A year ago the Cascade Champions found themselves in the first round of the TSSAA D-I AA playoffs where they were defeated 36-18 by the Lewis County Panthers, but the Champions used that loss as motivation to carry them through the trials of offseason workouts and summer practice with a goal of making it back and even farther than the first round this upcoming season.
One of the biggest positives out of Cascade’s football program coming into this season is that they only graduated five seniors: leaving them with a strong core of starters to build around.
“As soon as the season ended last year, we set a goal that we wanted to be region champions and go a little further than last year,” Champions head coach Jake Tyre said. “We graduated five off the team last year, so the majority of our starters are coming back. Getting bigger, faster, and stronger was our main goal since the end of last season. They’ve worked their tails off for the past eight months.”
Of those five seniors that graduated, Ryan Inmon is the most glaring loss having been the starting quarterback for the majority of the season while also starting on the defensive side of the ball. Inmon accumulated 2,011 of the Champions’ 2,929 total offensive yards a season ago while accounting for 17 total touchdowns, but Tyre isn’t looking too far down the roster for his replacement.
“Xamarion Dixon is moving into being our quarterback, and he did a great job playing that position in junior varsity last year,” Tyre said. “We’re still trying to figure some things out, but I like where we’re at. All the kids want to work, and they’ve had a really good summer.”
Dixon contributed as a running back and defensive back on the varsity team last season, and accounted for 467 total yards offensively.
Defensively, he racked up 21 tackles and one interception.
The Champions have been busy this summer not only in the weight room but also on the field, competing in 7-on-7’s and most recently a team camp in Alabama.
While passing the ball comes second in the Champions’ offense, it was important for them to build chemistry and set a foundation between their skill players in those competitions.
In Shelbyville Central High School’s 7-on-7 tournament, Cascade competed against multiple teams and walked away with a 3-2 record.
“Throwing the ball isn’t something we hang our hats on, but it’s good for the kids to get out there to compete and get reps in,” Tyre said. “We’re a running team, so we’re going to be running it the majority of the time. The kids have responded well to everything, so it’s been good.”
With summer winding down and the season approaching, Tyre is excited for his “reloaded” squad to be able to put on pads and compete to close out the offseason.
Scrimmages against Westmoreland and Eagleville are the final competitions on the Champions’ schedule before they take the field against Moore County on August 19th.
“Not having to rebuild and being able to just reload is huge for us,” Tyre said. “The kids are hungry and have been working hard. The summer has flown by, and I’m ready to see us in action against someone else.”