High School Football Tour: Itawamba AHS

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FULTON, Miss. (WCBI) – Having two running backs rush for a combine 3,000 yards in one season certainly wasn’t a bad thing to rely on last season.

One problem now for Itawamba AHS: those 3,000 yards including 500 from quarterback Tyler Dossett have graduated and moved on from Fulton. The Indians must now find ways to gain that yardage back with the next man up philosophy.

“You aren’t prepared for it but you just have to step up and fill in and do what you can to help your team out and be a leader,” senior Tylon Ward said. “With all those guys gone, there has to be someone to step up or there would be no team.”

Ward is one of those seniors who will step up and the Indians are also counting on sophomore Vijay Miller to take over under center. Miller has a bit of a good bloodline: his brother Mikhail played at IAHS and is now at Ole Miss.

“We’ve got some kids that are gonna step into those roles that we expect a lot out of,” head coach Toby Collums said. “That hurts any team when you lose kids of the caliber we had.”

While the Indians will return a stout offensive line that includes 6’6″ 300 lb. tackle Ethan Orr, Itawamba’s strong suit may be the defense. The Indians bring back a total of nine starters from last season.

“We’ve been so good offensively, this year we feel like the defense will be the strong point of the team,” defensive coordinator Clint Hoots said. “It’s going to be a good season for us defensively.”

The question still remains though: how will the Indians follow up a 12-win season in 2013? Time will only tell, but the expectations have returned for the Indians after claiming their first division crown since 2009 this past season.

“This community expects it out of these guys and they expect it out of themselves,” Coots said. “We’re quietly building a tradition here.”

“Any time you go through a season like last year, it’s going to generate some excitement,” Collums said. “We want to continue to give that to the community.”

Categories: EndZone

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