By Rubin E. Grant
As Oak Mountain coach Cris Bell discusses his 2019 football team, one thing readily apparent is the Eagles’ youthfulness.
“We’re going to be young,” Bell said. “We have only 17 seniors on the roster. Our two-deep depth chart is littered with 10th and 11th graders.”
Despite their lack of experience, the Eagles are looking to bounce back from a 2-8 season in 2018, which included a 0-7 record in rugged Class 7A, Region 3.
“Last year as the year progressed, we went backward,” Bell said. “I went to Texas after the season and met with some friends to get some ideas.
“We’ve got to get back to who we are and get back to being a physical team.”
That means Oak Mountain will try to pound teams with their ground game, which in turn will set up the Eagles’ passing attack.
Backfield
The task of running the Eagles’ veer attack falls on 5-foot-11, 170-pound sophomore quarterback Evan Smith. He started as a freshman and had a solid season, passing for 861 yards and eight touchdowns and rushing for 755 yards and seven touchdowns.
“He’s a special kid,” Bell said. “We don’t want to throw too much on him, but he can make a lot of things happen.”
Junior Tyler Do-Bui is the backup quarterback.
“He’s a good, solid, heady kid,” Bell said. “We have a lot of faith in him.”
Senior Jonathan Bennett heads a solid running back corps that also includes senior Devin Holden and junior Judah Tait.
Holden opened some eyes last year after transferring from Clay-Chalkville.
“He’s just as fast and strong as Jonathan,” Bell said. “He can run the veer path and get on the outside, too.”
Receivers
Junior Noah Young, who is 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, will play tight end.
“He’s a good football player,” Bell said. “He can do a lot of things. You can line him up wide because he’s so versatile.”
Junior Tucker Boswell and senior Sam Johnson also will see time at tight end.
Seniors Kyle Percer and Zach Paisley, junior Harrison Miller and sophomore Ethan Hammett will make up the wide receiving corps.
“Ethan is a really dynamic player,” Bell said. “He has a chance to be really good.”
Offensive Line
The Eagles will operate behind a completely revamped offensive line because all five starters graduated.
“We’ve got a lot of question marks,” Bell said.
Sophomore Nic Rigdon will start at center. Zach Bailey will play left guard and Drew Padgett, who is 6-foot-7 and 275 pounds, will play left tackle. On the right side will be juniors Alex Mathis and Drew Rowland. Senior Zac Hollington and sophomore Mason Burnett will provide depth.
Defensive Line
The defensive line has the potential to be a strength.
“We have more options on our defensive line,” Bell said.
Senior Jacob Goldfon will play nose tackle along with senior Jacob Payne. Junior Micai George and senior Colton Johnson will play defensive end. Sophomores Gavin Nelson and Caleb Webb also will see time at defensive end.
Linebackers
The Eagles have four players vying for time at outside linebacker – sophomore Cam Atkinson, senior Colin Herring and juniors Braxton O’Brien and Jaquarious Davis.
They also have four players vying for time at inside linebacker – senior Will Pfaffman, junior Juston Taylor, seniors Reynolds Jones and Sam West.
“We’re young everywhere but linebacker,” Bell said.
Secondary
In the secondary, juniors Chase Schwender, Dean Null, Eli Hackbarth and Nic Randle will rotate at the safety positions. Sophomore Kaileb Jackson will also play safety as well as corner.
“He has a chance to be really good,” Bell said.
Juniors Zach Taylor and Jimmy Harris will start at cornerback.
Kickers
Johnson will handle punting chores.
“I think he’s the best punter in the state,” Bell said. Johnson is rated the nation’s top punter in the Class of 2020 by Kohl’s Kicking recruiting website.
Johnson also could wind up as the Eagles’ place-kicker. He’s battling junior Hogan Morton for the position.
Oak Mountain opens the season against 6A rival Chelsea before beginning region play against Hewitt-Trussville, Thompson and Hoover.