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Langley High School Saxons– Northern Region, Division 6, Class AAA Liberty District
Head Coach: John Howerton, sixth year.
Career Record: 46-36 2007 Record: 6-4 overall, 5-2 district.
Returning Starters: 7 offense/4 defense.
Key Losses: LB Mike Sarson; OL/DE Will Wilson.
Top Returners: RB/DB Josh Bates, Sr., 5-7, 155; WR/S Alex Devlin, Sr., 6-1, 175; FB Derek Eklund, Sr., 6-1, 200; RB David Helmer, Sr., 5-9, 175; C/DE Scott Jones, Sr., 6-5, 250; OL Garrett Moore, Sr., 6-4, 260; QB Danny Pritchett, Sr., 6-1, 190; TE Chris Sievers, Sr., 6-1, 220.
Fresh Faces: OL Ben Johnson, Jr., 6-1, 235; OT Martin Petras, Sr., 6-6, 250.
Games to Watch: Week 6, Oct. 3 vs. Madison
The Warhawks have dominated this match-up recently, winning six of the last seven, including a 17-14 victory last year. The lone exception was in 2004, a 34-7 one-sided win for the Saxons. If Langley wants a prominent playoff seeding, this game is a must-win.
Stadium: Langley High Stadium (Capacity 3,000).
It’s Smooth Sailing for the Saxons
By Angela Watts
Managing Content Editor, DigitalSports.com
Fifth in a series.
Langley’s morning practice had just ended one day last week, and Coach John Howerton had sent his players off with one simple message — to rest and re-fuel for what promised to be a hot afternoon session later that day. But as he walked to his truck to fish a bottle of water out of his cooler, senior tight end Chris Sievers approached.
Sievers didn’t have a question for his coach. He simply wanted to talk.
“I think we’re looking pretty good,” Sievers remarked, evaluating a few of the morning drills. “Things are coming together.”
Indeed, they are. That’s because the Saxons’ 2008 roster is peppered with experience and leadership. Sievers is one of a half-dozen, three-year starters returning to Langley’s varsity squad, including its entire offensive backfield — senior quarterback Danny Pritchett and senior running backs Derek Eklund and David Helmer.
Last season Pritchett threw for more than 900 yards, and Eklund and Helmer tallied more than 700 years a piece on the ground.
“When you have kids who already know your system, it’s a whole lot easier to get the ball rolling,” Howerton said. “We don’t typically get kids with a lot of speed — that’s always been a thing at Langley — but we get kids who hustle and run hard, so we make up for it that way.
“Plus, this is the best group of skill kids I think I’ve had, and they’re all one- or two- or three-year starters. That really helps things to get going.”
The Factory is Still Open
Langley’s tradition of pumping out Division I offensive lineman — eight in the past five seasons — continues. The most recent to move on was recent Saxon graduate Will Wilson, who took his all-Liberty District and all-state honors with him to the United States Military Academy at West Point.
This season the Saxons boast several more offensive linemen who are drawing attention from colleges, including returning 2007 all-Liberty District performers Scott Jones and Garrett Moore.
“I guess you could call it the Langley Offensive Line Factory,” Howerton said. “It’s just been a gold mine around here for offensive linemen … and we’ve got more this year. So that part has been phenomenal.”
Numbers Crunch
Because Langley’s total enrollment numbers are up, the Saxons were bumped out of Division 5 and into Division 6 a year ago. The challenge, Howerton said, is that although the total number of students is higher — the number of football players has not increased.
“Our enrollment is up, but not with kids who play football,” he said. “And that makes it tough. We just don’t have the numbers that some of the big schools do. What you see out here is absolutely everything available in the building.”
Quotable
“This school has always been known for tennis and golf and sports like that, but I’d like to think that we’ve done a good job of elevating the program and getting them to be competitive. I feel confident playing anybody.”
— Langley Coach John Howerton
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Note: The first 20 Northern Region teams to be previewed were selected
at random. Only the Top 10 teams have been ranked and will be unveiled
in order in the coming days.
Email: awatts@digitalsports.com
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