches his second gear, there’s really no catching up to him, Allen said.
Kevin Joppy Quince Orchard senior wide receiver
This guy was not on any of the county’s top 10 statistical lists last fall because he’s rarely in the same place two plays in a row. Joppy scored nine touchdowns for Seneca Valley on a combined 830 passing, receiving and rushing yards. “He single-handedly beat our team last year,” Quince Orchard coach Mencarini said. “The whole game they had him up at receiver, then he was in the backfield, he was all over the place and he made the big plays.” Joppy’s ability to perform anywhere on the gridiron makes him a nightmare matchup for defenses.
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three seasons prior to his arrival, Bullis was 4-26 — a major drop for a program that went 27-9 from 2001 to ’04. Since and under the Sherwood High graduate’s guidance, Bullis has posted
three consecutive winning seasons — 6-4, 9-1, 8-2 — and won the 2011 IAC championship, which was the program’s first since 1979. “That first year, we came
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Damascus High School junior wide receiver/defensive back Jalen Christian.
BILL RYAN/THE GAZETTE
in late, but were able to go 6-4 and have the first winning season and get the first conference win in quite some time,” said Cilento, who previously led Sherwood during the 2009 sea-
son to a 10-3 mark and a berth in the Class 4A state semifinals. He also was the Warriors offensive coordinator from 2007-08 and was the quarterback when the school won a state title in 1995. “We brought in some new things and a different approach. I’ve had a lot of great young [assistant] coaches and the kids have fed off it. We’ve made a lot of strides, but it gets tougher to win each season because the ultimate goal is to put out a great product on Friday nights.” As Bullis has improved, so has its strength of schedule. Cilento, who still worries about the depth of talent on the team, said he has added more quality non-conference opponents over the course of three years, but he added that nine potential opponents have dropped his program from their schedule. The Bulldogs open up the 2013 season at home on Friday against Washington Catholic Athletic Conference foe St. John’s (D.C.) College High, which defeated Calvert Hall last week. Bullis is also scheduled to play notable nonconference opponents St. Mary’s Annapolis, Archbishop Spalding and Cape Henlopen (Del.) “I’ve seen a lot more people — fans and opponents — get fired up when they talk about Bullis football over the past few years,” Herron said. “A lot more people are interested in how we do and that means we have a little bit more of a target on our backs. But that is good and we just have to keep working. “We want to go undefeated. I mean, we got to take every game one game at a time, but the standard around here now is to win every game and win championships.” kzakour@gazette.net
Walt Whitman High School senior running back Zac Morton.
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Zac Morton Walt Whitman senior running back
The county’s third-leading rusher with 20 overall touchdowns last fall, Morton’s shiftiness and ability to change direction on a dime make even the county’s best defensive players look clumsy. He was given the ball on about 60 percent of Whitman’s offensive plays last fall. That number is not likely to decrease, but Morton won’t be limited to the backfield. His great hands make him a viable target for quarterback Evan Smith.
Devonte Williams Bullis junior running back
Can one be listed as a running back and rack up 500 receiving yards? To be fair, Williams did rush for nearly 1,000 yards as well. Williams has breakaway potential — he scored at least six touchdowns on runs of 50 yards or more last fall. The scary part is he’s only a junior.
Solomon Vault Gaithersburg senior running back
There are generally three types of running backs: Those who run straight through the line, backs who run by defenders and those who run around defenders. A good running back usually possesses two of those traits, Mencarini said. Vault can do all three. “Solomon Vault scares me to death. I’m not looking forward to coaching against him but I love watching that kid play,” Mencarini said. jbeekman@gazette.net
Thomas S. Wootton High School sophomore wide receiver Trevon Diggs.
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