John Dykstra/CW photoHopewell TitansIt would be a bit of a stretch to sayHopewell coach Chris Rust’s cupboardis bare.Yes, the Titans have to replace 15starters. But after their most successfulseason in the program’s young history,Rust thinks pointing to last season’s11-1 record will help transition his newplayers into their starting roles.“They should see what it takes to besuccessful,” said Rust.OFFENSEIn light of H-back Stephen Rust’sdeparture, the Titans will go to asingle-back Spread Offense capitalizingon speedy receivers. CharlotteCountry Day transfer Justin Avery, ajunior, takes the helm at quarterback.Rust is happy with Avery’s potentialbut believes experience will be his bestally.Sophomore junior varsity call-upDeAndre Lewis will carry the rushingload, while several transfers will adddepth.Senior center Al McCreary andjunior guard Jonathan Jones are thelone returning starters in the trenches.Despite the lack of experience, sizewon’t be an issue, said Rust.“It’s probably going to be the biggestoffensive line we’ve ever had,” hesaid.Things have changed for the IndependencePatriots.The team took an emotional hit aftera lengthy eligibility investigation byCharlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Theprogram, once teeming with players, is“down” to about 135 players on varsityand JV.There even are whispers that thePatriots, who fell in the 4AA state titlegame last year, won’t be as dominantthis season as they’ve been in thepast.But things haven’t changed thatmuch at Independence.The Patriotsstill havetalent – andcoach TomKnotts.W h a t ’ smore, Indepe n d e n c emight be playingwith a bitof a chip onits shoulder.“We’ve gota bad taste inwww.thecharlotteweekly.comThe receiving corps might be theTitans’ deepest unit. Junior MichaelHeffner joins seniors Tyler Farrell, DarrenMatthews and Alex Caver, but otherplayers could see time as well.DEFENSEBecause of their size, Rust’s defensewill adapt to a 4-2 scheme this season.Defensive end Derek Johnson, a 2007All-Conference selection, is joined byfellow senior Wes Reber, who transitionedfrom nose guard to the otherend spot.“We’re hoping the two defensiveends will cause some problems becausethey’re very quick and very strong,”said Rust.The two linebacker spots shouldbe a strength, led by seniors HarrisonChristian, an all-conference pick, andWill Privette.Chris Rust has high expectations for histeam in this, his fourth season at thehelm at Hopewell.our mouthsabout (theinvestigation),”Knotts said. “And we do rememberour last loss because it came in thestate championship.“Hopefully, our last loss will be abig motivator. Of course, every year atIndependence, the goal is to win thestate championship. Anything lessthan that is an unsuccessful season.”OFFENSEWade Nash/CW photoKnotts said the offensive leader willbe junior Ryan Thompson, who willplay multiple positions along the offensiveline. He’ll be shoulder-to-shoulderwith senior left guard Steven Wall,senior left tackle Xavier Montague andsenior tight end Sebastian Green.The front line will be critical forjunior quarterback Anthony Carrothers,the second-year starter Knotts expectsto show marked improvement.Lawrence Martin is the featuredreceiver, while Kierre Brown and ChrisFarley also will get passes. The mostballyhooed receiver is 6-foot-6, 208-pound senior Michael Rhynes, whohas become a major recruiting target.He’ll get plenty of work in the red zone– once he recovers from a high anklesprain.Watch out for talented sophomorerunning back Nyjee Fleming, whofootball night in charlotte“We’re putting a lot of emphasison our defense,” said Rust. “(Johnson,Reber, Christian and Privette) aregoing to have to do a lot of work earlyto keep us in games.”Strong safety Christian Rocker,a backup in 2007, will be the lonefamiliar face in the secondary. Juniorcornerbacks James Shipman and CameronHughes both showed promiseduring the summer, but the inexperiencewill put further emphasis on thefront six.SPECIAL TEAMSHeffner returns as one of the best kickersin the city after earning All- Conferenceaccolades in 2007. Not only will Heffnerbe relied upon to give the Titans gooddefensive field position and take pressureoff the young defense, he’ll needto score points with field goals. Unlesssomeone else takes the punting duties,Heffner will chip in there as well.Rust is unsure who will handle kickand punt returns, but he’s been encouragedby Lewis’ speed. Shipman and firstyearplayer Anthony Bynum might contributeas well.“We’ve got some potential and speedto have a pretty good return game,” saidRust.– Aaron GarciaIndependence PatriotsSenior middle linebackerJayme Watson is the leader ofIndependence’s defense thisseason.Knotts said reminds him of formerWest Charlotte star Brian Knuckles.Junior Jaylan Harden, senior HaroldBlythe and senior linebacker TaylorCaldwell also will get carries.DEFENSEKnotts is high on senior middlelinebacker Jayme Watson, anAll- Confer ence choice in 2007. Heshould be even more effective playingbehind senior defensive tackle KortneBriggs, who bench-presses a mindnumbing420 pounds.Senior defensive end Aaron Gloverwill provide energy and toughness,and senior Jerrian Vaughn could be aforce on the other end.Senior cornerback Breon Thorntonis getting looks from major colleges, inpart because of his 4.5 speed.SPECIAL TEAMSKicker Robbie Ward is a threeyearstarter, and should be even betterthis year. Martin and junior KyleGreg will handle most of the returnresponsibilities.– C. Jemal HortonHead coach: Chris Rust, fourth year(21-14)Returning starters: Offense, 3;defense, 4Conference: ME-CA 7 4A2007 record: 11-1, 6-0Head coach: Tom Knotts, eighthyear, 22nd overall (273-58)Returning starters: Offense, 6;defense, 2Conference: Southwestern 4A2007 record: 13-3, 6-1Fall 2008 • Charlotte <strong>Weekly</strong>FAST FACTS2008 SCHEDULEAug. 29 ................ at Berry AcademySept. 5..........................Myers ParkSept. 12................... at ProvidenceSept. 19...................... East GastonSept. 26...................West CharlotteOct. 3............................. GaringerOct. 10............. at Central CabarrusOct. 17................. at J.M. RobinsonOct. 24.................... Mallard CreekOct. 31............................... VanceNov. 7........... at North MecklenburgFAST FACTS2008 SCHEDULEAug. 29 ............................. OlympicSept. 6...............at Madison CountySept. 12............... at West CharlotteSept. 19...........................at VanceSept. 26........................Myers ParkOct. 3................South MecklenburgOct. 10......................... Ardrey KellOct. 17......................... ProvidenceOct. 24.......................WeddingtonOct. 31................East MecklenburgNov. 7...... Butler (Memorial Stadium)21
Tim Steadman/CW photoPowerful South Mecklenburg senior fullback Spencer Shuey is firmly in the gaze of opposing players, not to mention major-collegefootball recruiters.The PunisherTough-guy Spencer Shuey epitomizes South Mecklenburg footballby Aaron Garciaaaron@thecharlotteweekly.comIn many ways, Spencer Shuey perfectly embodiesthe South Mecklenburg football team. It’s not justthe fact that he plays the all-important position offullback in head coach James Martin’s vaunted DoubleWing Offense. It’s not even the fact that Shueyhas two S’s in his name, just like his school.At 6 foot 4, 250 pounds, Shuey plays the game ashard-nosed as they come. And loves it.“I’m basically going to be the short-yardage guy,”Shuey said, describing his role on the 2008 SouthMeck team.“(I’ll be playing) short-yardage to ‘power back’ –and every once in a while, they’re going to be slottingme out to wingback to give that extra push. I’llbe the base of the offense, as I like to think of it.”Throw in the fact that he doubles as the team’smiddle linebacker, and maybe the Sabres shouldhave a picture of Shuey on their helmets.“It’s exhausting, but I wouldn’t have it any otherway,” he said with a smile. “I love hitting.”Martin knows the importance of Shuey’s toughguyrole on the team.“It has to be his No. 1 priority,” Martin said whenasked about Shuey’s penchant for providing andreceiving hits.Martin obviously has noticed the fire Shuey playswith, and it reminds him of another guy who waswidely known for his toughness.“I think of Spencer a lot like (NFL Hall of Famefullback) John Riggins,” Martin said. “(Shuey)doesn’t care who’s in front of him; he wants to punishyou, whether he’s (a fullback) blocking you or alinebacker making a tackle. He only knows one gear,and that’s to hurt somebody.”College recruiters have noticed. Judging from thevolume of letters and visitors Shuey has received,there’s a good chance the senior could become theSabres’ first major-college football scholarship recipientin quite some time. The likes of the University ofKentucky, Marshall University and others have takenhigh interest in him.“This spring he got a lot (of recruiting attention),said Martin. “So many colleges were in here. Thissummer, (interest) has tapered off a little bit, but asthe season goes on, it’ll pick up. Kentucky’s offered,Western <strong>Carolina</strong>, Marshall and Duke have offered.”College coaches will be pleased with more thanhis on-the-field production, said Martin. For a guywho likes to beat opponents into submission withhis shoulder pads, he sure is nice.“He’s a ‘yes sir, no sir’ type,” Martin said of Shuey.“He likes to have fun in the locker room, but he doeswhat we ask in practice, and that’s what I like. Wecould ask him to be a water boy, and he’d do it. Weask him to play a different position becausewe need to get a look at something (anotherteam might be doing that week). He’s veryunselfish when it comes to being on the fieldfor us.”As big and intimidating as Shuey is, whenyou see a group of South Mecklenburg playersstanding together laughing, the fullback/linebacker usually is in the middle of it. Itseems he is approachable enough that theother guys gravitate toward him.“To be able to do what he can athletically,playing both sides of the ball, and to do itwith proficiency, I think that says a lot – andthe kids see that,” Martin said. “They lookup to him.”As much as he likes it, Shuey expects atleast a partial reduction in his Saturdaymorning bruising since Providence Day School transferLarry Kennedy joined the Sabres this season. Theteam has an intimidating backfield with Shuey, Kennedyand Tim Palmer.And more rushing threats means fewer players todefend Shuey.“Last year, no matter where I was or where theball was, I had someone out to get me,” Shuey saidwith a laugh. “I had one or two players out to get meevery single play, so I think that opens up a lot of therest of the field for our wingbacks. If (the defendersare) thinking (about) me every time, we can run thefly with Tim or Larry, and they’re off to the races.They can move. ““I think, as far as our backfield goes, we’re goingto be incredible,” said Shuey. “I don’t think anybodyin the (Southwestern 4A) conference or any otherteam we play will be able to stop us.“Period.” qOther Top Running Backsto Watch in 2008NameJoseph FeltsNyjee FlemingXavier JoplinLarry KennedyTy LintonMarkel MooreTim PalmerScoot SimmonsMichael StatonEric WilliamsSchoolCharlotte CatholicIndependenceNorth MecklenburgSouth MecklenburgCharlotte ChristianButlerSouth MecklenburgWest CharlotteVictory ChristianMyers Park22 Fall 2008 • Charlotte <strong>Weekly</strong> www.thecharlotteweekly.com