Southfield

Southfield Sun: A look at local prep teams as gridiron season nears

» click to enlarge « Photo by David Schreiber Jonathan Springer throws a pass during practice last week for Southfield Christian. The Eagles won twice in the final three weeks of 2011. Photo by David Schreiber Jonathan Springer throws a pass during practice last week for Southfield Christian. The Eagles won twice in the final three weeks of 2011.

It’s finally here.

High school football season has arrived. And to help you get familiar with all the local teams, we present our annual football preview, chock full of information to review right up until the first kickoff.

For profiles of every team in C&G Newspapers’ coverage area and complete schedules, check out our website at www.candgnews .com/Sports.

Check back in the paper and online throughout the season for more football coverage, including photos, game previews and recaps, team and player features, rankings and picks.

And don’t forget to follow along with us on Twitter and Facebook for live updates from select games.

Southfield-Lathrup Chargers

Last season’s record: 2-7

League: Oakland Activities Association White Division

Returning starters: Seven

Offensive keys:

Like usual, coach Stephon Thompson’s offense will rely heavily on the run, but it also has some weapons in the passing game with receiver Antwan Herbert and quarterback Jimmy Henry.

“Henry is a very smart kid, and he’s picking up the offense real well. He’s working hard, and I think he’ll be a pretty good quarterback.”

Defensive keys:

The toughness of his defense is what stands out most to Thompson. And it will need it be in the tough OAA Red.

“We have a swarming defense, and they seem to have the philosophy grasped pretty well,” he said.

Coach’s outlook:

Thompson said his goal is to return to the playoffs, something the Chargers haven’t done since 2007, which also marks their last winning season.

“We have some really good kids that seem to be tough. Obviously, we have a lot of kids that are coming up from the JV last season or from being backups last year, but they seem to be a really good mix,” he said. “They’re excited, easily coached, and they like flying around the ball. They’re just a group that loves football.”

Southfield Christian Eagles

Last season’s record: 2-7

League: Michigan Independent Athletic Conference

Returning starters: 10

Offensive keys:

For a team that scored just 20 points in the first four games of the 2011 season, first-year coach Larry Weiss understands the need to get the offense going, and right away.

“And we have to do that by running the ball,” he said during the first week of practice. “If we can do that, we’re going to be all right.”

Things got progressively better as the year went on last fall. The Eagles scored 23 points in their fifth and sixth games, and then closed the year with two wins in the final three weeks.

The key to keeping that momentum going, especially with some starters back in the mix, is senior running back Justin Pritchett.

“He’s a Division I talent that can do a lot of things,” Weiss said. “He’s a strong guy that runs with a lot of power. As long as he’s going well, we’re going to go well. … At the same time, we’ve changed the offense around a lot. I think last year we tried to do too many things that the group of kids we had wasn’t able to do. Now we’ve geared our attack to the talent and the type of players we have.”

Defensive keys:

While the 2-7 record from a year ago may not look good, there are some things to consider.

The Eagles lost the first game of the season 7-6.

They lost handily in weeks two and three, but fell to 0-5 by 10-7 and 12-10 losses the next two weeks.

So with three of the first five losses coming by a total of six points, Weiss believes that difference can be made on the defensive side of the ball.

“Teams are going to try and run on us, and if we can stop that, we’re going to be much better,” he said.

The area of concern, at least now, is the defensive backfield, as Pritchett is the only returning starter of the four.

“It’s pretty simple,” Weiss said. “With a smaller school and limited numbers, we have to get everyone to the football. We have to be quicker and get to the ball, play with good technique and do the things a good defense does.”

Coach’s outlook:

Keeping with the theme that last year’s team was better than its final record, Weiss adamantly claims his 2012 squad is a playoff-ready group.

“With the talent we have, especially the guys back from last year, we have the chance to make some things happen,” he said. “We lost some close games last year, some that we really had a chance to win. But if we turn some of those around this year and play to our strengths, we’re going to surprise some people.”

Southfield High Blue Jays

Last season’s record: 8-4

League: Oakland Activities Association White Division

Returning starters: 10

Offensive keys:

The Blue Jays scored the most points in school history last season, but are replacing some key spots with new faces.
Tre Walton moves to quarterback after playing receiver, but coach Tim Conley believes he can get the job done.

“He was our backup the last two years. He’s a dual threat that can run and throw,” Conley said.

Defensive keys:

With a batch of new starters, Southfield has some question marks along its defensive line, but the secondary and linebacker crew have plenty of experience, led by hard-hitting safety Brandon Bean.

“We have three kids on defense that are three-year starters, so they look good,” Conley said.

Coach’s outlook:

The OAA White has been a battle between Farmington Hills Harrison, Farmington High and Southfield in recent years. Conley expects that to continue to be the case.

“It’s a very tough division. There’s probably four or five teams ranked in the state in the division. Whoever has less injuries and can get the kids to hustle every play is going to come out on top,” he said.