FAIR GROVE, Mo. — Plowing over a defender, Dalton Cloyd capped off the two-day Evangel Team Camp last month with a touchdown and a scrimmage win for Fair Grove.
He was mobbed by teammates, and the energy around the Eagles was clear.
Head Coach: Bill Voorhis
2015 Record: 8-4
Key players: Dalton Cloyd (RB), Austin Fodge (RB), Brayden Lumley (QB), Evan Fullerton (WR)
“The whole school, every program had a great year last year,” head coach Bill Voorhis said. "I know when a lot of our kids got done with the other sports they play, they said: ‘Okay, it’s time to get back to football.”
After finishing third in the Mid-Lakes Conference at 6-3 a year ago, Fair Grove has their sights on contending for a championship in 2016.
"Our conference is not going to be down. It’s just an expectation that, hey, these kids have been in this program for three years now and most of them have started since they were sophomores. They feel like they’ve put in the work and now they need to get results."
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF FAIR GROVE FROM THE EVANGEL TEAM CAMP
Much of that stems from the returning talent on offense.
Cloyd, Austin Fodge, Brayden Lumley, and Noah Sandridge all return after totaling 2,815 yards out of the backfield in 2015. Lumley hit the 2,000 all-purpose-yard mark at quarterback while accounting for 24 touchdowns. He is a dual threat, as is Cloyd, who should be a prime target in the passing game again after a team-high 43 receptions for 471 yards.
Fodge, a senior, averaged 6.5 yards per carry en route to 11 touchdowns and a team-high 905 rushing yards last year.
"They’ve been in the system long enough now to know where we want to go with the ball. We’re trying to give them more freedom as we go so whatever the defense shows us, we can give them the best possible play.”
Wide receiver Evan Fullerton is not quite as experienced as his offensive counterparts, but he makes up for that in physicality. At 6-foot-7, he caught four touchdowns last year in his first varsity season since junior high. Expect him to be a red zone favorite.
"He’s still really raw and learning the ins and outs of playing receiver. Any time he lines up, he’s just an imposing figure out there. I assume teams will have to pay a lot of attention to him."
The Eagles’ defense will need more tweaking after graduating a slew of talented seniors. Voorhis said some offensive starters from 2015 will shift to that side of the ball. Matt Emert (58 tackles), Anthony Guynn (48 tackles, 3 interceptions), and Isaac Mauldin (3 INTs) will be key pieces.
If Fair Grove can fill those holes and max the potential of their offense, they will be one of the toughest outs in the Mid-Lakes Conference.
They know it, too.
"If you can’t say something with a straight face, then you don’t really mean it. Our goal this year is a championship. We haven’t said that the previous two years because it probably wasn’t a realistic goal, but this year we feel like it is."
Fair Grove travels to Buffalo to open the season on Aug. 19.
