The James Kenan football program finished fourth in the conference in 2023, and they haven’t won the conference title since 2015; however, the Tigers are looking to make history this year and capture the 2024 conference title.
In order to do that though, head coach Tim Grady said he knows that his team will have to defeat top powerhouses East Duplin and Wallace-Rose Hill.
“Our goal is always to try to win Duplin County,” Grady said. “I tell (my players) if you win Duplin County you can go big, and so … in January in the weight room day one (be) Duplin County champions. If you do that, you try to win conference, and if you do that then you try to make a run (in the playoffs).”
Grady also said he believes that it is possible this season thanks to increased focus and a better comradery among his players.
“I’d have to say the focus (has improved). Last year we had some locker room issues that we really paid for at the end. We had a lot of talent last year, but yet some immaturity in so many areas that we ended up paying dearly for it,” Grady said.
“The buy-in and the work ethic (and) the focus we’ve seen is the best I’ve seen in long time, so I’m excited about that.”
Another key for the Tigers will be finding replacements for two of their starting offensive linemen, but Grady said he believes they have found a group of young players that will do a good job of filling in at that position.
“(Jeremiah) Medlin came back to us as center. Dakota Henderson and Denarrio Bailey, those are returning guys for us. We are still kind of working some stuff out with the other ones, but (we have) Miguel Osorio … Hunter Whitman … Lee McCrea, so we are kind of filling in those other spots right now.
In addition to new faces on the offensive line, the Tigers also have a new starting quarterback in Eli Avent who will replace last year’s quarterback rotation of Hasaan Kornegay and Stephone Stanley.
Along with the players in new positions, Grady said he also has several guys who will line up in multiple positions such as Tyquise Wilson and David Zeleya due to their small roster.
“(They are going to be) running backs, defensive backs … slot receivers. We told them … you need to learn it all. We are just going to let the season progress and see where your niche is and go from there. We like the way that the kids are just willing to jump in a couple of different positions, and we’ll just see what works out best,” Grady said.
Sometimes more isn’t always better though, and Grady said that is the case this season as with a smaller number of players he is better able to utilize each player he has.
“The numbers aren’t quite as high as we would like for them to be, but what we’ve got now, I would say, is quality over quantity, so the buy-in and the work ethic (and) the focus we’ve seen is the best I’ve seen in long time, so I’m excited about that.”
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