Like all the other teams of southeast Texas, Little Cypress-Mauriceville was negatively impacted by the disaster of Tropical Storm Harvey. The Bears recovered from the flooding and played well enough to make the post season.
Head Coach Randy Crouch has some key players back on offense for LC-M. Quarterback Ethan McCollum will direct the Bears offense again this year. Adam Pope played a lot of different positions last year and will be equally versatile again in the backfield and as a wideout.
Colt Lebleu will be in the offensive line again at tackle or possibly center. Blake Ferguson saw playing time late in the season last year and should be a starter in the offensive line.
There are defensive players returning with experience for the Bears. Ethan McKay is coming back. Ferguson should also play some again on defense for Coach Crouch.
Harvey was especially tough on Blake Pruitt. It was anticipated Pruitt would play quite a bit, but he was left homeless by the storm and missed the whole season. He is back and should be a regular on defense. Pope and McCollum have both played defense and will again.
The coach will be looking at several young players who are eager to get playing time on the varsity this season. James Williams and Dariun Williams will play wide receiver and in the LC-M defensive secondary. McKay and Christian Ickes have worked their ways into seeing time as running backs. Brett Keele will see snaps at a linebacking position. Crouch confides, “Some of those young people have not had a whole lot of experience, but they’ve been in the program, and they’re anxious to play.”
Crouch and the coaches will be working to improve the depth at several positions before the season starts. He points out with the high tempo offenses so prevalent especially the district in which Little Cypress-Mauriceville plays that it is difficult for players to see action in the whole game. Coach Crouch hopes, “We can get some of these guys 15 to 20 snaps a game and spell some of these people who are pretty vital to us.”
Realignment has made District 11-4A, Division I Coach Crouch analyzed maybe even tougher or at least more balanced than it was previously. Livingston, Lumberton, and Splendora have all moved down from Class 5A. Bridge City and Huffman are still district opponents and they have both done well in past seasons. “I think the district is going to be really tough, I think it’s going to be real wide open. A lot of teams are in the same situation that we are we have some young players and hopefully can get them in the right spots to get the season going,” Crouch concluded.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
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