Coweta seeks ways to maximize offensive talent
BY MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
Saturday, June 02, 2012
6/02/12 at 6:13 AM
It's fair to say the Coweta Tigers were in every 2011 football game.
In fact, a good season could have been even better if the Tigers had found a few more points.
All five of their losses were by a touchdown or less. The Tigers lost to Bishop Kelley twice by three points (including in the playoffs), by four each to East Central and Class 4A champion Wagoner, and by seven to Pryor.
Head coach Bubba Burcham returns a stable of offensive talent for his fifth season and spent spring drills examining "who our best players are, and what are the best ways to get them the ball."
Randall Smith and Jakeem Johnson give the Tigers "two pretty dynamic guys with the ball in their hands" at running back.
Quarterback Hayden Holmes returns after throwing for 872 yards last season, along with five men with starting experience on the offensive line - Billy Farmer, Seth Foster, Alex Stevens, Clark Stunkard and Josh Yocham.
Hunter Raspberry developed at receiver and caught a 30-yard TD pass from Holmes in a 24-21 upset of Central when the Braves were 7-1 and ranked No. 6 in Class 5A.
Adam Price also came on strong at running back, playing well when frequent injuries curtailed Johnson's junior season.
Burcham must rebuild the defensive front seven in the 4-3 scheme, but feels he can develop a solid line around returning starter Dare'y McCurdy. Yocham, Stunkard, Foster and Farmer will rotate at the other spots, along with untried William Perry, a junior, and Michael Bogner, a sophomore.
Original Print Headline: Tigers seek ways to maximize their talent
Associated Images:
Coweta's Jakeem Johnson carries the ball while fending off Christian Considine of Pryor last season. Johnson and Randall Smith return to give the Tigers two dynamic players at running back. MICHAEL WYKE/Tulsa World file
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