Football Team Travels To Allen Co. Scottsville Tonight

Darren Doyle, Edmonson Voice
We sat down with Head Football Coach and ECHS Athletic Director Kyle Pierce earlier to talk about the Edmonson County Wildcat Football team for the 2015 season. The Cats will be headed up KY HWY 101 tonight as they travel to Allen County Scottsville to take on the Patriots in a pre-season scrimmage before the regular season begins next Friday at home vs. Caverna.

EV: There seems to be more excitement about this season than last, why?
KP: Every season brings excitement. Our seniors have been through a lot these past three seasons and they want their senior year to go well. We have a really young, inexperienced but talented team. So the excitement builds from what this group can accomplish as a whole. 
EV: We spoke to a player a few days ago. He said this year is going to be very different due to much better leadership and a better group of guys. Can you expound on that?
KP: We've always had great guys that played here. Sometimes there are a few guys that you are counting on that decide to make poor choices and go in a different direction that the team is needing to go. That does not make them bad people, but some choices can really affect a team negatively.  As for 2015, I really like our kids. They all seem to like each other and they have made it a point to hang out with each other. When you see seniors and juniors hanging out with freshmen, then you see the leadership start to grow. People remember how you treat them, and that is something we talk to our kids. about almost every day. A team that sacrifices for each other usually has greater success.
EV: There are reports that last year's quarterback has transferred to another school. Was it difficult to adjust?
KP: He moved to Metcalfe County Schools after a few days of practice, so we really didn't miss a step football-wise. Sophomore Tucker Cole was going to be competing for the job throughout the summer. This just accelerated the process. We knew going in that if Tucker came out and performed well, he was going to be the quarterback. The early departure allowed him to get most of the reps all summer and actually helped him. Many of the concepts we planned to use probably fit Tucker's abilities more. We have a new transfer Rheece Berkley who will be a very capable backup if needed. He will play offensively at one of the other skill positions, but he has some tools as well that can be very effective. 
EV: Give a short summary of what fans can expect to see out of ECHS football this year.
KP: We really want to push the tempo offensively. We'll be mostly no-huddle and try to spread the ball around to our athletes. There will be times that we slow it down, but we want to play fast. Defensively, we will going to a different look that we base out of. Traditionally, we have been a 3-4/4-4 team, but we feel we have to put as much speed on the field as possible, so are base defense will be a 3-5, where we play with 5 linebackers. Our two outside linebackers are hybrid type players. In other systems, they could play linebacker or a defensive back. Our three inside linebackers are true linebacker types. In terms of special teams, there will be a few new wrinkles that we have been working on, but I'm not going to give out all of our secrets just yet... 
EV: With now having hometown broadcast coverage, following the Wildcats should be easier than ever, right?
KP: Absolutely. Having the Edmonson Voice step up and partner with ECHS Athletics will be great for our community. Not only will people be able to hear the broadcasts through the Edmonson Voice, but they will have game recaps, video, and updated information about our teams.  Go to www.edmonsonvoice.com and go to the Sports tab which will bring you Wildcats Live!