EAST HAMILTON HURRICANES
Head coach: Ted Gatewood (49-51 in 10 years here; 93-97 overall)
Returning starters: 3 offensive, 9 defensive
Key players: RB Adam Caudle (5-10, 185), C Harrison Davis (6-2, 260), FB-LB Aiden Holt (5-11, 210), WR-CB Sam Randolph (6-1, 175), LB Blaine Savage (5-10, 180).
Team strengths: There is good speed and depth at running back, and with inexperience at quarterback, those ball carriers likely will be counted on heavily to make the offense go. Defensively, with all but two starters back, the Hurricanes should be an improved unit from the one that gave up too many big plays in 2017.
Team concerns: There is a three-way battle for the starting quarterback job, and regardless of who wins, there won't be much experience at that position. Sophomores Haynes Eller and Kyler Johnson and freshman Cooper Wick are all mobile athletes with good arms, but they will have to do a lot of on-the-job training.
Newcomer to watch: Conner Thornburg, a junior who also wrestles, brings a hard-nosed toughness to both the receiver and safety positions and has earned a shot to prove himself on both sides of the ball.
Season outlook: After an impressive win over Signal Mountain to open last season, the wheels fell off and wrecked East Hamilton's year. While the offense managed to score more than two touchdowns only twice, the struggle was particularly noticeable on defense, where the Hurricanes allowed 40-plus points four times during a five-game losing skid.
"When you go 3-7, you have to change some things," Gatewood said. "Nobody was real happy with how last season went, so we had to look at the whole program and decide what we needed to do to get back to where we want to be."
J.D. Dunbar was brought in to take over as defensive coordinator after overseeing an Ooltewah unit that allowed nine or fewer points five times last season.
Caudle and Holt are physical runners who will get plenty of action in the Hurricanes' multiple offense that will rely mostly on the run, whether out of the I-formation or the shotgun spread.
"We've challenged this group daily and tried to make them uncomfortable just to see how they react and handle adversity," Gatewood said. "We didn't respond very well when things didn't go our way last year, so I want this team to know how to handle adversity the right way.
"We feel like we've got the pieces to have a much better season. We've got 15 seniors who have a considerable amount of experience, and I like our speed and depth at running back and receiver. We've got guys at quarterback who are capable of being really good - they just need game experience."