MORRISTOWN – The high school football season is just over six weeks away and on Tuesday evening the West Greene Buffaloes went to Morristown East to work on their passing game.
The Buffaloes took on Morristown East, Daniel Boone and Cherokee in 7-on-7 scrimmages in their first work coming out of the TSSAA’s two-week dead period that ended Monday.
“It was good to come out of dead period and knock some rust off and compete a little bit,” West Greene coach Evan Monroe said. “Today we’re trying to see who knows their responsibilities and who can execute them.”
The focus on Tuesday was getting reps against new opponents and getting back in the groove after the break. Monroe also wanted to test his squad against some bigger opponents, and the 2A Buffaloes held their own against the 4A, 5A and 6A foes.
“It’s 7-on-7, it’s different than a Friday night, but we are trying to create a competitive environment and I want to see who will compete and who can execute,” Monroe said. “As a 2A school we saw some athletes we aren’t used to, and that was good for us. It’s really valuable for us to go against their older guys instead of our scout-team guys. When we can go good on good it makes everybody better.”
Running the show on Tuesday for West Greene was quarterback Austin Brown, who returns after starting part time as a freshman. Monroe is expecting a lot out the quarterback this season and Bown’s growth will go a long way in determining the Buffaloes offensive success.
“Austin Brown had a pretty good freshman season, and we have put a lot on him. We need him to lead, step up and execute better,” Monroe said. “We need him to master the offense and know his reads and responsibilities. He has to take a step up this year. We threw him in the fire last year as a freshman, but this year he can’t make some of those freshman mistakes. And he knows he has to do things the right way.”
A year ago Austin Franklin did a little bit of everything for the Buffaloes’ offense as a runner, passer and receiver, but now West Greene is looking to replace his All-State level production. In addition to that they are replacing snaps at receiver, tight end and running back, but over the offseason Monroe has seen several guys step up to challenge for playing time.
Kyler Patterson is a guy who returns as a sophomore with limited experience but Monroe expects him to play an important role on the outside. Peyton Hilton is a rangy target at receiver who made one the day’s toughest touchdown grabs on Tuesday. Ethan White is a veteran who will be counted on at tight end. Hunter Franklin, Austin’s brother, is a young guy who Monroe sees a lot of potential in. Then in the backfield juniors Tristan Banks and Shawn Bailey will be counted on to take on larger roles this year.
The Buffaloes will kickoff week one on August 22 at Cosby, but before that Monroe says the primary focus will be on sharpening focus to make sure the squad is a well-oiled machine as they try to return to the Class 2A playoffs.
