Even before official practice with helmets and shoulder pads began on Aug. 3, Floyd Central football coach James Bragg had a scheduling message for his players.
“I’m not visiting home for Thanksgiving,” he shouted. “I’m spending it with you guys.”
Spending the Thanksgiving weekend with his players would signify that the Highlanders will be playing for the Class 5A state championship.
For a team that’s never even won a regional title in program history, it seems like a lofty goal. But raised expectations and standards — after winning its first sectional title in 10 years and just third in school history — mean the goal’s not too ambitious for the Highlanders.
“We’re coming off a 9-3 season and the first sectional championship in a decade. We have a lot to expect,” said senior linebacker Colin Cummins, who led the team with 106 tackles last season. “We got a handful of Division I kids. We got threats and we got the talent this year and I think we can definitely make a run this year.”
The bitterness of losing the last game of previous season’s contest — a loss to Bloomington South in the regionals — still lingers among the team. That the Highlanders were up 14-13 at halftime against the heavy-favorite makes it worse.
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But with an offseason and the coronavirus pandemic to mull over their last game, they’re ready to translate that bitterness to sweetness.
“That game eats me up. I probably watch that game every week,” Cummins said. “For me, that game will absolutely carry over next year because we can beat that team. My boys will agree with it. That was one of the harder losses to take. I think that Bloomington South game has given us confidence not only because we hung in there but we were up at halftime. We knew we could beat those kids. That confidence will carry over into this season.”
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With 15 starters back, eight on offense and seven on defense, the bull's-eye is on Floyd Central’s back.
“We’re going to get the best shot every week. To get over the hump, it’s us,” Bragg said. “We got to control what we can control and don’t get caught up with (hype) and press clippings and stay the course.”
Senior quarterback Tristian Polk, who threw for 1,676 yards and 12 touchdowns last year and was named to the Courier Journal All-Area Football Team, said he personally enjoys the raised standard of the team.
“We want our expectations to be higher,” he said. “We want the Highlanders to be known as a better football team. We don’t want to be taken lightly. We don’t want to say we got sectionals and we’re done. We got stumped at regionals and we don’t want that again.”
Senior running back Wenkers Wright, who committed to Illinois State, returns after rushing for 2,056 yards and 26 touchdowns and is expected to be a force behind an offensive line anchored by Louisville commit Zen Michalski. Leading receiver Kaleb Quenichet returns too, though Calvin Brown and Landon Deweese have graduated.
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With rising cases of COVID-19 in the area, New Albany-Floyd County Consolidated School Corporation has implemented a hybrid model, which will have students whose last names begin with A through K to attend school on Monday and Wednesday with other remaining days to be e-learning. Those with last names L through Z will attend school Tuesday and Thursday with other days being e-learning.
After school, they can all practice together.
How to manage the team when about half of it is at home is something to watch for, Bragg noted.
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“In the past, we can call kids for grades and I can get them during the school day,” he said. “If I catch someone with a bad grade and they’re at e-learning I can’t just pick up the phone and call.”
But eager to play competitive football, players said they’re taking extra precautions and ready to overcome their unique schedules. Waiting months to train was difficult, and they finally got to have a scrimmage on Saturday. They don’t want to ruin their season and their lofty goals by being careless.
“We were a hair away from never playing football again for the seniors,” Cummins said. “It means everything to me to be back out here. We were so close to seeing this get taken away. I just want to see come out with 100% effort because you don’t know when it’s going to be last.”
2019 season
Record: 9-3
Lost 40-14 to Bloomington South in the regionals
2020 Regular season schedule
Aug. 21 vs. Jeffersonville (non-conference)
Aug. 28 vs. Providence
Sept. 4 at Cincinnati Elder (Ohio)
Sept. 11 at New Albany
Sept. 18 at Jeffersonville
Sept. 25 vs. Columbus East
Oct. 2 vs. Jennings County
Oct. 9 at Bedford North Lawrence
Oct. 16 vs. Seymour
David J. Kim: DKim@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @_DavidJKim. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: https://ift.tt/2Z9C9oV.
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'We got the talent this year': Floyd Central football has raised expectations in 2020 - Courier Journal
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