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By Chris Parker & Matt Turer
Aurora has a new head football coach, but it is a familiar name in Craig Weldy. Weldy has coached for the Houn’ Dawgs in various capacities since 2002.
“The kids know what to expect from me and they know what my demands on them are going to be, and our discipline,” Weldy said. “We’re trying to tighten things up a little bit as far as our discipline is concerned, and our responsibility and being accountable, and that’s a part of building young men.”
The Houn’ Dawgs will run a veer offense led by senior quarterback J.D. Lee. Lee has been the backup to Payton Evans for the last two seasons, but gets his chance to shine in 2017.
“He (Lee) is a really good throwing quarterback and does a good job of reading coverages downfield,” Weldy said. “And he’s a darn good veer quarterback. And that’s what we are. We’re going to be a veer team, but we’d like to be able to throw. We’re going to be 60/40 run/pass. We’re going to take whatever the defense gives us.”
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Clayton Dunning is a returning three-year starter on defense, but will see a big role in the running game this season after all-conference honors at receiver last year. He led the team in receiving yards with 447 yards on 30 catches for four touchdowns. He also tallied 55 tackles on defense.
The middle of the defense will be stable with leading tackler Connor Savage returning after a 106-tackle season with 82 of those being solo tackles. No other Houn’ Dawg had more than 51 solo tackles in 2016.
Logan Lauffer will be a big play threat as a junior after a sophomore season that saw him catch seven balls for 159 yards and two touchdowns for an average of 22.7 yards per catch. He also had two interceptions on defense.
The offseason dedication has been good for Aurora as the Houn’ Dawgs look to build for long term success.
“Our work ethic in our weight room and in our camp has been excellent. Our kids are working real hard. I think they bought in to what we were asking them to do. I’ve seen a lot of effort and we were trying to build that up along with our commitment to the program,” Weldy said.
Aurora will open its season on Aug. 18 at Mountain Grove.
