New faces will try to get same results for Fort Mill

Another year of football brings new faces and new names, but the Fort Mill Yellow Jackets are hoping for the same results.

Names like Chandler Kryst, Malik Long and Brandon Plyler are being replaced by names like Ron’tavious Hughes, Brett Ferguson, Noah Wetzel and Hunter Helms.

Fort Mill rushed for 2,688 yards last year as a team. Only about 581 of those yards are from players coming back this season.

Hughes is in line to take Kryst’s place. Kryst earned a walk-on spot at Coastal Carolina, but Hughes, a fast junior, is similar in many ways. The 5-foot-10, 155-pounder can either run it out of the backfield or toe the line of scrimmage to go out for a pass; either way he can make something happen in open space.

Last season, Kryst accounted for over 1,100 yards between rushing and catching the ball, along with 10 touchdowns. Hughes, who mostly played defense last season, hopes to do something similar in 2015.

“Chandler was a great player and made big plays,” he said. “I am looking to be that person.”

Ferguson, a senior, is one of those backs in a long line for Fort Mill that wants to pound the ball. Think Long, Nick Raszeja and Max Simons. Ferguson checks in at 6-feet and is pushing 225 pounds.

As a senior last year, Long accounted for 14 touchdowns and almost 900 yards rushing in a dozen games for Fort Mill. Ferguson hopes to take up where his predecessor left off.

“It’s big shoes to fill,” Ferguson said. “Malik is a good player. He ran the ball really hard. I hope to do the same. I know I am going to be a leader on this team now and I hope to perform to that level.”

Ferguson said he feels good heading into the season, which opens on the road this week Thursday at White Knoll.

“We had to fill a lot of spots,” he said. “We have a lot of veteran players, but at the same time we have a lot of brand new guys on our defense and offense. I feel like they are meshing well and learning really quick.”

Also look for junior Noah Wetzel, at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, to get carries in the multi-faceted Fort Mill offense.

“We got two pretty good kids back there running the ball in Noah and Fergy (Ferguson),” said head coach Ed Susi. “If we want to sit there and pound it I guess we could if we have to. Ronnie isn’t too bad out there on the edge either.”

Among all the new names, there remains a key one from the last two years, senior quarterback Rogan Wells. Wells, who threw for over 2,000 yards and 11 touchdowns, and rushed for 15 more touchdowns, is again under center for Susi. He has been Fort Mill’s starting quarterback since his sophomore year when he took over for his older brother Rylan.

“For a lot of teams you go as your quarterback goes,” Susi said. “Just because of the things we do, Rogan makes 90 percent of the decisions out there. He is a smart kid. Each year we have added stuff to him, so now he is able to change the play a little easier at the line of scrimmage and put us in a better position.”

Like his teammates, Wells feels like this year’s team can be just as competitive as last year’s squad, which went 9-3.

“Our biggest challenge is staying healthy,” he said. “We got a couple people going both ways and we need to keep them healthy through the season.”

Susi thinks Plyler, Fort Mill’s deep threat last year, may be the toughest graduated senior to replace. Wells has a new crop of players to throw it to, including junior Hunter Helms, also the backup QB, and relatively unknowns like Ryan Deluca, Gus Jarosz, and Ethan Piercy. Helms is the only receiver coming back that caught a pass last year at the varsity level.

“We might be inexperienced out there (receiving), but the two or three kids we got out there are pretty good kids,” Susi said. “The only reason they didn’t get to play a lot last year is because of people ahead of them. It’s really about getting experience. And hopefully, they will have it by the time the region rolls around.”

This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 11:11 AM with the headline "New faces will try to get same results for Fort Mill."