Sports
PREVIEW: Maysville Thinking Playoffs Again in 2014
By: Megan Stamper
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Editor's Note: Over the next two weeks our reporters will be bringing you team previews for each team in the SEOAL, TVC-Ohio, TVC-Hocking, and our West Virginia teams. We continue in the MVL, where physical football is the name of the game.
After seeing their 2013 season end in the second round of the playoffs, the Maysville Panthers are ready to prove that they deserve to be back in the hunt in 2014.
However, the Panthers did lose several key seniors from that team, including the backfield duo of C.J. Harris and Jordan Hayes, and playing in such a tough conference as the MVL won’t make the road back any easier. But senior quarterback Jake Miller is confident that this team has what it takes.
“We lost a lot of talent,” Miller said, “but we have a lot of younger guys working hard. They’re putting in a lot of reps trying to fill the shoes left behind by our seniors.”
Miller also had a lot of praise for his receivers, especially one of his favorite targets from last season.
“Our go-to-guy is Chase Roberts,” Miller says, “but Couger Clarke is catching everything you throw at him right now.”
Keeping it in the family, Miller said his younger brother–tight end Jared Miller–is “an absolute barn to throw to.”
Coach Craig Clarke is excited about the depth of his team, despite losing those 13 seniors from last season.
“It was nice to have a veteran group coming back,” he said, “and it ran pretty smoothly. There wasn’t a whole lot of teaching going on.”
Clarke knows that his passing game is going to be top-notch this season with the talent he has to work with, but one thing he needs his offense to work on is the running game.
“We need to get better at our power running game up the middle,” Clarke said. “We’re working three fullbacks in there, and we need to get more consistency.”
Maysville will start their 2014 campaign at home against MVL-opponent Crooksville on Aug. 28.
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