Final SCOL gridiron season set to kick off

As SCOL football coaches prepared their teams for the final league season, the coaches were picking Miami Trace and Washington to battle it out for the pigskin title.

Jeff Conroy was back at Trace in 1991 for his second year at the helm. Last season was an outstanding one for the Panthers. They posted an 8-2 overall record, a 4-0 SCOL mark, won another gold football and led the league in both offense and defense.

Conroy, however, wasn’t satisfied. The Panthers suffered a last-second loss to Hamilton Township, so they easily could have been 9-1. What is better than 9-1? 10-0, of course. This season, he wanted an undefeated record and a possible state playoff appearance.

And why not? He had four-year starter quarterback Tobin Hoppes (6’2”, 180 pounds) back for leadership. The All-SCOL star combined for 1,277 yards on offense and snagged eight interceptions as a defensive back. A very intelligent player, he seldom made poor decisions on the field.

Hoppes would be joined in the backfield by fullback Scott Gifford, who gained 378 yards and scored two touchdowns to rank third on the Trace squad last year. Also, Bill Cooper, the team’s kicker, who booted 17 extra points and two field goals last year, was back for his final season.

Junior Terrell Baker, mostly a defensive stalwart last year, would be switching to tailback. He would give the Panther backfield a little more quickness and explosiveness.

Top receiver Randy Hughes and speedsters Ryan Reid and P.J. Mabra would be back as well. In short, Trace was going to be a tough match for anybody this season.

The biggest challenge would be rebuilding the offensive and defensive lines. Only Scott Butts and Jack Anders returned from last year’s team. It would be crucial that Conroy find enough horses to build a powerful forward wall.

“This year,” Conroy stated, “We feel like we can win all 10 games.”

At Washington, Coach Roy Lucas would be back for his fifth year on the Lion sidelines. In his first four seasons, he had compiled a record of 22-18 (15-4 in the SCOL).

This year, he was planning to use a “run and shoot” offense. With quarterback Shawn Smith returning, along with receivers John Matson, B.J. Marine, Jason Flowers and Monte Smith, Lucas figured the talent was there. The only obstacle might be the offensive line.

Somehow or other, you have to keep defensive opponents away from the quarterback so that he can set up to throw the football. Would the Lions be able to do it?

Coach Troy Dawson was entering his second year at McClain. His first year resulted in one win and nine losses overall and an SCOL mark of 0-4. Opposing coaches had picked the Tigers to finish fifth in the league again this season.

Dawson did have a pair of talented running backs in the fold, Doug Moon and Paul Hess. The second-year coach was hoping that Moon and Hess would give the purple-and-gold a ground game. The previous season (1990) McClain was almost exclusively a passing team. But quarterback Richie Bunner had graduated. He was replaced by Brad Willett, a 5’11,” 170-pound senior who had no experience at the position.

Senior Jeremy Purdin returned as flanker. He had made the All-SCOL team last season when he had 38 receptions, good for 500 yards.

Dawson was hoping that the senior leadership on this team would be a factor in making the Tigers competitive this season.

At Hillsboro High School, Coach Jim Horne began his ninth season. In his eight previous years, the Indians’ overall record was 40-40, and 1990 had been a rebuilding year with many underclassmen seeing a great deal of action. The Tribe had no All-SCOL players last year. They would, however, have a number of experienced players coming back, which should help them improve on their 3-7 record in 1990.

Rodney Captain, a junior, carried the ball 96 times for 386 yards as a sophomore. He was Horne’s leading rusher and had a chance to be one of the top runners in the SCOL in this, the league’s final year.

Split end Damon Bolden caught 24 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns in his junior year. He also led the Indian defense with four interceptions and two fumble recoveries from his defensive back position. Also, defensive end Brian Fulton led last year’s team with 89 tackles. The Indians also featured a talented group of receivers. J.D. Wagoner, Brad Beatty, Chris Main and Scott Butcher would share time at the split-end positions.

All-in-all, Horne believed that this year’s team would be much improved over the 1990 squad. Opposing coaches had picked them third.

Coach Roger Ilg, at Wilmington, was trying to replace three excellent players who had graduated. They were quarterback Andy Vaughn, running back Steve Williams and wide receiver and game-breaker Howard Johns. This would be a challenge. The ’Cane had outstanding team speed in 1990, but Johns was a big factor in that statistic, and he was gone.

Basically, the lack of experienced players in the skill positions would be one of the chief challenges facing Coach Ilg this season. The other SCOL coaches had picked the Hurricane fourth.

When the season finally began,on Friday, Aug. 30, both McClain and Hillsboro played on their home fields. The Indians utilized a Rodney Helsel field goal late in the fourth quarter to break a 21-21 tie and lock up a 24-21 win over visiting Paint Valley. Helsel was perfect on his three extra point attempts as well.

(Continued next week.)

Bob Patton is a Highland County sports historian and a contributing writer to The Highland County Press.