Coach: Barry Loyal (8-22 in his three years here) Stadium address: 3354 Charger Drive, Chattanooga, TN 37409
Three strengths
1) Experience. All of the primary contributors on the 2012 squad have played. Seven of the 14 seniors contributed as sophomores.
2) Quarterback Levi Corbett will have to play well for the Chargers to secure their first winning seasons. He is described as one the most hard-nosed players on the team, along with running back/linebacker Jay Sims.
3) Defensively, the Chargers will be quicker, especially at linebacker and in the secondary that is led by cornerback Tucker Youngblood and newcomer Brandt McGregor.
Three concerns
1) A young program still seeking to find its way will face eight teams that participated in the 2011 playoffs. A ninth, Signal Mountain, would have been in the playoffs if not for having to vacate six wins. The home schedule is attractive with Boyd-Buchanan, Notre Dame, Polk County, Signal and Grundy County. Two of the Chargers’ three 2011 wins came at home.
2) Defense. CCS graduated its top six tacklers but has some foundation in two-way starter Jay Sims, Josh King, Tucker Youngblood and Reid Elsea. They have a big noseguard in sophomore Will Guthrie, who played a lot as a freshman.
3) The Chargers are replacing all of their special-teams component. They’re still trying to identify their best kicker, punter and snapper plus solid return people.
Three questions with ...
ETHAN IBACH
(Senior defensive back)
Q: What goals have the Chargers set this year?
A: A lot of the guys have said a winning season. We haven’t done that yet, so that’s a big one for most people. Last year had ups and downs and we were so close in a couple of games and just didn’t execute.”
Q: How do you prepare for a game?
A: Mostly listen to music and think about the game and what I have to do. The music is usually rap or rock, the kind of music that has power to the beat.
Q: What’s the most important thing about high school football?
A: The teamwork and the brotherhood; learning to be responsible and accountable to teammates. You learn to own up to your mistakes but also that your teammates are going to support you.
BY THE NUMBERS
2 — Wins needed to put the young program’s all-time total in double digits. The Chargers improved from 1-9 in 2009 (their first year of varsity competition) to 4-6 the next season but slipped to 3-7 last year.
3 — Season openers played and lost, all against frequent state contender Boyd-Buchanan, whom CCS will host to begin the 2012 season.
18 — Touchdown passes as a junior last year for quarterback Levi Corbett, who threw for 2,111 yards. He proved his mettle by shredding Signal Mountain for a season-high 357 yards. The Chargers are looking for him to continue paring his interception total from 16 in 2011, most of those in the first half of the season.
Recent history
Three wins weren’t what Loyal or his team had planned, and the offense did its part, averaging 24.8 points per game. There were bright spots such as the 30-28 win over Notre Dame to give the Irish their first loss. CCS scored 35 against powerful Signal Mountain but gave up 76 and then lost their finale, 43-42, to playoff-bound Bledsoe County. The Chargers gave up 32 points per game. Here’s a look at the regular-season win total for the last three years:
Season
2011 ———(3)
2010 ————(4)
2009 —(1)
2011 stats leaders
RUSHING Att Yards Avg TD
*Jay Sims 148 687 4.6 11
*Levi Corbett 95 335 3.5 2
Beau Simmons 337 207 5.6 4
PASSING Comp-Att Yards Int TD
*Levi Corbett 186-336 2111 16 18
RECEIVING Att Yards Avg TD
Beau Simmons 59 890 15.1 8
Brandon Arnold 38 342 9.0 5
*Jay Sims 28 262 9.4 2
Paul Broussard 13 135 10.4 0
TACKLES Solo Assists Total
Trae Terry 49 76 87
Luke Bowling 21 31 36.5
Brad Click 14 27 28.5
Joseph Miller 15 25 27.5
*returning player
Schedule
Aug. 17 Boyd-Buchanan
Aug. 24 at Lookout Valley
Aug. 31 Notre Dame*
Sept. 7 Polk County
Sept. 14 at Sequatchie County*, 8
Sept. 28 Grundy County*
Oct. 5 at Silverdale Baptist
Oct. 12 Signal Mountain*
Oct. 19 at Marion County, 8
Oct. 26 at Bledsoe County*, 8
*District 7-AA game
Games start at 7:30 p.m. except where noted.
Roster
2 Levi Corbett Senior
3 Cam Aldredge Freshman
4 Austin Mansell Junior
5 Jonathan Farlett Junior
6 Reid Elsea Senior
7 Sam Ibach Sophomore
8 Lance Carter Senior
9 Ethan Ibach Senior
10 Wes Cooper Senior
11 Zach Mercer Sophomore
12 Amos Corbett Freshman
13 David Leonard Senior
14 Will French Sophomore
15 Philip Sneller Sophomore
16 Garrett Woody Senior
17 Vanya Obert Sophomore
19 Nick Wilson Freshman
20 Jon Hundley Sophomore
21 Jared Miller Sophomore
24 Brandt McGregor Senior
25 Josh Deal Freshman
26 Josh King Senior
30 Dylan Johnson Sophomore
31 Will McEwen Freshman
32 Jay Sims Senior
33 Tucker Youngblood Junior
40 Brandon Mason Freshman
41 Bishop Moore Sophomore
42 Drew Northcutt Sophomore
43 B.J. Smith Sophomore
44 Chad Carney Sophomore
45 Trent Walliser Freshman
50 Austin King Freshman
52 Sheldon Fite Sophomore
55 Grant Rollinson Junior
56 Isaac Bice Junior
57 Tyler Pope Freshman
58 Mac Cochran Sophomore
59 Drew Farlett Senior
60 Justin Camlic Senior
61 Daniel Ramsey Sophomore
63 Warren Johnson Senior
64 Dylan Walker Sophomore
66 Jackson White Freshman
67 Tucker Elsea Freshman
70 Dylan Webb Sophomore
75 Will Guthrie Sophomore
76 Rob Wolfe Senior
78 Will Biederman Sophomore
80 Brady Fryar Sophomore
81 Barrott Bickley Sophomore
88 Joey Morris Junior
