Siegel looking to get back on winning track

Aug 12, 2015 at 04:30 pm by bryan


Siegel was almost a victim of its previous success last season, which saw the Stars finishing a disappointing 3-7.

Siegel faced the always tough District 7-AAA schedule, not to mention non-conference games against Ooltewah, McCallie and Science Hill. The Stars were coming off two dynamic seasons and it was difficult to find opponents last year. The result was a young team that tried to find its way all season.

The schedule will be very demanding again in 2015, but coach Greg Wyant hopes his team will be better equipped to handle it.

"It's probably front-end loaded," Wyant said. "It's still a tough schedule. We're playing a state champion, plus a team that was in the semifinals. We've also got Oakland and Blackman and a tough district schedule. We won't shy away from anyone because we want to compete against the best people we can compete against.

"We're not going to lower our expectations because of a 3-7 record. They're still high, and we want to be the best team in our district. If you are you've got a good chance to go far in the playoffs. The standard in Rutherford County has always been high."

Offensively, the Stars should be in great shape provided a young offensive line develops.

Starting quarterback Jordan Middleton is back for his senior year, and his experience and grasp of the offense should make him one of the top QBs in the league.

The Stars also return standout tailback Greedy Howse, who proved to be one of the most electrifying players in the league a year ago.

Taking care of the little things will be a keys to the Stars' success on the offensive side of the ball, Wyant said.

"We've got a couple of returning starters up front, but we're young there minus those two guys. We're still trying to move some receivers around. We're getting better and we should be more explosive than we were last year.

"We ran the ball every ball game but one really, but we've got to finish ball games. We made too many mistakes that got us beat. We've got to get away from the mistakes, turnovers and stupid penalties. It's just the simple things."

Defensively, Siegel should be a much-improved group and led by a strong secondary that includes Rico Gregory, Keegan Harper, Michael Scruggs, Pele McDaniels and Marcus Wilson. The linebacking corps of Gef Elder, Deonte Newsom, Freddie Owens, Cole Murray, Trey Jernigan and Rodney Murray also should be a strength.

"Our secondary and linebackers will probably be the strength," Wyant said. "It's hard to say right now going against scout team guys.

"Defensively, we've got to get off the field better on third down. We got ourselves in too many bad positions (last season). We have to get a lot more turnovers and be more aggressive."

As with every coach going into a new season, Wyant does have some concerns heading into the season opener at Ravenwood on Aug. 20.

"We've got inexperience up front on the offensive line," he said. "We're going to play some sophomore this year that are going to be good players, but they've got to go through the trials and tribulations and get to the point where every day is not and up-and-down, yo-yo day. They've got to be more consistent."

ANALYSIS

The Stars are still somewhat of an unknown after a 3-7 record in 2014, but they shouldn't have a problem putting points on the board. The key will be eliminating the costly mistakes that Wyant alluded to, as well as the defense making a lot of improvement.

TEAM PERSONNEL

OFFENSE
QB: Jordan Middleton, Sr.

RB: Greedy Howse, Sr.; Michael Scruggs, So.

RB: Rodney Murray; Deonte Newsom, Sr.

WR: Rico Gregory, Sr.; Parker Roshon, Sr.; Dre McMillan, Jr.; Marcus Wilson, Sr.; Trey Jernigan, Sr.

C: Dylan Bargatze, Sr.

RG: Josh Burkhart, Jr.

RT: Zane Gannon, So.; Michell Tewell, Sr.

LG: Wesley Woodard, So.; Seth Cooper, Jr.;

LT: Daulton Bargatze; Sr.; Maxwell Iyama, So.

DEFENSE

NG: Landon Patterson, Sr. ; Michael Tewell, Sr.

DE: Daulton Frantz, Jr.; Daulton Bargatze, Sr.; Joseph Anderson, Fr.; Devin Wright, So.

OLB: Gef Elder, Sr.; Deonte, Newsom, Sr.; Freddie Owens, So.

ILB: Cole Murray, Jr.; Trey Jernigan, Sr.; Rodney Murray, Jr.

S: Dre McMillan, Jr.; Marcus Wilson, Jr.

ROVER: Pele McDaniels, Sr.; Michael Lee Rover, Jr.

CB: Rico Gregory, Sr.; Keegan Harper, Sr., Michael Scruggs, So.

Sports editor Monte Hale Jr. may be contacted at mhale@murfreesboropost.com

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