How Catawba Ridge football might turn its once-biggest weakness into strength in 2020
In 2019, the new high school football team in Fort Mill wasn’t defined by what it was.
It was defined, instead, by what it could become.
So even after an inaugural season of unpacking loads of equipment; establishing team rituals; asking sophomores and juniors to lead because the team didn’t have any seniors; putting together a piecemeal schedule that featured some of the best teams in the Charlotte area; and winning its first two games but losing its final eight — Catawba Ridge still has a uniquely legitimate reason to be optimistic.
“We have every starter back, which, again, I don’t think any other team in the state can say that,” second-year head coach Zac Lendyak told The Herald at a summer workout last week, adding, “Those guys, they’ve been in the program. They know the expectations of the team. They know the drills. They know the offensive and defensive calls.
“So we just turned our biggest weakness, probably, into our biggest strength.”
The Copperheads grew a lot in 2019, Lendyak said. And they needed to.
They grew physically, particularly on the offensive line. The group, which Lendyak “expects a lot out of” this season, was disciplined but was oftentimes subdued by older, stronger opposing defensive linemen in 2019. That might change this year.
They grew slightly in depth, both by adding a few new players and asking everyone to be ready to play offense and defense. (This depth could be particularly important when considering how Catawba Ridge will go from not playing in a region in 2019 to competing in the always-formidable Region 3-4A, and opening the season against South Pointe, in 2020.)
And they grew in experience.
“We got our one year of experience, and now we’re coming back, and we know what’s going on,” senior receiver Ben Hudgins (6-1, 175 pounds) told The Herald. “We’re not going to be surprised this year. I think we’re more ready than we’ve ever been.”
One big offseason development for Catawba Ridge
Most leaders on the Catawba Ridge team this season emerged last season. But some are new.
One new roster addition in particular brought the Copperheads a lot of attention this offseason: Jadyn Davis, a freshman quarterback who already has college offers from Alabama and Georgia and played varsity football as an eighth grader at Providence Day in Charlotte last season, will play at Catawba Ridge this season.
Although Lendyak said Davis is competing for his spot, he also said that the two quarterbacks who split time for the Copperheads last season — now-senior Kayden Hager (5-7, 167 pounds) and now-junior Harrison Wilson (5-11, 161 pounds) — have embraced the young, talented newcomer.
“That’s been fantastic,” Lendyak said.
Lendyak added: “(Davis) has a lot of expectations on him because of the offers and the attention he’s gotten. And as a freshman, that’s going to be tough. I mean… he won’t sneak up on anybody right? They all know where Jadyn Davis is. They know who he is. So we have to do a good job of putting an offensive scheme around him that he can be successful in.”
Key players for Catawba Ridge in 2020
Outside of the quarterback spot, the team returns all of its starting offensive linemen.
Its running back group, which operated largely “by committee” in 2019, includes 5-11, 220-pound sophomore Tyler Jones; 5-10, 165-pound junior Henry Bowen, who transferred from Ardrey Kell last season; and 5-6, 140-pound senior Devon Patterson, who missed much of 2019 due to an injury.
Its receiving corps will rely on Hudgins and 5-11, 180-pound senior Quinten Jackson, who led the team with 41 receptions for 635 yards and seven touchdowns last season.
The team expects a lot from its defense this year, which includes inside linebackers Brody Tesimale (5-10, 195 pounds) and Will Lowman (6-feet, 195 pounds) — the team’s two leading tacklers in 2020 — as well as senior outside linebackers Hager and Sam Dickerson (5-9, 170 pounds). It’ll also expect a lot from Asa Johnson, who was named The Tri-County Coaches Association’s 3A, 2A, 1A defensive lineman of the year in 2019.
Junior Jacobie Henderson (6-feet, 183 pounds) will be a key defensive back for the Copperheads, too. Henderson is a three-year varsity starter. He played as a freshman at Nation Ford, where Lendyak coached as an assistant prior to coming to Catawba Ridge.
“I think we became much better at communicating as a team, and I think that’s a big part of what will help us out,” Tesimale told The Herald last week. “And then we’ve all become bigger and stronger.”
Catawba Ridge 2020 football schedule
Sept. 25: South Pointe (away)
Oct. 2: York (home)
Oct. 9: Lancaster (home)
Oct. 16: Indian Land (away)
Oct. 23: Chester (away)
Oct. 30: Fort Mill (away)
Nov. 6: Nation Ford (home)
Editor’s note: This story is one of 15 high school football previews The Herald will run prior to the first game of the regular season on Sept. 25. Look out for the next one to appear at heraldonline.com later this week.
This story was originally published September 6, 2020 at 8:01 AM.
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