By Jordan Burton (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Paden Grubbs is entering his eighth year at the helm of Marionville Football and he’s currently on a run that few coaches will ever experience.
The Comets have won 35 games in the last three seasons with zero regular season losses and two district titles. In those 35 games, Marionville held 14 opponents to seven points or less.
They haven’t lost a regular season game since October 2019 and with 16 starters back from last year’s Elite Eight team, Marionville is again thinking big this fall.
“This group is very driven and hungry to get over the quarterfinal mark,” said Grubbs. “Their work ethic in the off-season hasn’t missed a beat. They come in with the type of mindset of “Get better today.” They have talked about wanting to leave a legacy and to be a team that is remembered in Marionville Football for years to come.”
Eight starters return on each side of the ball, with the offense being keyed by an elite back and a dominant offensive line.
Senior Hugh Eaton (6-1, 200) will be one of the most productive football players in the Ozarks.
As a junior he rushed for 1,052 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also totaled 107 tackles as a standout linebacker.
“Hugh is a high IQ player who loves the game of football,” said Grubbs. “He has great instincts defensively. He is always around the ball when the play ends. We expect another big year out of Hugh and he expects it from himself. He will be expected to carry a little bit more of the load offensively as well.”
Eaton will have no shortage of holes with an incredible offensive line returning, led by all-area seniors Dalton Russell and Kanien Klineline, as well as junior Angel Quezada.
Last year Marionville averaged 37.3 PPG, rushing for more than 200 yards per game with these guys leading the way. All three will be two-way starters.
“Dalton has all the potential in the world,” said Grubbs. “He is very coachable and has continued to get stronger. Moves very well for a guy who is 265 pounds. If Dalton has a big year, we will have a big year. He’s that type of impact player on the offensive and defensive Line.
“Kanien is a high-motor guy. Nobody plays harder or plays with their hands better than Buddha every down; he’s a great competitor. Angel was a steady player all year last season. He gained a lot of valuable experience as a sophomore. We expect him to step up and start being a leader across the offensive line.”
CLICK HERE FOR LINKS TO ALL OF OUR FALL SPORTS PREVIEWS
An underrated part of this year’s team is the amount of playmakers that exist in space, with seniors Garrett Grimm and Gage Guerin being joined by junior Braydon Bellah.
Guerin is the team’s returning leader in yards (379 on 27 receptions), Bellah led in receptions (35 for 301 yards) and Grimm had four touchdowns and four two-point conversions on 18 receptions.
“Gage is a coach’s kid; he’s very smart,” said Grubbs. “He doesn’t do anything flashy but is always in the right spot to make plays defensively. Offensively, he is always making big catches.
“Garrett is another high IQ player. Grimm has really developed into a nice athlete. He is the type of player you can’t replace with just one guy. He does so many things and allows us to do different things offensively and defensively with his skill sets. Braydon is very fast. A lot of potential. He’s another kid who had a really good sophomore year. He has the type of speed that is game changing. Has really worked hard to physically get stronger. We think Bellah is going to really take off this fall.”
Junior Aaron Chapman will see an uptick in his carries while sophomore Cash Pomeroy (6-2, 230) is quickly emerging as one of the top 2026 prospects in Missouri. He’s a threat all over the field and should see more carries and receptions.
Defensively nearly all of those players will see two-way action.
Grimm had 81 tackles from his linebacker spot last year, while Pomeroy added 86. Junior Owen Willis will join them, as well as Eaton.
Guerin leads the secondary with Bellah and sophomore Bryer Guerin (85 tackles, 3 INT) returning as well.
Russell, Klineline and Quezada will anchor the defensive line.
Pomeroy and Guerin are two pieces that will be the future of the program.
“Cash and Bryer were the first freshmen to start Week 1 for me,” said Grubbs. “Cash is built differently. Has so much potential. Extremely hard worker and strong. Very fast for his size as well. We expect him to have a great year playing his linebacker position as well as getting carries from the running back spot.
“Bryer had a great year defensively playing the safety spot. He was our best all-around defensive back by Week 12. He’s back to lead the defensive backs and will start at quarterback for us this fall. We are really excited about Bryer’s career moving forward.”
Grubbs is extremely excited about several new faces.
Senior Alex Engle (6-3, 315) is someone that can be a force on either side of the ball. Classmates Dante Buckmaster and Garet Stanton will also see reps on the line, while fellow senior Isaac Stimpson is seeking reps at receiver and in the secondary.
The Comets have classes coming up that will add competition to practice and depth all over the field.
“We are very excited for the competition our junior class is going to bring this year to our team,” said Grubbs. “They have improved so much physically and athletically. We feel like we have multiple guys who are going to be competing for starting spots this year and be really good special team guys.
“The sophomores and freshmen as well. We have good numbers and a good mix of size, speed, athleticism to work with. We feel like there is potential there for this group to continue to get better.”
The program keeps inching closer towards a state title and this group is one that feels like it can get over the hump.
The Comets expect to compete for state titles for the next several years.
“Our philosophy is to continue to work and get a little better every day, stay healthy, and be playing our best ball when Week 10 arrives,” said Grubbs. “We feel like we are very close to taking the next step. We are excited about the upcoming season. Kids are hungry and really trying to improve daily. We are returning several starters on both sides of the ball, so that is a positive. Along with that is the depth; we have had great competition going into August.
“The coaching staff feels like we have a lot of depth this year, more than we have had the last two seasons. We feel like this should benefit us as we won’t have kids playing all the offense, defense, and special teams reps on Friday night.”
Marionville will jamboree at Springfield Catholic with Clever and Lighthouse Christian before opening the 2023 regular season by hosting Stockton on Aug. 25.
