Clinton uses spring practice to try and fill some holes from graduation
Red Devils lose 25 seniors from 13-1 team that played for AAA upper state title
Clinton – The just completed spring practice for the Clinton High School football team may have been just a bit more important than previous ones. The reason for that is the number of players having to be replaced not just in the starting lineup from last season’s 13-1 squad, but on the roster itself.
The Red Devils, who were undefeated until losing to eventual state champion Powdersville 27-14 in the AAA upper state championship game, had 25 players in the senior class. They have five starters returning on defense, but just three on offense.
“We got about 14 days of good work in,” said Corey Fountain, who will begin his fifth season as CHS head coach on August 18 on the road against Batesburg-Leesville. “We had a lot of guys playing three sports, a lot of guys running track and playing baseball (on a state championship team). It was more mental reps (repetitiosn) with them in just helmets to keep those guys fresh for the other sports.
“We had a lot of new faces,” he added. “This will probably be a little bit of a rebuilding year for us. We’ve got a lot of guys working really hard in the weight room.”
And the Clinton athletic department has its first ever fulltime strength coach in place in Adam Howell.
The Red Devils had a prolific rushing offense last season with three 1,000-yard rushers in Bryson James, Jayden Robinson and Jishun Copeland. Robinson is the only one returning from that trio.
The other returning starters on offense are tight end/wide receiver Kadon Crawford and center Rion Gordon.
Kason Copeland will be in the backfield this season after playing primarily on defense last year at linebacker.
“We just had so much depth at running back we kept him mainly on defense,” Fountain said. “He will definitely be carrying the football this season.”
Clinton will be breaking in a new quarterback this season. Last year’s starter, Austin Copeland, graduated and Bryce Young, who started the last few games when Copeland was lost due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament, has decided not to play this upcoming season. Junior Tushawan Richardson is penciled in as the starter with Crawford his backup.
Senior cornerback Zaravion “Zay” Johnson is back to lead the defense. He is committed to play collegiately for Cincinnati.
The other returning defensive starters are Robinson at safety, Kason Copeland and Brett Young at linebacker and Nyze Byrd at defensive end.
Fountain hopes what the just-graduated group of seniors did during its time in the football program has set a standard for what is yet to come.
“That group of guys were all freshmen in my first year,” said Fountain, who led Clinton to a 24-3 record the pat two seasons. “They worked hard, were uber competitive I hope our players saw how competitive they were, how hard they worked on a consistent basis.
“I hope they see, ‘Hey that's how we operate. It’s the next man up. We’ve got new faces, new names, that are going to be put in the fire. They’ve been leaning on all those seniors, now it’s their turn. I’m looking for them to operate to the ability that they are capable of.”
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