The Upperman Bees shifting toward a more methodical offensive approach this season following the graduation of multi-year starting quarterback Bronzden Chaffin.
Upperman Head Coach Adam Caine said the team averaged more than 40 points per game over the last two seasons with a dual-threat quarterback who could score through the air or on the ground. Caine said while the offense may not hunt for big plays as frequently this year, the program has successfully utilized a grind-out style of football in the past.
“It might not look the same this year, you know, we might have to be more of a grind-out-first-downs type football team, which we have been before here,” Caine said. “And so that’s not going to be necessarily that’s not going to be something that scares me, I don’t mind playing that kind of football.”
Caine said the program maintains its competitive edge during transitions because inexperienced players feel a personal responsibility to step up when their numbers are called. Caine said this internal pressure to perform at a high level has carried the team through years where they lacked returning starters.
“The one thing that I have noticed with this program and that is pretty much the case with all successful programs is that the guys who aren’t experienced per se, I guess feel a certain responsibility and maybe even a certain pressure to sort of step up their game and when their number’s called and, you know, on the years where we maybe haven’t had quite as many returning starters, it just seems to me that that’s what the kids that step into those roles, they just take it upon themselves to really play at a high level,” Caine said. “And that’s pretty much what’s carried us through, you know, all those years that you’re talking about.”
Caine said scheduling has become a challenge because local schools often avoid playing Upperman due to the program’s sustained success. Caine said this difficulty forced the team to travel to face high-profile programs such as Greenville and Beech.
“Some of it was by design and then some of it was just hey man we got to figure out a way to fill a schedule up and um, you know, when you’re in that role you’re kind of limited to playing teams that nobody else wants to play and um, those that makes for some difficult matchups,” Caine said. “I think that that sort of taking you out of your comfort zone a little bit can um, it’s a deal where it’s going to be either sink or swim, I mean you’re either going to rise to the level and compete or you’re going to back off and get overwhelmed and I think when your guys are, you know, determined to rise the, you know, raise their level of play I think it can help you become, you know, maybe a better football team.”
Caine said facing larger, faster opponents in the early season exposed defensive flaws that the coaching staff addressed before entering region play. Caine said the team will lean on star player Colton Johnson, whose blocking ability and versatility as a receiver and runner have attracted attention from Power 4 college coaches.
“He’s a true dual-threat guy, um, his skill set is um, you know, he’s able to block and he’s also able to hurt you catching the football and, um, you know, he demonstrated the fact that he’s worthy of touching the ball a good number of times in a ballgame and so we’ll have to also figure out ways to get him the ball other ways, maybe running it as a running back, maybe even snapping him the ball as a wildcat style quarterback and so um, we’ll make sure that he’s involved in the, you know, in the touching of the football but also, you know, the thing we got to remember is if he’s our best blocker then we got to let him do that some too,” Caine said.
Caine said other key contributors include linebacker and running back Jude Fitz-Patrick and returning region lineman of the year Noah Tarver. Caine said Kevin Willman, a former heavyweight wrestler, will also see time on both sides of the ball as he continues his development at left tackle.
“Jude Fitz-Patrick, I mentioned him, he’s a he’s going to be one of the guys in the mix for valedictorian type stuff at Upperman and also a kicker of ours, Austin Roberts, is another guy that did um, I think went above 30 on his ACT and is an outstanding student,” Caine said. “And and most of our guys, um, we got a lot of guys that um do a lot of community service and um, you know, some really good Christian kids who who um take that um, you know, this servant role seriously and um do a lot of stuff uh either with the school or with their churches to um give back to the community and something I’m really proud of.”
