22 • Thursday, August 27, 2015
2015 high school football preview
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rebels,
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several of them. Seniors Josh Denney, Remington Patterson, Nolan Turner and Charlie Sharbel are working at the receiver posts, along with juniors Jacobi Hudson, Mitchell Langley, Connor Rohling and Joseph Travis. In contention at fullback are Morgan Long, Jo Jo Ross, Cooper Jones and Stephen Thackerson. Vestavia has traditionally built much of its offense around the tailback, and senior Walker Minor will carry much of the load in 2015. Others slated to contribute are Toliver Chatwood, Ray Murphy and William Schaffeld. Curry Howard, Jack Strong and Manraj Singh are battling for placekicking duties. Either Howard or Strong will be the punter. Anderson seems to be building depth in the all-important defensive line. Working on the inside are James Edwards, Jacob Edwards, Walter Thomas, Prescott Gilbert, Stone Brooks and Alex Goodwine. Although they are stalwarts in the offensive line, Robin and Gilbert will see time on the defensive side of the ball, as well. The defensive ends are Dillon Campbell and Sam Lawson. Manning the tackle slots are senior Immanuel Johnson, Ray Murphy, Michael Schroeder and promising sophomore Cameron Cacace. As usual, the Rebels have plenty of talent in the linebacker positions. Nate Lewis, George Dazzio, Steadman Gully and Ethan Guidry are all in the mix on the inside. Reid Adams is a leader at outside linebacker, along with Jackson Ewing, Zach Meadows, Bo Norman and Alex Hall. Nolan Turner is a probable starter at safety, with Daniel Sims and Jonathan Hess also seeing action. “Our guys have worked very hard since the spring,” Anderson said. “Now it’s a matter of blending and executing to get where we need to be.” Vestavia will once again play in Class 7A’s Region 3, almost certainly the most difficult division in Alabama high school football. A particularly brutal part of the schedule comes in October, when the Rebels face Spain Park, Hoover,
bucs,
From Page 10
have enough depth to create a lot of mismatches,” Niblett said. “Lots of our guys will get opportunities.” Sophomore Barret Pickering will draw field goal and extra point assignments. Senior Bailey Aultman is the punter. Defensively, only three starters return. That’s a little misleading because Hoover rotates so many players. Taures Payne is an anchor of the front wall, along with Tyler Byrd, Ricky Palao and Khamari Brown. They average nearly 240 pounds apiece. Jeremiah Moon is a leader at linebacker, with Kholbe Coleman and Christon Taylor also expected to be outstanding. As always, the Bucs’ secondary should be fast and hard-hitting. Senior P.J. Hall is an all-star candidate at cornerback. Malachi Herron and Tony Bennett, also seniors, will also play key roles. Junior Ben Abercrombie will be at a safety post. For all the talent at his command, Niblett believes his team’s greatest asset can’t be measured with a scale or a stop watch. “It’s all about the leadership and team unity,” he said. This is about guys working hard to get better. There is such a culture of excellence here that has been built over time. We are the protectors of that tradition.” Hoover will again compete in Class 7A’s Region Three, and will naturally enter the season as a heavy favorite to repeat as league champion.
OVER THE MOUNTAIN Journal
Tuscaloosa County and non-region rival Shades Valley on consecutive Friday nights. “Our region is incredibly balanced,” Anderson said. “After the ninth week last season, we could have had a five-way tie for third place. Take Hoover out of the equation and it should be the same way this year.” The Rebels open the season with another traditional rival, Homewood. While some schools prefer non-region matches with high-profile, outof-state powers, Anderson believes that the neighborhood rivalries are an important fabric of high school football. “We’ve played Homewood, Mountain Brook, Shades Valley and Berry – or now Hoover – every year since the 1970s,” he said. “These rivalries are important to the players, the student body and the community as a whole. When it looked like we might not be playing Hoover a couple of years ago, kids were literally stopping me in the hallway of the school to say how much that game meant.” Anderson – who has led the Vestavia program since 1978 – became the winningest coach in Alabama high school football history last season. While the world has changed greatly in four decades, he believes the football field is one place where important lessons of life continue to be taught. “The biggest difference now is the technology,” Anderson said. “Everyone wants instant entertainment and instant communication. There’s nothing instant about football. That’s where a kid can learn lessons about the importance of work and sacrifice that a book or a computer can’t teach.” Despite his long tenure, the coach may be getting his second wind. Last spring, Anderson turned over his athletic director duties to former Rebel player and assistant coach Jeff Segars. With those responsibilities off his plate, he can devote even more time to football. “I don’t fish. I don’t hunt. I don’t play golf,” he said. “Coaching football is my hobby.” Anderson said he doesn’t know when he might hang up his whistle forever. “I’m taking it a year at a time,” he said. “The Lord will tell me when it’s time to retire.” But that’s a question for another year. For the moment Buddy Anderson and Vestavia are ready for some football. ❖ But it won’t be easy. The Bucs must travel to Mountain Brook, Oak Mountain and long-time nemesis Vestavia Hills. Additionally, Hoover will face out-of-state powers from Bradenton and Citra, Florida. “I’m excited about where we are right now,” Niblett said. “Every team comes together at a little different pace. These guys have worked so hard. They are determined to be successful.” For a team that appears to have few weaknesses, Niblett said he still has his concerns. “I worry about everything,” he explained. “These players are just like my sons. Nobody wants to receive that phone call in the middle of the night. We are here to make sure that our guys are doing what they are supposed to be doing – and making good decisions, just as any parent would be doing.” Whatever Niblett is doing, it’s working. Since taking over from Propst after the scandal-marred 2007 season, he has gone 96-8 with four state championships and three runner-up finishes. Niblett took one of America’s finest high school programs and made it better than ever. By instilling a new discipline and focus, he picked Hoover football up from the front pages of newspapers and placed it back on the sports pages – and that is a good thing. “Every day, we want to re-invent ourselves a little and get better,” said Niblett. “We want a new version of what we’ve been in the past and do all the things required to keep going.” Hoover’s dynasty will finally end one day. Nobody knows for sure, but it probably won’t be in 2015. ❖