Maples have a lot of holes to fill
Mapletown's senior class includes (kneeling, from left) Ethan Carter, Brandon Donley, (standing, from left) J.J. Scott, Cyrus Fisher and Robert Friend.
Linda Messich
Mapletown’s coaching staff for the 2018 season includes (from left) Andrew Vanata, Greg Coulter, head coach George Messich (kneeling), Joe Spiker and Chad Stevenson.
Linda Messich
Mapletown’s 2018 football team.
Mapletown offensive lineman Ethan Carter (58) clears a path for Dylan Rush during last season's game against Serra Catholic. Carter is one of five seniors on the Maples' 2018 roster.
Mapletown’s Chuckie Lash (2) returns a kickoff against California during their game last season.
Rob Burchianti | Herald-Standard
Mapletown coach George Messich (left) discusses the situation with his team on the sidelines during a game last season.
Mapletown’s Zach Greene (49) chases down West Greene running back Benjamin Jackson during a game last season. Greene is one of four juniors on the Maples' 2018 roster.
Rob Burchianti | Herald-Standard
Mapletown head coach George Messich has a discussion with the officials during the Maples’ 42-14 victory over Cornell at Mapletown High School in 2017.
Mapletown coach George Messich
George Messich is entering his 36th year as head coach at Mapletown.
This season marks the first fall in four years that Mapletown won’t have the services of record-breaking running back Dylan Rush.
Rush accounted for a ton of yards from scrimmage and put up some incredible touchdown numbers. He also played defense, was the Maples’ returner, kicked every once in awhile and was an irreplaceable leader.
Mapletown lost 11 seniors from that class, and in 2018 the Maples will look to regroup and start the upward trend under veteran coach George Messich.
“Dylan was a tremendous kid and will obviously be hard to replace,” Messich expressed. “I don’t care what team you have at any level of high school football, a kid like Dylan Rush is going to be hard to lose. We also lost a couple of multiple-year starters. So, it’s been a new attitude around camp this year.”
“We have 21 kids in camp and they are all excited to find playing time. I think this year offensively we are going to be more balanced than last year. We want to mix it up and use our passing game to get the ball into the hands of our athletes. We are hoping to find some leaders and move on from last year.”
The Maples, who went 2-8 overall and 1-6 in the Tri-County South Conference last season, will be relatively young with only five seniors on their roster, but Messich likes the upside of some of his younger players.
“We are young, but I truly believe we have a lot of size and skill on the team,” he pointed out. “These kids are hard workers and they want to learn. I love the character of this team. They have a belief they can win and are practicing with a lot of confidence. I think our offense will surprise some people.”
After realignment, Mapletown is in the Tri-County South Conference with Avella, Bentworth, California, Chartiers-Houston, Jefferson-Morgan, Monessen and West Greene.
“On paper, the edge goes to California,” Messich stated. “They have a lot of kids coming back and their offense is very hard to stop once they get going. I expect West Greene and Bentworth to be right at the top of the conference. I think with everybody else, there’s a lot of unknowns. Whoever can get hot and stay healthy will probably make the playoffs.”
Mapletown’s running game will likely determine how successful its offense can be and that will center around tailbacks Zach Greene (junior) and Ethan Carter (senior).
“When Dylan went down at the end of last season, Zach got some reps in the offense,” Messich said. “He was able to break some long runs and I like his shiftiness. He is very dedicated in the weight room and is just a hard kid to bring down. Ethan was actually on the line the last three years, but we moved to the backfield because we like his quick first step and his straight-line blocking.”
Freshmen Max Banata will see snaps at quarterback, while his receivers will consists of senior Brandon Donley, junior Chuckie Lash, sophomore Lance Stevenson and freshman Clay Menear.
On the line, the Maples will have size with the likes of seniors JJ Scott (290) and Robert Friend (215), sophomore Blake Holbert (235), and junior Lucas Hall (300). The other spot on the line is still up for grabs between freshmen Riley Franks and James Thompson.
Those names will also appear on the defensive line, while the linebacker position will mainly consist of Carter, Greene and freshman Nathan Courtwright. The other skill positions on offense will mostly start in the defensive secondary, as well.
“I really like the attitude and the work ethic of our team,” Messich mentioned. “They are good kids and they will do anything you ask them to do. They work and work at it. I think we have like a total of seven first-year starters. We are young in some spots, but I really like what I have seen on the field.”
After facing Avella in a non-conference Week Zero contest, Mapletown hosts Clairton on Aug. 31. The Maples open TCS play at home against Jefferson-Morgan on Sept. 7.