Liberal is coming off of a 2-7 season, but optimism is high for the Bulldogs and head coach Matt McKee heading into 2017 with 10 starters back on both sides of the ball.
Things start on the defense with Weston Sprenkle and Carson Endicott back in the middle at linebacker after they were the two leading tacklers last season.
“I have high expectations for this season and think they will be a big strength on our defense,” McKee said. “I believe they will both have a good season and be at the top of our conference in tackles.”
Both will also start on offense with Sprenkle at fullback and Endicott transitioning from tight end to guard.
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The secondary has two all-conference selections from last season in Jacob Dermott and Noah Harris. Senior Tyler Stebbins is a third piece of the secondary. He was all-conference as a sophomore.
Harris is one of the SRVC’s top returning running backs on offense.
“Noah is a tough kid who wants to win. He runs hard and really developed good vision last year. He learned to be patient, follow his blockers, and is very quick when he sees an opening to cut,” McKee said.
Dermott returns to start at quarterback in addition to his duties on defense.
Dalton Davis will anchor both the defensive and offensive lines.
Liberal does not throw much, but tight ends Colby Selvey and Sean Clark both return to make the most of their opportunities. Newcomer Matt Dugan will slide in at receiver to help add a different dimension to the offense.
With so much talent back, optimism is high for Liberal in 2017.
“We have almost everyone coming back this year and I believe we can beat anyone on our schedule if we play well,” McKee said. “We made some mistakes at bad times last year and struggled to finish games that we probably should have won. If we can correct those things we should have a good chance every week.”
Liberal opens the season on Aug. 18 at home against Lockwood.
