Southern Ohio Conference II (SOC-II) – Conference Preview
By: Ty Carpenter
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Wheelersburg Pirates:
2025 Record: 10-0 (6-0)
The Pirates lived up to every expectation they had last season:
Undefeated regular season. SOC-II Champions. State Championship Runner-Ups.
But seasons like that sometimes come with a cost. And for these Pirates, that’s graduating just about every starter that got them to that state championship game.
Their starting quarterback, starting running back, and just about every starting receiver on roster graduates. Not to mention four of their top five leading tacklers, 25.5 sacks worth of production, and a significant portion of the secondary gone.
With so many spots open this season, expect to see many new faces. Junior Jack Doerr will likely step in at quarterback in place of Braylon Rucker. That’s heavy shoes to fill, but Doerr is no stranger to pressure, as he entered the game and delivered a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter against Archbishop McNicholas last season.
Stephen Hall saw significant playing time at running back behind Elijah Brown, so expect him to receive the bulk of the carries. Xavier Miller also comes back to the Pirates as the only returning receiver in their top five.
The defense will feature standout DB Jay King who had an impressive four interceptions and four pass deflections last season, as well as LB Luke Kouns who led the team in tackles with 71.
With all that in mind, it’s shaping to be a trickier season for head coach Rob Woodward. But he’s a coach who has never gone below .500 with the Pirates and considering they have won eight of the last 10 conference titles, it’s hard to imagine Wheelersburg going anywhere.
Portsmouth West Senators:
2025 Record: 5-5 (4-2)
Despite a slow 1-3 start last season, the Senators caught fire and finished the regular season 5-5 and capped off the year with a playoff win. They stayed competitive in the SOC-II race with their conference crown hopes lasting until the final week of the season, where they eventually lost to Wheelersburg, finishing tied for second place.
After seeing the Senators catch fire to end the season, it’s hard not to be excited about this roster.
At the forefront is running back Anthony Bishop, who continued his dominance as the lead back last season with 1,613 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns. Wide receiver Braden Adkins is another player to watch on offense, as he led the team with 837 receiving touchdowns and 11 touchdowns through the air.
Of course, with those stars on offense, it’s easy to say they’d be successful off that alone. But where this team truly shines is its returning defense, as almost every major contributor returns.
Adkins was similarly dominant at defensive back, with 10 pass deflections and five interceptions, as well as four tackles for loss. Alongside him in the secondary is Gunnar Shonkwiler who led the team with 14 pass deflections alongside his 55 tackles and two tackles for loss.
So, the secondary already looks great, but where this defense makes their money is in their linebacking unit, led by Tilton Rapp. Rapp led his team with 115 tackles, 72 of which were solo, with 13 tackles for loss, three sacks and two pass deflections.
Alongside him will be Zane Pitts, who emerges as the next man up after the graduation of fellow linebacker Bo Wroten. Pitts impressed with 83 tackles, 53 solo tackles and eight tackles for loss. en. Pitts impressed with 83 tackles, 53 solo tackles and 8 tackles for loss.
In a year where Wheelersburg graduated much of their top talent, and with this roster returning, this season is brewing to be the perfect storm for Portsmouth West to return to the top of the standings.
Watch out for them in the conference title race; it could go down to Week 10 once again.
Valley Indians:
2025 Record: 8-2 (4-2)
After going just 3-7 the year before, the Valley Indians exploded onto the scene with an 8-2 record, marking their best season since 2015.
They drew a tough Zane Trace team in the playoffs which ended their season, but after an incredible turnaround under head coach Nolan Crabtree, there’s still much to get excited for in Lucasville.
That said, it’s worth mentioning that much of their success last season was built upon a group of seniors that have now graduated. Anthony Aaron was incredible at running back, amounting to 1,124 yards on the ground and 17 touchdowns.
Other key backfield contributors in Gabe McNeil and Konor Wilson also graduated, alongside leading receiver Lex Logan. It’ll be up to returning quarterback Hunter Cunningham and swiss-army knife Braxten Conaway to establish an offensive identity.
Fortunately for the Valley faithful, the stout defense that allowed less than 10 points in seven games last season remains largely unchanged. Leading tacklers Blake Lundy and Nicholas Queen both return; those two accounted for a combined 112 tackles, 14 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.
Jehu Howard also returns after a breakout sophomore campaign that saw him with 40 tackles and an interception.
It will be hard for Valley to live up to their success last season, but they certainly have the pieces to do it. They hope to win their first playoff game since 2020.
Northwest Mohawks:
2025 Record: 7-3 (4-2)
The Northwest Mohawks surprised last season, finishing 7-3 and tied for second in the conference. They did so in a season where they had just graduated their top two rushers including star Carter Runyon.
Their success largely came from senior quarterback Jake Brown, who put up an incredible 1,344 passing yards with 20 touchdowns, alongside 1,014 yards and 11 more touchdowns added on the ground. He did so with just one turnover, en route to an SOC-II Offensive Player of the Year season.
But now Northwest is in a similar situation: their top two rushers graduate, one of whom being Jake Brown, as well as multiple of their top receivers, tacklers, and players in the secondary.
That said, they do have a healthy group of players ready to step up. Carson Christian was something of a jack-of-all-trades for the Mohawks last season; he had 436 rushing yards, 567 receiving yards, 170 return yards and 18 total touchdowns, good for the second most on the team, behind Brown.
Aidden Armbrister will headline the defense as an All-SOC first teamer and All-Ohio honorable mention. He had 23 tackles on the defensive line with nine tackles for loss, five sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, and an astounding three blocked punts.
Linebacker Landon Hodge is another guy to watch, as he put up 50 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks last season.
On paper, the Mohawks should have trouble with the talent they graduated. But with a solid group of returners as well, who’s to say they won’t surprise us again?
Minford Falcons:
2025 Record: 2-8 (1-5)
Despite starting the season 2-2, including a close loss to a 10-0 Eastern Eagles team, the Minford Falcons lost out and finished 2-8 on the year, tied for last place in the conference.
And admittedly now the Falcons have even more question marks, as they graduate nearly all of their top talent. Quarterback Curtis Glenn exits, as he accounted for 86% of the team’s offensive yards as well as 18 total touchdowns. Rushers Mason Bradley and Peyton Caudill are also out the door, as well as star linebacker Marty Sparks.
So, if you’re a fan of the Falcons, what do you have to get excited about? Simply put: Bryce McLaughlin.
The linebacker had jaw dropping numbers last season, with 162 total tackles (8th in Ohio, 1st in D5), 21 tackles for loss, four sacks and a forced fumble. That performance earned him recognition as a Gridiron Glory Player of the Year finalist. McLaughlin will also likely see increased usage as a running back this season, so watch out for him to put up numbers on both sides of the ball.
Alongside him defensively will be players such as Sam Patrick, Taylor Malone and Elijah Conley, who all return after solid production on defense. Patrick is particularly interesting, as he had 29 tackles and four tackles for loss in just his freshman season, good for fifth on his team in both categories.
Offensively, Wyatt Swick will be a premiere player in the passing attack, as the sophomore led the team with 617 receiving yards and five touchdowns in his freshman season.
The Falcons hope to finish above .500 for the first time since 2022. They are certainly not without talent to do so, and with a new head coach in Josh Bailey, you do not want to be caught sleeping on this team.
Waverly Tigers:
2024 Record: 1-9 (1-5)
Waverly comes off a season to forget, as they finished 1-9 and below .500 for the first time in over a decade. That season came after graduating their quarterback and their top three receivers however, so a down year was expected, and there’s reason to believe they’ll be much improved in 2026.
The Tigers will be headlined by players such as WR/FS Hez Nelson, WR/DB Briar Barch and QB Gunnar Myers. Barch also demonstrated an ability to rush effectively in the absence of Myers, who returns for his senior season as well. Something to note about Myers is in just five games played, he had over 1,300 yards of offense.
Garret Rosenberger was strong in the trenches on both sides of the ball last season, so watch out for him again. TE/OLB Sawyer Myers also showed excellent ability to block offensively, so this rushing attack will be something to watch.
Now with their quarterback back as well as a large returning group of receivers, it’s exciting to imagine what this offense could look like.
To put it plainly, the talent is certainly there for the Tigers, and last season can largely be chalked up to injury and inexperience. Now they return a large senior class who has seen success before; it’s up to them to put it all together.
Oak Hill Oaks:
2024 Record: 1-9 (0-6)
Oak Hill is a program that has been struggling to find success. They have not gone .500 since 2019 and have won just four games in five seasons. Their only win last season was against a struggling Waverly squad, and they scored less than 10 points in all but three games.
So needless to say, the Oaks are looking for any signs of growth. And there are some things to be hopeful about looking at this team.
First thing’s first, Oak Hill is introducing a new head coach this season, Weston Hale. Hale is something of royalty for the Oaks, as the 2010 graduate was a member of the greatest Oaks teams of all time, going 34-11 in his playing days, with three playoff victories.
He is also the Oak Hill career rushing leader in both yards and touchdowns, as well as in single-season rushing yards, single-season rushing touchdowns, single-game rushing yards and single-game rushing touchdowns.
Essentially, he’s no stranger to success. He’ll have a larger senior class and a solid group of talent to work with this season, as just four seniors graduated.
WR/CB Bryson Costilow and TE/OLB Beau McNeal each return as All-SOC players. They have plenty of size in the trenches, and given who their coach is, this rushing attack with seniors Noah Johnson and Jermiah Gibbs could be something to watch out for.
Hale will have his work cut out for him, but if there’s any man who can turn around this program, why not your team’s greatest rusher of all time?