VERSAILLES, Mo. - The Versailles Tigers are coming off of their best season under head coach Broc Silvers and are looking to build on the three-win season last year.
They made the move down to Class 2 this season, which could open things up for them in districts, but they still have an uphill battle during the regular season. While the move to Class 2 gives them a new district, they will still face off against the Tri-County Conference during the regular season to face the likes of Class 3 teams Blair Oaks, Eldon, School of the Osage and Southern Boone.
They've also lost some important players on last year's team. Starting quarterback Duane Danner, starting running back Dalton Schmidt and starting offensive lineman and linebacker Dylan Ballew all graduated, opening the door for some new faces to step in.
One of those players is David Connor. Connor played some quarterback at the varsity level last season when Danner was forced to miss time with an ankle injury. So far, he has proven himself to be a capable starter, but he needs to continue to work with his offensive line.
"It's been a pretty easy transition for him, but is his experience the same? No, it's not," Silvers said. "He's got to learn how to trust his linemen. Going through 7-on-7's, it's pretty simple. You just stand there and throw, but then you start adding some defensive linemen in there, it changes your footwork a little bit and your thinking ability."
Replacing Schmidt will be a stable of runners that should combine to improve on what Schmidt was able to do last season. Leading the pack there will be Grant Hutcheson. Silvers was hoping to use Hutcheson more last season, but injuries got in the way of that.
"Dalton leaving, he was the heart and soul. He worked harder than most people we've ever had, but now we've got Grant Hutcheson, Taylor Dobbins and Shane Randall to run the ball at the varsity level, so we've got enough guys as long as we stay healthy," said Silvers. "Dalton was an overachiever. Those guys are bigger backs than Dalton ever was. If they can run with half the heart he has, then we'll be able to have success."
Losing Ballew and Marcus Hammon on the offensive line may prove to be the toughest fix for the Tigers. While they have upperclassmen starting across the line, depth will be their biggest issue. The Tigers don't have the deepest roster, but the offensive line is where they are spread the thinnest.
"With the offensive line, it's always a struggle," Silvers said. "The guy who has the best offensive line typically wins the most amount of games, so losing Dylan and Marcus and some of those linemen really kind of hurt us for this upcoming year. We've got juniors and seniors all starting across the line right now, but we've only got five of those guys so if we have to have a replacement come in there we'll be younger and more inexperienced. I like what we have now, we've just gotta stay healthy."
Two players likely to be the major pieces of this team are Dobbins and Kooper Wilson. The two juniors have the most experience of anyone of the team and should lead the Tigers on both sides of the ball.
"Kooper and Taylor both spot-played for us their freshman year. Kooper started and Taylor started a few games, and they scored our first two touchdowns against Knob Noster as freshmen. They came in the second half and kind of broke things open for us," Silvers said. "Kooper is the captain of our defense per se, he gets our DBs lined up and never misses anything and doesn't get a whole lot of time off the field. He'll be on the field more than anyone else in our conference I bet, rep-wise."
Wilson's role as a defensive captain will be even more important this year without Ballew. Ballew led the charge last year and was like having a coach on the field last year for Silvers. Wilson will lead the secondary, while senior Gage Smith will lead the front seven. Smith will also lead the charge on the offensive line.
"Gage has really stepped in and taken that role of getting the huddle together and getting everybody lined up in the box, making calls, making adjustments and stuff," Silvers said. "Will he do as good of a job as Dylan? Time will tell, but I like what he's been doing so far."
The Tigers' biggest plus this year is they have more experience than last season. Every starter has seen varsity playing time, so they shouldn't be shocked today when they face Knob Noster in the season opener. Knob Noster is a tricky opponent for the Tigers because as a school near a military base, they always have a fresh batch of players that come in and they adjust their schemes to fit those players.
"I'm glad (we didn't play) them in our Jamboree this year because last year they didn't play any varsity guys and they didn't really run what they were going be running (tonight)," said Silvers. "What we thought we were gonna get and what we got where two different things. Week 1 stuff is tougher on coaches than any other week because you don't have a clue. You have to be prepared for a little bit of everything. They can do anything, so you have to be pretty bland and cover your bases on everything."
While they didn't know what they were getting last season, the Tigers made some adjustments in the second half and opened their season with a dramatic 29-28 comeback win against the Panthers. The Tigers hope to open their season this year with a win again as they look to improve upon their season overall.
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