Football Preview 2018

Crestview Roster Is Loaded With 19 Seniors

By TRACY WATSON COLUMBIANA — Veteran Crestview coach Paul Cusick has definite holes to fill, but at the same time has the nucleus to get the Rebels right back where they are used to being — the postseason. In his 20th season at the school, Cusick has had Crestview in the Ohio playoffs 14 times, including 12 of the last 14 seasons. The Rebels are coming off a 6-5 campaign in which they were defeated in the first round. Cusick’s roster is loaded with 19 seniors and 16 sophomores, however, there is not a junior on the squad and seven freshmen. Crestview welcomes back two of ...

Ludwig Feels Potters Ready to Turn Corner

By TRACY WATSON EAST LIVERPOOL — Winners of only three games the last four seasons, including three consecutive 3-7 campaigns, East Liverpool coach Josh Ludwig believes his Potters are ready to burst onto the scene and make some noise in 2018. “Coaches aren’t dumb, they know what they have and what is waiting in the wings and this is a team that we have been waiting for a long time,” Ludwig said. “When you have the kids it really makes a coach’s job a lot easier and I believe we finally have the kids. “Obviously we need to stay healthy, but we are deeper than we have ...

Players Buying in Year-Round at Buckeye Trail

By RICK THORP OLD WASHINGTON — When Donnie Kerns took over the Buckeye Trail football program one of the things he wanted to do was change the culture. “I wanted the ‘buy in’ Kerns, entering his third season at his alma mater, said. “We had a lot of ‘August 1’ guys.” Basically, Kerns wanted to see players make football a year-round endeavor and not just show up when practice starts wanting to play. “We’ve done that,” Kerns said. The nearly 40 players that will take the field Friday night at the Baker Activity Complex when the Warriors welcome former PVC ...

Beaver Local Is Older, But Inexperienced

By TRACY WATSON LISBON — Beaver Local ran off six wins in its first seven games of 2017, establishing itself as a local power, before injuries caught up with Coach Mike McKenzie’s Beavers, who lost two of its final three. While that kind of season might be something to build on for some teams, it was a senior-loaded roster last year that has left plenty of holes and inexperience for the current group to deal with. “We are not necessarily a young team this year with 16 seniors on the roster, but what we are is an older, inexperienced team,” McKenzie said. “We have a lot of ...

Lowery Takes Over as Coach at Cambridge

By BUBBA KAPRAL CAMBRIDGE — Josh Lowery did a superb job of leading Cambridge as a quarterback. Now, the affable 34-year-old steps into the role as the Bobcats’ head coach. Lowery takes over for Kevin Gunn who resigned after last season, just a year after being named the Eastern District Coach of the Year and leading the Bobcats into the playoffs. Lowery, who previously served as Cambridge head baseball coach, embraces his new challenge while understanding the position brings with it much more responsibility. “It feels different for sure (being a head coach). There are a ...

Nowhere to Go But Up for Warren

By RON JOHNSTON VINCENT — On the third day of Warren football practice, the United States Marine Corps visited the campus and provided some training tips for the players. “Everybody was up at 7 a.m. and bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” first-year Warriors coach Dan Day said. “It was just awesome having those guys there, talking about teamwork and accountability.” If Warren has a gung-ho or Semper Fi attitude when it kicks of the season at Athens High in The Plains on Friday, that first Wednesday in August might be part of the reason why. Warren is coming off a winless ...