Category: Coal Grove

Senators sting, stymie host Hornets

vs

Results

Team1234TOutcome
Coal Grove660012Loss
Portsmouth West786021Win

Senators sting, stymie host Hornets

 

By PAUL BOGGS

Photo’s by Tim Gearheart

COAL GROVE — For the second consecutive week, a visiting Southern Ohio Conference Division II opponent took the sting out of the home-standing Coal Grove Hornets.

In the process, those SOC II squads produced nice bounce-back victories.

This time, the Portsmouth West Senators – on Friday night at LeMaster Stadium in Coal Grove – scored the final 14 points and pitched a second-half shutout, en route to defeating the Hornets 21-12 in a non-league tilt.

A week ago, it was the visiting Valley Indians handing Coal Grove a non-league loss (34-19), as Friday night’s affair with West marked the Hornets’ third straight home game.

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The Hornets erased an early 7-0 deficit by scoring a dozen straight over a span of almost 11 minutes, but the Senators answered the Hornets’ second touchdown with a nine-play, 60-yard, four-minute drive to take the lead at 15-12.

The Senators shut out the Hornets for the final 31 minutes and 46 seconds, and went up 21-12 following the opening series of the second half – a six-play, 61-yard drive that spanned 2:09.

For the Senators, which raised their record to 2-1, their road recovery from Friday night was exactly what they needed – after a difficult turnover-filled home loss last week against Portsmouth (48-28).

“This was our first road game of the year with a young team, so you never know how your kids are going to react when they face adversity. We had a good hard-working week of practice, we played well tonight, and our kids did an outstanding job of persevering and bouncing back and coming back and getting this one,” said Portsmouth West coach Ben Johnson. “We’ve had some trouble holding on to the ball this year.”

Instead, it was the Senators sparking turnovers this week, forcing Coal Grove quarterback Cory Borders into three interceptions and only 24 yards on 3-of-8 passing.

Johnson said INTs were a point of emphasis.

“We talked before the game that we hadn’t had any interceptions yet this year,” he said. “We wanted to improve in our pass coverage.”

But actually, the entire West defense did its job, especially over the final 26 minutes.

The Hornets had just 48 second-half yards – with Coal Grove’s final five possessions resulting in the three interceptions, a turnover on downs after a 10-play drive, and a punt following a three-and-out series.

Meanwhile, West – with a 15-12 halftime lead – tacked on what turned out to be the only second-half score.

The Senators made it 21-12 just two minutes and 16 seconds into the third quarter – as William Journey’s gains of 23, 12 and four yards moved Portsmouth West from its own 39 to the Hornet 18.

Hunter Brown then took a well-executed inside counter trap to paydirt, scoring from 18 yards away.

The Senators punted on their next three possessions, including two three-and-outs, but their defense definitely didn’t allow the Hornets to have much of anything.

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“We took the lead before halftime, which was huge to get momentum before halftime. We said if we shut them out in the second half, we have the lead and so that’s it. We came out after halftime and had a good drive and scored. The hard work that our guys put in with strength and conditioning showed as well,” said Johnson. “It doesn’t always work out that way, but the things we talked about at halftime, we came out and executed and got it done and got the win.

Despite the loss, which dropped his group to 1-2, Coal Grove coach Jay Lucas liked the fight and will his Hornets displayed.

He said it was simply a matter of the Senators making more plays.

“Our kids played hard, our effort was outstanding and we battled like crazy, but we just missed some plays that we needed to make tonight,” said Lucas. “We’re young and inexperienced and we’re playing good teams. We have to clean up some mistakes. When you are playing good SOC II teams like we have the last two weeks, they make you pay for those mistakes. West was opportunistic on a few plays there where they converted third-and-longs, things like that where they kept the ball. I’m proud of our kids, but we just have to step up and make a play here and there.”

They did make some plays early on.

#
30
Name
Austin Stapleton
Position
2021
Height
5-10
Weight
225
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019, 2020
Of their 192 rushing yards, 67 of those came courtesy of Austin Stapleton on the Hornets’ first touchdown – which answered the Senators’ initial score in a matter of only 49 seconds and two plays.

The extra-point attempt failed, but Coal Grove seized the lead following a nine-play, 84-yard, four-minute and four-second march, which Austin Stormes scored on a 3-yard toss sweep to the right.

Stormes broke free for a 40-yard dash to the Senator 18-yard-line, as Stapleton then ran for 12 yards on a fullback trap to the 1.

However, the Hornets’ only other play in double-digit yardage was a Borders pass completion for 11 yards to Justin Hicks.

Storms amassed 96 yards on 16 carries, while Stapleton amounted 94 yards on 15 totes.

#
13
Name
William Journey
Height
5-07
Weight
160
Current Team
Portsmouth West
Leagues
SEO, SOC2
Seasons
2019
Journey, who paced the Senators and all rushers with 112 yards on 23 carries, crossed from three yards out to get Portsmouth West on the board at the 6:57 mark of the opening quarter.

West went exclusively to the ground on an eight-play, 60-yard drive, as Caleb Hazelbaker kicked the extra point for the 7-0 lead.

Stapleton scampered his 67 yards right up the middle just 49 seconds later, then Stormes scored to make it 12-7 with the failed PAT pass attempt at the 7:46 mark of the second stanza.

The Senators took the lead for good on the next possession, as Journey converted a 3rd-and-3 with a 4-yard pickup – before quarterback Luke Bradford scrambled for 19 yards to push Portsmouth West to the Coal Grove 25.

On 4th-and-12 at the 27, Bradford rolled left and threw across his body to Brown, who made the TD reception to make it 13-12.

Bradford then made a spectacular play on the successful two-point conversion attempt, as he rolled right and threw back left to an open Journey in the end zone.

“On that particular drive, Luke (Bradford) made several athletic plays. Just being an athlete,” said Johnson. “He made plays outside the original design of the play. It was huge to see him step up like that.”

From there, it was all West, as Brandon Anderson intercepted Borders to stop the Hornets’ final series of the half.

Bradford and Ryan Sissel secured the other two picks.

“To West’s credit, they made some plays on three balls thrown, and on a lot of plays tonight, Cory (Borders) was on the move,” said Lucas. “West made good plays.”

West rushed for 215 yards on 49 carries out of primarily the I-formation, as Bradford completed 9-of-12 passes for 94 yards, including three to Brown for 35.

The Senators doubled up the Hornets in first downs, 20-10.

Coal Grove travels to South Point next week for the Ohio Valley Conference opener, while West also returns to the road – and returns to non-league action – next week at Wellston.

*     *     *

Portsmouth West 21, Coal Grove 12

West 7 8 6 0 – 21

Coal Grove 6 6 0 0 – 12

PW —  William Journey, 3-yard run (Caleb Hazelbaker kick), 6:57, 1st (7-0 PW)

CG — Austin Stapleton, 67-yard run (run failed), 6:08, 1st (7-6 PW)

CG —  Austin Stormes, 3-yard run (pass failed), 7:46, 2nd (12-7 CG)

PW — Hunter Brown, 27-yard pass from Luke Bradford (William Journey pass from Luke Bradford), 3:38, 2nd (15-12 PW)

PW — Hunter Brown, 18-yard run (kick failed), 9:44, 3rd (21-12 PW)

Team statistics

PW CG

First downs 20 10

Plays from scrimmage 61 44

Rushes-yards 49-215 36-192

Passing yards 94 24

Total yards 309 216

Cmp-Att-Int. 9-12-0 3-8-3

Fumbles-lost 3-1 0-0

Penalties-yards 4-32 3-33

Punts-average 4-23.75 3-32.7

——

Individual Leaders

RUSHING —Portsmouth West: William Journey 23-112 TD, Mitchell Malnar 8-51, Hunter Brown 8-39 TD, Luke Bradford 9-18, Team 1-(-5); Coal Grove: Austin Stormes 16-96 TD, Austin Stapleton 15-94 TD, Joe Abrams 2-4, Cory Borders 3-(-2)

PASSING — Portsmouth West: Luke Bradford 9-12-0-94 TD; Coal Grove: Cory Borders 3-8-3-24

RECEIVING — Portsmouth West: Hunter Brown 3-35 TD, CalebJourney 2-37, Mitchell Malnar 2-21, Brandon Anderson 1-6, William Journey 1-(-5); Coal Grove: Justin Hicks 1-11, Austin Stormes 1-9, Joe Abrams 1-4

Coal Grove

# Offense CMP ATT INT PYDS TD ATT RUYDS TD REC REYDS TD
3Cory Borders3832403-20000
4Justin Hicks000000001110
10Austin Stormes0000016961190
24Joe Abrams00000240140
30Austin Stapleton0000015941000
 Total3832403619223240
# Defense Sacks Tackles INT FGM FGA
 Total00000

Portsmouth West

# Offense CMP ATT INT PYDS TD ATT RUYDS TD REC REYDS TD
William Journey000002311211-50
Mitchell Malnar0000085102210
Hunter Brown0000083913351
Luke Bradford91209418180000
Caleb Journey000000002370
Brandon Anderson00000000160
 Total91209414722029941
# Defense Sacks Tackles INT FGM FGA
 Total00000

Details

Date Time League Season
September 13, 2019 7:00 pm SEO 2019

Venue

Coal Grove

Hornets rout Raiders in Lucas’ CG debut

vs

Results

Team1234TOutcome
Coal Grove14612020Win
River Valley70007Loss

By PAUL BOGGS

Photos by Tim Gearheart

Video by Josh Wheeler

 

COAL GROVE – Indeed, it was a highly-successful homecoming for Coal Grove’s Jay Lucas.

Making his head coaching debut at his alma mater, Lucas’ host Hornets held the visiting River Valley Raiders without an offensive touchdown, amassed over 400 yards of offense themselves, and scored the game’s final 25 points en route to a 32-7 season-opening victory on Friday night inside LeMaster Stadium in Coal Grove.

The meeting against the Raiders, a former member of the Ohio Valley Conference with Coal Grove, was the Hornets’ 15th all-time – as Coal Grove now owns a decisive 13-2 series advantage.

The two teams had played consecutive from 2002 thru 2013, with the Raiders only winning in back-to-back years of 2002 and 2003.

Last season, the Hornets shut out an extremely young River Valley squad, 47-0.

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Before Friday’s game, Lucas’ father – longtime and legendary Coal Grove coach Dave Lucas – was honored with a sign renaming the street which runs in front of the high school as Dave Lucas Lane.

Jay was his longtime assistant, but now the roles are reversed with Dave assisting his son.

The father-and-son tandem spent the past two seasons at Wellston after originally coaching the Golden Rockets from 2000 thru 2002, with Jay getting hired there in 2017 for his first career head coaching job.

But, the younger Lucas was glad to once again occupy the Lemaster Stadium sidelines, with the elder Lucas calling his shots from the press box.

Jay, Dave and Jay’s son and assistant coach Jordan Lucas were recognized beforehand as three generations of the Lucas’ coaching at Coal Grove.

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Jay said he was relieved once the game started, and praised his Hornets for how hard they played and how well they performed.

Head Coach Jay Lucas

Current Team
Coal Grove
Past Teams
Chillicothe, Portsmouth, Wellston
“I thought our kids played really hard. I would be lying if I said it wasn’t an emotional time for me, because it was the first one (game),” he said. “Coal Grove has always been home. I’ve been around here all my life. We had to make some adjustments when we did and I thought they executed well on both sides of the ball, and I was really proud of them. They (Raiders) are vastly improved from last year, but I was pleased with how we kept our focus for the entire game, especially throughout the delay.”

The Hornets scored the final 25 points in the final 37 minutes and 34 seconds, and withstood a 55-minute weather delay in the second quarter by dominating both sides of the ball following it.

Coal Grove gained 405 total yards, including 284 rushing on 52 carries.

The Lucas’ — long known for their ground-oriented trap-heavy ball-control and clock-consuming running philosophy — also aired it out on Friday for 16 attempts with nine completions.

#
30
Name
Austin Stapleton
Position
2021
Height
5-10
Weight
225
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019, 2020
Austin Stapleton struck for 115 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 19 carries, and Austin Stormes – on 10 totes and 53 yards with five receptions for 74 yards – scored on an 8-yard run with a minute-and-a-half left in the first quarter to give the Hornets the lead for good.

#
10
Name
Austin Stormes
Position
2020
Height
5-11
Weight
175
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019
“Those two backs, we feel good about those guys. They can really do some damage from the backfield spot,” said Lucas.

Cory Borders, making his first start at quarterback for the graduated Nate Harmon, completed 8-of-14 passes for 117 yards.

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His 6-yard completion to Jarren Hicks with five minutes remaining in the third quarter capped the scoring at 32-7.

Coal Grove outgained the Raiders by almost 300 yards (405-117), and stymied the injury-riddled Raiders to 33 rushing yards on 20 attempts.

The Hornets held a hefty 25-5 advantage in first downs, and forced the Raiders into four punts with three turnovers.

The second of two lost first-quarter fumbles, with 6:42 to play, produced the Hornets’ first touchdown.

River Valley quarterback Jordan Burns completed a swing pass in the end zone, but Justin Hicks hit Jared Reese and jarred the ball loose, as Logan Sizemore recovered.

Lucas spoke to the physicality of which the Hornets hit the Raiders.

“We feel like we have a good group on the defensive side of the ball,” he said. “The play that Justin made there set the tone and gave us momentum. We have some good skilled players, but Coal Grove has always been pretty physical. We were going to challenge them up front and see where they ended up.”

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Where several Raiders ended up, unfortunately, was out of the game and on the sidelines.

River Valley, under second-year head coach Jason Peck and coming off a 1-9 season, was already a key man down with senior fullback and linebacker Colton Gilmore likely out for the year with an injury.

The Silver and Black turned even more black and blue with three other injuries in the contest – senior lineman Cole Thaxton, senior running back and strong safety Cole Young, and sophomore lineman Landon Dodrill.

The Raiders’ only score occurred just 15 seconds after Coal Grove struck first – when Young returned the ensuing kickoff 85 yards untouched up the middle.

But the Hornets hit back with a 55-yard, 10-play scoring drive that spanned five minutes and 53 seconds.

Coal Grove mixed runs with Stapleton and Stormes, as Stormes scored from eight yards away with 1:34 left in the first quarter.

J.C. Damron made his second of two successful extra point kicks to make it 14-7, giving the Hornets the lead for good.

After an exchange of punts, the Raiders returned a punt 31 yards to the Coal Grove 17, but River Valley turned the ball over on downs inside the red zone.

The weather delay hit at the 4:17 mark with a torrential downpour, and when the contest resumed, the Hornets were ready while the Raiders were not.

Coal Grove drove 87 yards in only five plays on the first possession following the break, as Stapleton scored from 13 yards away with 2:52 left in the first half.

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Stormes scampered for a dozen yards, a River Valley face-mask penalty pushed the ball to midfield, and Borders broke free for a 38-yard gainer on the previous three plays.

Lucas said it was important for the Hornets to make necessary adjustments.

“They had 11 guys inside the box, so we decided we had to adjust. Fortunately, we have some kids that can make some plays. We got the ball to them at the right time,” he said.

From there, the Raiders ran just 14 more plays from scrimmage, as the Hornets started the third quarter with a 9-play, 75-yard march which consumed the opening four minutes.

Stapleton scored from a yard away making it 26-7.

After a River Valley three-and-out, Coal Grove ended the scoring with another five-play drive, highlighted by Borders’ 32-yard pass to Justin Hicks – before his touchdown toss to Jarren Hicks.

#
3
Name
Cory Borders
Position
2020
Height
5-10
Weight
170
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019

The Raiders then went three-and-out two more times, sandwiched around a 17-play Coal Grove drive which featured nothing but running plays involving the backups.

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The Hornets held the ball from the 10-minute mark until just 17 seconds remained.

Borders threw an interception on his final play of the night, but aided in rushing with exactly 50 yards on only five carries.

His counterpart Burns completed 5-of-15 passes for 84 yards, as Joe Abrams ended the Raiders’ last-best scoring opportunity – intercepting Burns at the goal-line with a minute-and-a-half left before halftime.

River Valley hosts Gallia Academy on Saturday night in that series finale, while the Hornets return home – and return to non-league action – next Friday night against Valley.

For this Friday night, though, it was a highly-successful homecoming for Lucas.

“We’re glad to be back and this team is finding its way,” he said. “I’ve been here a long time, and the expectation is to win. I know that, and I expect our kids to go out and play well. It was great to get the win, our kids really responded well, and I thought our kids got better as the game went on.”

*     *     *

Coal Grove 32, River Valley 7

River Valley 7 0 0 0 – 7

Coal Grove 14 6 12 0 – 32

CG — Logan Sizemore, fumble recovery in end zone (J.C. Damron kick), 6:42, 1st (7-0 CG)

RV — Cole Young, 85-yard kickoff return (Trae Russell kick), 6:27, 1st (7-7 tie)

CG — Austin Stormes, 8-yard run (J.C. Damron kick), 1:34, 1st (14-7 CG)

CG — Austin Stapleton, 13-yard run (pass failed), 2:52, 2nd (20-7 CG)

CG — Austin Stapleton, 1-yard run (kick failed), 8:00, 3rd (26-7 CG)

CG — Jarren Hicks, 6-yard pass from Cory Borders (kick blocked), 4:58, 3rd (32-7 CG)

Team statistics

RV CG

First downs 5 25

Rushes-yards 20-33 52-284

Passing yards 84 121

Total yards 117 405

Cmp-Att-Int. 5-15-1 9-16-1

Fumbles-lost 3-2 3-0

Penalties-yards 9-85 6-40

Punts-average 4-38.25 2-33

——

Individual Leaders

RUSHING —River Valley: Jordan Burns 7-3, Will Hash 5-1, Ryan Jones 3-10, Cole Young 1-8, Michael Conkle 1-8, Jared Reese 1-3, Team 2-0; Coal Grove: Austin Stapleton 19-115 2TD, Austin Stormes 10-53 TD, Cory Borders 5-50, Clay Ferguson 4-26, Trey Hunt 4-15, Chase Hall 4-5, Malachai Wheeler 3-10, Justin Hicks 2-9, Braylen Stuntebeck 1-1

PASSING — River Valley: Jordan Burns 5-15-1-84; Coal Grove: Cory Borders 8-14-1-117 TD, Clay Ferguson 1-1-0-4, Braylen Stuntebeck 0-1-0-0

RECEIVING — River Valley: Brandon Call 2-49, Cole Young 1-29, Will Hash 1-10, Jared Reese 1-(-4); Coal Grove: Austin Stormes 5-74, Justin Hicks 1-32, Malachai Wheeler 2-9, Jarren Hicks 1-6

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Video

CG v River Valley part 2

CG v River Valley after delay : Hornets win 32-7

Posted by Coal Grove Live on Friday, August 30, 2019

Coal Grove

# Offense CMP ATT INT PYDS TD ATT RUYDS TD REC REYDS TD
2Malachai Wheeler000003100290
3Cory Borders814111615500000
4Justin Hicks000002901320
5Jarren Hicks000000001600
9Braylen Stuntebeck01000110000
10Austin Stormes00000105315740
14Clay Ferguson110404260000
21Chase Hall00000450000
22Trey Hunt000004150000
30Austin Stapleton 00000191152000
 Total91611201522843241150
# Defense Sacks Tackles INT FGM FGA
2Malachai Wheeler00000
3Cory Borders00000
4Justin Hicks00000
5Jarren Hicks00000
9Braylen Stuntebeck00000
10Austin Stormes00000
14Clay Ferguson00000
21Chase Hall00000
22Trey Hunt00000
30Austin Stapleton 00000
 Total00000

River Valley

# Offense CMP ATT INT PYDS TD ATT RUYDS TD REC REYDS TD
Ryan Jones000003100000
Will Hash000005101100
Jordan Burns5150840730000
Cole Young000001801290
Michael Conkle00000180000
Jared Reese001003001-40
Brandon Call000000002490
 Total5151840203005840
# Defense Sacks Tackles INT FGM FGA
Ryan Jones00000
Will Hash00000
Jordan Burns00000
Cole Young012000
Michael Conkle00000
Jared Reese00000
Brandon Call00000
 Total012000

Details

Date Time League Season
August 30, 2019 7:00 pm SEO 2019

Venue

Coal Grove

Lucas returns home to lead Hornets

By PAUL BOGGS

Photo’s by Tim Gearhart & Kent Sanborn

COAL GROVE – Jay Lucas is proving that you can go home again.

That’s because Lucas, after guiding the Wellston Golden Rocket football program for the past two seasons, has returned to Coal Grove – and now heads up his hometown Hornets.

Lucas leads the Hornets after several seasons as an assistant to his legendary father, Dave Lucas – a member of the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

While Wellston was the Lucas’ second home, as the duo also teamed up there from 2000 thru 2002, Jay’s chance to coach his alma mater was simply too much to turn down.

“It’s good to be home and I am thankful for the opportunity. I feel very blessed to be with this group of guys. This is a really good group of kids. They have worked exceptionally hard so far and I am hoping this season turns out good for them,” said Jay Lucas. “We feel good about the group of kids that we have. This group isn’t the same as they had last year, but as is always the case, you go with the next man up.”

Those next men up look to rebound from a 4-6 campaign – one year after advancing to the Division VI, Region 21 championship game.

The Hornets have graduated some key personnel, including third-team Division VI all-Ohio defensive back Aaron Music.

While some squads might sleep on the young Hornets, Lucas believes “we can compete with anybody on our schedule. But we still have to go out, play well and execute.”

That execution includes Lucas likely heading up the defense, which was his specialty when his father was the bench boss.

Dave Lucas, likely, calls the offense, which has traditionally featured a run-oriented, trap-heavy, ball-control, clock-consuming style of wing-T attack.

However, the younger Lucas said he has intentions of implementing some spread-the-field philosophies.

“We feel like we can move the ball on the ground. We have good interchangeable backs, and I feel confident with our line of scrimmage. But I think we will have to be more versatile, though, and get our athletes the ball out in space and in position to make plays,” he said. “To line up in double-tight all the time and run it down their throats…we do have to adjust and adapt, because the game is changing.”

So are the Hornets’ starters.

Besides the two-way standout Music, who also starred and was a first-team all-Southeast District wide receiver, two-year starting quarterback Nate Harmon also graduated – as he too was a first-team all-district honoree.

Harmon threw for 1,066 yards, while rushing for 527 as a senior.

Senior Cory Borders

#
3
Name
Cory Borders
Position
2020
Height
5-10
Weight
170
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019
steps in under center, while sophomores Clay Ferguson and Malachi Wheeler will be the backups.

Austin Stapleton

#
30
Name
Austin Stapleton
Position
2021
Height
5-10
Weight
225
Current Team
Coal Grove
Leagues
OVC, SEO
Seasons
2019, 2020
returns at fullback, as the five-foot, 10-inch, 225-pound junior averaged nearly seven yards per carry (686 yards, six touchdowns in 2018) as an all-district first-teamer.

But Stapleton, Lucas said, should see some carries at tailback too, along with Wheeler, Austin Stormes and Trey Hunt.

Wheeler and Justin Hicks are the likely wingbacks.

The receiving corps consists of senior Ethan Short and sophomores Perry Kingery, Jarren Hicks and Joe Abrams, as Short saw considerable playing time last season opposite Music.

While several skilled positions feature fresh faces, the offensive and defensive lines lend experience and depth.

Ben Compliment, a 6-2, 240-pound junior, has started at every position on the offensive front – and is the anchor as a guard this year.

Compliment can play tackle as well, having earned all-district Special Mention as a sophomore.

Kye Robinson (6-0, 200, jr.) returns at center, but is being pushed by Jeremiah “Bullfrog” Rice (5-10, 210, jr.)

Seniors Justin Castle (5-9, 200) and Reece York (5-9, 245) are also returning starters, working heavily at guard AND tackle along with sophomore Logan Sizemore.

Fellow senior Colten Sparks (6-0, 215) is a returning tackle, along with juniors Tucker Meadow (6-4, 255) and Chris Wilson (5-9, 250).

The defensive line features returnees Stapleton, Castle and York, while Wilson, Rice and Sparks will join them in the rotation.

Short, Kingery and even Hunt hold down the end spots.

“We’ll be moving guys in and out based on formation,” said Lucas.

The linebackers will as well, with Hunt, Storms and even Compliment on the inside, as Wheeler and Short shoulder the outside.

The secondary rotation consists of Borders, Ferguson, Jarron Hicks, Justin Hicks, Wheeler and Abrams.

With Music’s graduation headlining the defensive replacements, Lucas likes those replacement parts, but it’s all about gelling as a unit.

“I’m anxious to see what pieces we have. We’ve lost some guys off the team from last year, and lost almost all the guys off the team from the year (2017) before. We do have a few pieces of the puzzle that are back. I know what those guys can do, but I have to see the younger guys that are replacing some of those graduated guys,” said the coach. “I like our speed and I think we have good size, but the key for us is how well we come together. I like our pieces, but will those pieces all come together.”

Those pieces perhaps need to mesh quickly, prior to the start of the Ohio Valley Conference schedule in mid-September.

Gallia Academy is the defending league champion, as Ironton and perhaps Portsmouth and Fairland are viewed as the top challengers.

Lucas labeled the conference “competitive and balanced.”

“Every team should be pretty good and everybody should be improved. I think the league is going to be balanced and competitive and fun,” he said.

Lucas knows all about competition at Coal Grove, as he and his father are both excited about returning “home”.

Head Coach Jay Lucas

Current Team
Coal Grove
Past Teams
Chillicothe, Portsmouth, Wellston

“My dad is my hero. I am very blessed to have him as my father. I think of him as a great football coach for sure, but it goes much deeper than that. He is the best man I’ve ever met,” said the younger Lucas. “I’m tickled to death that he is able to be out here and be with us. I don’t know that there’s anybody in the world that’s a bigger advocate for high school football and a guy that’s better to be around kids. He is phenomenal about teaching life lessons and trying to do things right.”

The Hornets hope to improve this season and do those right things, starting with their season opener against visiting River Valley.

Coal Grove 2019 Roster & Stats

#PlayerPositionHeightWeightCMPATTINTPYDSTDATTRUYDSTDRECREYDSTDSacksTacklesINTFGMFGA
1Morgan Schultz20215-071500000000000000000
2Malachai Wheeler20225-0815538033032148311123100000
3Cory Borders20205-1017062135897695988100000000
4Justin Hicks20206-0217000000645017230100000
5Jarren Hicks20226-021700000000022160100000
7J.C. Damron20216-021700000000000000000
8John Turner20235-081400000000000000000
9Braylen Stuntebeck20235-111500100011000000000
10Austin Stormes20205-1117500000112708322380400000
12Andrew Fields20225-091500000000000000000
14Clay Ferguson20225-1117011040724000000000
15Nate Woodyard20235-081450000000000000000
20Justin Newcomb20225-101600000000000000000
21Chase Hall20235-081550000045000000000
22Trey Hunt20215-102100000020112017000000
23Landon Johnson20225-081500000012000000000
24Joe Abrams20206-021700000032209116000000
27Brayden Wilson20235-081450000000000000000
30Austin Stapleton20215-1022500000180933828000000
32Ethan Short20206-011700000000000000000
33Joe Pommell20215-081400000000000000000
34Dylan Goad20225-091450000000000000000
35Graham Hanshaw20225-081400000000000000000
44Steve Easterling20225-091650000000000000000
50Tucker Meadow20216-042550000000000000000
51Logan Short20235-101700000000000000000
52Brad Wheeler20235-101900000000000000000
53Reece York20205-092450000000000000000
54Logan Sizemore20225-101700000000000000000
55Elias Bazell20235-081550000000000000000
56Justin Castle20205-092200000000000000000
57Kye Robinson20216-002200000000000000000
58Ben Compliment20216-022400000000000000000
60Chris Wilson20215-092500000000000000000
62Jeremiah Rice20215-102100000000000000000
63Dustin Lunsford20235-091850000000000000000
70Cten Sparks20206-002150000000000000000
71Chris Lowe20236-002200000000000000000
72Ty Byrne20235-111750000000000000000
75Landon Webb20235-091650000000000000000
84Perry Kingery20226-001700000000000000000
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