Sports
New Faces, Same Results for Sheridan
By: Pat Chiesa
Posted on:
MVL Spotlight
Last year’s Sheridan Generals squad was a dominating force in the MVL, outscoring opponents 397-67. The offense was led by versatile quarterback CJ Myers, deep-threat receiver Anthony Crane and a two-headed monster of a backfield featuring Troy Sweeney and JayTee Ellars. The defense was also very stout—particularly against the run—thanks to defensive linemen Josh Busby and Tyler Snider
The Generals began this season without all six of those players, yet have still enjoyed tremendous success through their first three games, outscoring Lakewood, West Muskingum and Morgan by a combined tally of 140-21. Take out Morgan’s 21-point fourth quarter last Friday and the Generals haven’t allowed a point yet this season. Coach Paul Culver Jr.’s squad has also managed to lead all three games 40-0 at the half.
So how do the Generals continue to enjoy so much success despite only returning two offensive starters and three defensive starters from last season? Simply put, they have found capable replacements for nearly every position. Senior Drew Murray has proven to be a very capable replacement for Myers at the quarterback position, going a perfect 5-for-5 for 110 yards against the Morgan Raiders on Friday. Murray connected with receiver Dylan Davy for three passing scores of at least 19 yards in the second quarter alone. The backfield for the Generals may be even stronger than last year’s due to the one-two punch of a shifty Mitchell Fouch and a bruising Nick Alspach. Fouch routed West Muskingum for 184 yards on just 12 carries while Alspach broke a 45-yard touchdown run against the Raiders. Give these kids even more credit because almost all of them play on the defensive side of the ball as well. With Alspach and Drew van Winkle at linebacker and Fouch, Murray, Davy and Jacob Horsely at defensive back, the six MVL teams having yet to meet the Generals this season are sure to struggle offensively.
Sheridan fans should take pride in how resilient the Generals have been despite waving goodbye to an extremely successful class of ’11. Of course, a lot of the credit should be redirected to coach Culver, who took over this program some 30 years ago and has since transformed Sheridan into one of the faces of the MVL year after year. The boys from Thornville are making it clear that they will be vying for the MVL crown yet again this season. The question is, will any other team be able to stop them?