2023 Washington County Football Preview

Another season of Washington County high school football is fast approaching with eight schools hoping to have successful seasons.

Only three county teams (Saint James, Williamsport, Boonsboro) posted winning records last year. Williamsport and Boonsboro were the only two squads to win a playoff game, with the Wildcats winning two post season games to advance to the Maryland 2A-1A State Quarterfinals. This season more county teams should eclipse the .500 mark.

South Hagerstown Rebels
The Rebels won only three games in 2022 but were a young team. This year South returns more collective talent than anyone else in the county. South should make a big move upward in the county standings in 2023.

Senior Lance Ford is their leader. Ford is a rare four-year varsity starting quarterback and is considered a dual threat QB. The South signal caller threw for 789 yards on 57 completions and seven touchdowns, while also rushing for 462 yards and eight touchdowns.

South has several running backs returning, most notably senior Andre Cooper and electric sophomore Jo Jo Davis. Cooper ran for 208 yards but was limited due to injury and Davis rushed for 167 yards after playing most of the season with the junior varsity.

Senior wide receivers Lewis Berry and Damon Breland and tight end Marlon Jones will lead the South pass catchers. Berry led the Rebels with 14 grabs for 226 yards with a TD and Breland caught eight passes for 108 yards with a TD.

Senior Jonathan Tano and junior R.J. Franklin will lead the offensive line with help from juniors Crishaun Adams and Antonio Balls and senior Landon Dufek.

Tano (2022 All-County Second Team DL) and junior Delarian Dudley (2022 All-County honorable mention DL) will be the anchors of the defensive line, while Jones (2022 All-County honorable mention) will lead the linebacking unit. Jones is the Rebels leading returning tackler with 56 last season.

Bryan Wagner and Bryce Frushour, both 2022 All-County honorable mention defensive backs will be leaders for the South secondary in 2023. Wagner had 28 tackles last season and junior Bryce Frushour had 47 tackles and picked off one pass for the South Siders.

Dave Lawrence will enter his sixth season as head coach of the Rebels. Lawrence has a 26-19 career record with a .578 winning percentage, good for second among active Washington County head coaches.

South, who will go back to the Kelley Green color scheme, will welcome three new opponents. The Rebels will square off with Century and Francis Scott Key from Carroll County and for the first time ever, Saint James. Six teams on the Rebels slate posted losing records last year, so South should have a favorable schedule in 2023.

If the Rebs stay healthy, look out. South Hagerstown will likely make a run at the mythical county football championship and possibly earn a home playoff game.

Williamsport Wildcats
No Washington County team has won as many playoff games (four) as Williamsport has over a two-year period since Boonsboro and Smithsburg in the 1993 and 1994 seasons.

The Cats stomped Pikesville, 41-0, to finish the 2022 regular season at 6-3, then defeated Winters Mill, 41-21, and Liberty, 45-43, in an epic shootout to advance to the MPSSAA 2A-1A State Tournament, the second time in as many years. Williamsport’s season ended in the State Quarterfinals for a second straight year, as they couldn’t keep up with an athletic Patuxent squad, falling 33-24.

After playing in the state tournament two straight years, most teams usually take a step back. But the Wildcats return arguably the two best players in Washington County with senior Corry Nelson, Jr. and junior Ceontae Wilmore.

The Williamsport offense will likely center around both Nelson and Wilmore. Nelson was voted 2022 Washington County Offensive Player of the Year due to his ability to play multiple offensive positions at high level. He also racked up some very impressive stats during the regular season by recording 537 passing yards on 26 completions with three TD tosses, 212 receiving yards on 14 receptions with two TD grabs and 90 rushing yards with two TD runs.

Wilmore, who was only a sophomore last season, was one of the best pass catchers in the county and has already caught the attention of numerous colleges. He finished the regular season with 19 receptions for 385 yards and a county best five TD catches.

Kicker Cole Kriner also returns to the Wildcats. Kriner, who also plays soccer, had possibly the strongest foot in the county. He made 24 extra points and drilled three field goals in the regular season and made 12 PATs and two more field goals in the playoffs.

Head Coach Tim Small is back for his ninth season and is now Williamsport’s all-time leader in coaching wins. Small has a career record of 41-36 for a .532 winning percentage.

Williamsport’s 2023 schedule has two new opponents on it. Winters Mill and Catoctin will replace Saint James and Pikesville.

The Wildcats are primed for another run at the mythical county title and another deep run in the 2A-1A playoffs.

Boonsboro Warriors
The Mark Wadel era enters year two after a 7-4 overall record with one playoff win in year one. The last decade has been a successful one in Boonsboro. The Warriors have averaged nearly seven wins a season (67-32) over the last ten years, so it’s tough to bet against Big Blue to not do it again.

Since the mid-1980’s Boonsboro has relied on the old school wing-t as their primary offense. With some tweaks and variations along the way, the Warriors have been very successful with the wing-t. The Warriors may make some changes this year but will likely use the wing-t as their base offense.

Boonsboro will have to find new production on offense this season. Senior backs Dan Dodson and Chad Wyand only combined to score one rushing touchdown each last year and no returning player on the varsity roster has thrown or caught a TD. But just like in years past, the Warriors have plugged new and inexperienced players and haven’t missed a beat.

The good news is the Warriors will have an experienced offensive line with Nate Elliott, Ryan Perry and Sam Atkinson returning. Elliott was a first team All-County Coaches selection on the offensive line, while Perry and Atkinson were honorable mention last season.

Elliott (DL) will also be a leader on defense, along with Dodson (LB) and junior defensive back Brayden DeWaal. Other impact players on the Warrior defense include Perry (DL), Wyand (OLB), Logan Frantz (LB), and Gabe Smith (DB).

With the lack of offensive returners, it would be easy to predict Boonsboro to have a subpar season. But if you know Washington County football then you know the Warriors always find a way to have a winning record. This season will likely be no different.

Smithsburg Leopards
The Leopards are poised to make the move to the upper tier of Washington County football teams. After a 3-7 season under first year coach David Miller, Smithsburg returns a great nucleus of players.

On offense the Leopards return two quarterbacks (Zach Smith, Braxton Byrd) who saw playing time last season and arguably the top returning running back (Ashton Redman) in the county. Redman rushed for 638 yards and four touchdowns, while catching 10 passes for 62 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Zach von Gerral will anchor the offensive line.

Smithsburg should be solid all around on defense. Zach von Gerral will lead the way on the defensive line, while Jacob Lanpher and Redman both return at linebacker. Redman’s three interceptions are tops among county returners this season and Lanpher’s 73 tackles last season are second among returning players. Braxton Byrd and Joey Ryan return in the secondary.

The schedule looks favorable for the Leopards. The 2023 slate includes Williamsport, North Hagerstown, Clear Spring and rival Boonsboro from Washington County and out of county opponents FSK, Century, Brunswick, Catoctin and Southern Garrett. Leopard fans should expect an exciting season in the ‘Burg this year.

Saint James Saints
No team in Washington County has pumped out as much talent as Saint James has over the past decade. One is now in the NFL (John Metchie) and another is currently at D1 powerhouse Notre Dame (Devan Houstan). Saint James has developed a Canadian pipeline for top tier players in Canada to come to the US to play high school football like Metchie and Houstan did.

Coach John Root is Washington County’s winningest active head coach with 50 wins and this season he’ll have his work cut out for him after losing numerous talented players to graduation. The Saints got a big boost when junior Sammy Stonebraker, one of the county’s top underclassmen, decided to transfer to Saint James.

Offensively the Saints return sophomore playmaker Jayden Yates at quarterback. Yates, a dual threat QB, passed for 454 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 216 yards and two TDs as a freshman. Add Stonebraker’s 567 rushing yards and seven touchdowns and Trevor Owens 152 receiving yards and four touchdowns along with Alex Fletcher on the offensive line and you have some solid offensive returners.

Sophomore linebacker Liam Hall is arguably the top returning defensive player in Washington County. Hall recorded 93 tackles and 14 TFL’s as a freshman and will look to lead the Saints defense along with Fletcher, Owens and Wyatt Maguire.

Saint James has only eight scheduled games on their 2023 schedule. The Saints scheduled South Hagerstown for the first time ever along with Allegany from Cumberland. Other opponents include North Cross, Kiski School, Maret, Executive Ed Academy, Potomac School and Flint Hill.

North Hagerstown Hubs
The 2023 Hubs are determined to break the streak of non-winning seasons. Their last winning season came in 2013 when they went 6-4. This season they have one of the top returning offensive duos in the county with senior quarterback Luke Kercheval and senior wide receiver Ryder Johnston, but will have to find several others to step up on both sides of the football to achieve a winning season.

The offense will revolve around the Hubs aerial dynamic duo of Kercheval & Johnston. Kercheval threw for county bests in passing yards (1142) and completions (86) yards, while Johnston led the county in yards (473) and receptions (29). Senior Luke Frazee, a first-year player, will step in at running back, while Khalil Peggues, Q’Maree Winston, Xavier Colbert and Amuari Murray will give Kercheval some other options in the receiving corps.

Senior linebackers Luke Bragunier, Aiden Clark and Jesse Eppard along with sophomore Damean Thomas are ready to lead the North defense this season. The North defense was one of the best defenses in the county over the first half of the season, but fell off in the second half.

The schedule, which is manageable, includes Washington County opponents Smithsburg, Williamsport, Boonsboro and rival South Hagerstown and out of county opponents Tuscarora, Manchester Valley, Thomas Johnson, Spring Mills and Brunswick.

If North can find some other weapons on offense and have their defense perform all season like they did in the first half last year, the Hubs could have their best season in a decade.

Clear Spring Blazers
Curtis Keller takes over the Clear Spring program after former NFL player Jason Ankrah stepped down to take a job in Southern Maryland. Keller realizes Clear Spring has only one winning season (2010) since the program started in 2004 and a 27-63 record over the last ten seasons, but he is excited for the opportunity to coach the Blazers young squad.

The Blazers expected to have their best all-around player returning, however junior RB/LB Sammy Stonebraker decided to transfer to Saint James this season and left Clear Spring with another hole to fill.

Top returning players include Jonathan Cunningham (QB/LB; Sr), Nick Cullember (OL/DL; Jr.), Jacob Bryan (RB/DB; Sr.), Jesiah Evans (WR/DB; Sr.), Logan Fair (RB/LB; Jr.), Hayden Hodge (QB/DB; Jr.) and Jacob Faith (TE/DB, Jr.).

The 2023 schedule is a mix of some winnable games and a few tough matchups for the Class 1A Blazers. Clear Spring opens with two home games with James Buchanan and Green Street Academy, then have a difficult four game stretch with Southern Anne Arundel, Williamsport, Brunswick and Smithsburg. After Trinity canceled their season, the Blazers close the season against Tussey Mountain and Hancock for an eight-game schedule.

Hancock Panthers
No school in Maryland with a football team faces as many challenges as the Hancock Panthers. With well under 100 boys in the entire school, Panthers Head Coach Ron Hare is constantly recruiting boys…and girls to participate to keep the program going strong.

The Panthers return all but one starter, so Hare believes with that experience his squad should be much better this season. Junior RB/LB Aiden McCarty is Hancock’s best player so he will be the workhorse. McCarty scored one third of the Panthers touchdowns last season.

Senior Isaiah Demory (QB/LB) and Brayden Younker (OL/DL), juniors Shawn Thomas (WR/DB), Logan Trumpower (RB/LB) and Brody Stratton (OL/DL) along with freshman Jayten McCarty will make Hancock much more competitive this season.

Hancock opens this season at Madonna then will come home to face Halifax on September 8. The week three matchup was against Trinty Christian, but they canceled their season, so the Panthers will have an off week before traveling to Shenandoah Valley. Hancock scored 20 points against Shenandoah Valley last year. The final five games include Southern Garrett, SEED, Hundred, Clay-Battelle and rival Clear Spring.

Hare is optimistic his Panthers will be much more competitive this season and break their 10-game losing streak. Only time will tell.