It maybe spring but football is definitely in the air. With major camps kicking off to showcase the standout athletes, spring games, and the NFL Draft taking place this week gives this of all weeks of the offseason a special feeling. So its only right to quench your thirst for football on an early buzz of whats to come this summer and fall!
We start out with an update on the top Division 2 program last season and projected for 2017 King William. The Cavaliers like the top Division 1 program in Region A share a common bond....stability. With so many coaching changes amongst several of the programs, King William looks to be stronger coming off a season where they were young weren't expected to dominate. They still won their division and haven't lost a district game since October 10, 2008.
Dylan DeHart's Cavaliers will have more experience and desire to go further this fall.
Coach Dylan DeHart will be entering his 5th season as head man for the black and gold and knows what it will take to get the Cavs into the state playoff conversion.
"We are hoping to build on the young group that played for us last season. We lose 8 seniors from last season's team and we need to build some guys up to fill in some important spots. We want to get our young players as much work as they can this offseason to prepare them for more playing time. We need to develop more strength and speed and we hope to have significant attendance from players not playing other sports." expressed DeHart.
The Cavaliers will change up their schedule a little more for this upcoming season. "We have some new opponents on the schedule for this season that I am looking forward to facing." said DeHart. Prince Edward is coming off a 5-5 season and a playoff berth will replace Madison Co. on the schedule this season. They will have a strong Central Woodstock team replacing rival Caroline as well.
King William is projected to dominate their district and be the top Division 2 program in Region A. No longer do they fear having success and then losing a coach after a few years of change. DeHart stated, "It appeared many people assumed I would be leaving after a few seasons but that was never my intention. In a perfect world I would love to be the head coach at King William the rest of my career. There is a very bright future for KW football and I hope to be a part of it for many years."
PROJECTED TOP 5 in Region A for 2017
1. King William
2. Brunswick
3. Nandua
4. Greensville County
5. Arcadia
Last season's top Division 1 team surprised many but not us here at VirginiaPreps who predicted Sussex Central would have their best squad since 2012. We were exactly right. This year the Tigers are expected to have their best team since 2003 when they last won a state championship and fielded a potent defense.
Sussex Central coach Curtis Jefferson could return west in December again.
Coach Curtis Jefferson will enter his 16th season as the head coach of the Tigers who are hungry to capture another title. After falling short to an experienced Riverheads team, Sussex Central is eager to get back and has more than enough talent to get there.
Sussex Central will have with a contest crucial to obtaining a top seed in 2017 when they host the Essex Trojans to kick off the season. Other schedule highlights include a trip to South Hill to face Park View and they play host to rival Franklin and Southampton this season.
Speaking of Essex, the Trojans had an uncharacteristic bad start which snow balled into many other problems. A string of injuries and not winning the district for the first time since 2011 resulted in coaching change where legendary Todd Jones returns back to the program. It will be interesting to see how different the Trojans will look.
Franklin had more players and depth than both Sussex Central and Essex but it didn't translate to the performance on the football field they wanted. Coach Darren Parker had a youthful squad but will feature fresh faces on offense. If the Broncos can get up to speed early then they could be a top 4 team in the 1A East playoffs.
PROJECTED TOP 5 in Region A for 2017
1. Sussex Central
2. Essex
3. Franklin
4. Northampton
5. Surry
EXTRA POINT
Colleges are looking for talent and the crop of young men continue to grow with the potential to make it big on the next level. Here is a listing of the top prospects as of this spring.
Adarious Jones will be key for the Trojans to have defensive success.
Top Collegiate Prospects of Region A
1. Adarious Jones DE 6' 3" 270 Essex
2. Phe'Shard Harris WR 6' 5" 215 Sussex Central
3. KJ Dameron RB 6' 1" 245 Essex
4. Natron Lee WR 6' 180 Franklin
5. Amari Hill ATH 6' 205 Sussex Central
6. Darius Savedge QB 6' 4" 185 Surry County
7. Johnny Jena TE 6' 5" 250 West Point
8. Clyde Edmond LB 6' 3" 215 Sussex Central
9. Ryan Huffman ATH 6'1" 195 King William
10. Tayriel Ruffin RB 5' 9" 165 Southampton
Phe'Shard Harris (#9) of Sussex Central should be a major force on both sides of the ball.
Schools expected to have new leadership in coaching for 2017:
1. Essex (Todd Jones)
2. Windsor (Tyler Mosely)
3. Colonial Beach
4. Northumberland
5. Lancaster
6. Washington & Lee
Enjoy the offseason and get ready for some incredible action this August!
We start out with an update on the top Division 2 program last season and projected for 2017 King William. The Cavaliers like the top Division 1 program in Region A share a common bond....stability. With so many coaching changes amongst several of the programs, King William looks to be stronger coming off a season where they were young weren't expected to dominate. They still won their division and haven't lost a district game since October 10, 2008.
Dylan DeHart's Cavaliers will have more experience and desire to go further this fall.
Coach Dylan DeHart will be entering his 5th season as head man for the black and gold and knows what it will take to get the Cavs into the state playoff conversion.
"We are hoping to build on the young group that played for us last season. We lose 8 seniors from last season's team and we need to build some guys up to fill in some important spots. We want to get our young players as much work as they can this offseason to prepare them for more playing time. We need to develop more strength and speed and we hope to have significant attendance from players not playing other sports." expressed DeHart.
The Cavaliers will change up their schedule a little more for this upcoming season. "We have some new opponents on the schedule for this season that I am looking forward to facing." said DeHart. Prince Edward is coming off a 5-5 season and a playoff berth will replace Madison Co. on the schedule this season. They will have a strong Central Woodstock team replacing rival Caroline as well.
King William is projected to dominate their district and be the top Division 2 program in Region A. No longer do they fear having success and then losing a coach after a few years of change. DeHart stated, "It appeared many people assumed I would be leaving after a few seasons but that was never my intention. In a perfect world I would love to be the head coach at King William the rest of my career. There is a very bright future for KW football and I hope to be a part of it for many years."
PROJECTED TOP 5 in Region A for 2017
1. King William
2. Brunswick
3. Nandua
4. Greensville County
5. Arcadia
Last season's top Division 1 team surprised many but not us here at VirginiaPreps who predicted Sussex Central would have their best squad since 2012. We were exactly right. This year the Tigers are expected to have their best team since 2003 when they last won a state championship and fielded a potent defense.
Sussex Central coach Curtis Jefferson could return west in December again.
Coach Curtis Jefferson will enter his 16th season as the head coach of the Tigers who are hungry to capture another title. After falling short to an experienced Riverheads team, Sussex Central is eager to get back and has more than enough talent to get there.
Sussex Central will have with a contest crucial to obtaining a top seed in 2017 when they host the Essex Trojans to kick off the season. Other schedule highlights include a trip to South Hill to face Park View and they play host to rival Franklin and Southampton this season.
Speaking of Essex, the Trojans had an uncharacteristic bad start which snow balled into many other problems. A string of injuries and not winning the district for the first time since 2011 resulted in coaching change where legendary Todd Jones returns back to the program. It will be interesting to see how different the Trojans will look.
Franklin had more players and depth than both Sussex Central and Essex but it didn't translate to the performance on the football field they wanted. Coach Darren Parker had a youthful squad but will feature fresh faces on offense. If the Broncos can get up to speed early then they could be a top 4 team in the 1A East playoffs.
PROJECTED TOP 5 in Region A for 2017
1. Sussex Central
2. Essex
3. Franklin
4. Northampton
5. Surry
EXTRA POINT
Colleges are looking for talent and the crop of young men continue to grow with the potential to make it big on the next level. Here is a listing of the top prospects as of this spring.
Adarious Jones will be key for the Trojans to have defensive success.
Top Collegiate Prospects of Region A
1. Adarious Jones DE 6' 3" 270 Essex
2. Phe'Shard Harris WR 6' 5" 215 Sussex Central
3. KJ Dameron RB 6' 1" 245 Essex
4. Natron Lee WR 6' 180 Franklin
5. Amari Hill ATH 6' 205 Sussex Central
6. Darius Savedge QB 6' 4" 185 Surry County
7. Johnny Jena TE 6' 5" 250 West Point
8. Clyde Edmond LB 6' 3" 215 Sussex Central
9. Ryan Huffman ATH 6'1" 195 King William
10. Tayriel Ruffin RB 5' 9" 165 Southampton
Phe'Shard Harris (#9) of Sussex Central should be a major force on both sides of the ball.
Schools expected to have new leadership in coaching for 2017:
1. Essex (Todd Jones)
2. Windsor (Tyler Mosely)
3. Colonial Beach
4. Northumberland
5. Lancaster
6. Washington & Lee
Enjoy the offseason and get ready for some incredible action this August!
