Turkeyfoot Preview
It took only one word to make Jeff Conn smile about the 2002 football season. How about the word “scrimmage?”
Conn is starting his third season as football coach at Turkeyfoot Valley High School and for the first time in that span he has enough players to hold practice scrimmages and still have a few guys on the bench.
Conn explained, “In other years, when I would be working on a practice schedule, we didn’t have enough players to hold an 11-on-11 scrimmage, so I just wrote ‘drill’ into the time space. But this year, I was finally able to write ‘scrimmage’ in the practice slot, for now we have enough to go 11-on-11. You don’t know what a great feeling it is to be able to write just that one word ‘scrimmage’ on the calendar.”
There is also another bright note to the program with the addition of two players from the neighboring Salisbury-Elk Lick School District.
Conn explained, “Salisbury has no football program of its own and since we are adjoining school districts, they can come over here and play.”
The charter Salisbury Rams are sophomores, guard-linebacker Justin Arnold and offensive lineman-linebacker Justin Sines.
The first task facing Conn and his staff is replacing five experienced players gone from last year. Of those five, Noah Bungard is enrolled at Lock Haven University.
Conn said of his Rams, “We have 24 out and we have some size. However, our backfield is all gone, we lost our quarterback, fullback, two running backs and two split ends to graduation, so we have to build a backfield on both sides of the line. Chad Barkley is the only one of our returning backs with any experience.”
The Rams do have one number that they hope will be an unlucky one for the opposition – 13, as in 13 returning lettermen. Seniors Jason Stephens (DE-LB) and Jared Nicholson (Rb-LB) are three-year lettermen, Josh McClintock (G-LB) has two letters and Justin Shroyer (OT-DT) is bidding for a second letter. Junior returnees are Seth Livengood (OL-LB), Jeremy Durstine (C-DT), Joey Younkin (RB-DE), Seth Tressler (SE-DB), Bobby Lager (OT-DT), Brett Clevenger (OG-LB), all two-year lettermen, and Chad Barkley (RB-DB). Sophomore lettermen are two-way backs Bill Hinzy and Matt Wass.
Helping Conn get the Rams prepared are Mike Kreger, defense and linemen; Marcus Rugg, linebackers and running backs; C.J. McClintock, linemen; Brian Deal, who Conn said “will help wherever he is needed,” and the 7-8 grade coaches, Pat Wheatley and Andy Wheatley.
Conn called his Rams “a good group to work with, a group ready to work. We had a good opening week practice. What pleases me most is the overall attitude and the leadership individually. Many have stepped up and worked to develop a team cohesiveness, make the other players aware that they are part of a team.”
While the Rams are “still young, in some respects, the older players have helped the younger, newer ones. We had a good off-season conditioning program, with more than in other years working in our weight program. Some of the players were into other things, like work or American Legion Baseball, but they still made time to get here and work out.”
A minus factor for the Rams will be “the youth at some of our key positions. Our entire backfield is going to be new. We have already converted Joey Younkin from lineman to fullback. I would have liked to have kept the line together, but we need some size in the backfield. We will have to develop the backfield as we go along.
“We have several back on defense, so we will count on them to hold down our opponents until the new backs get into the swing of the offense.”
The road won’t be easy for the Rams. Conn sees “Clay-Battelle strong again. They have 38 out and many of them are experienced. Northern (Md.) and Westmar (Md.) are always strong. They have good junior high programs and they can move groups up to each level.”
The key to the Rams’ season will be “developing our backfield as we go along. We will make changes as, and if, needed until we get the right peg in the right hole.”
That shouldn’t take too long, for pride has always been a big asset to any Turkeyfoot program.