Summers County has been competitive since Josh Evans arrived on campus two years ago but a rash of injuries and bad luck have kept the Bobcats out of the postseason.
Now in his third season at the helm he’s hoping the football starts to bounce his way, though the early returns have him believing the Bobcats are good enough to create their own luck.
“This camp has been the best camp I’ve had since I’ve been here,” Evans said. “Injuries is what we’ve got to watch. We have a really good football team but if we lose one or two kids you go from a playoff team to not. That single-A football in southern West Virginia so this is what we expect. We talk about last season, we lost three games by a combined 18 points. We go 5-5 but if the ball bounces our way in three of those games you’re an 8-2 team. It’s not that we haven’t been competitive, it’s that’s sometimes the ball doesn’t bounce your way. We had Clay County, we had Midland Trail by one and Shady by six. A lot of football is luck and it Wasn’t with us last year. Hopefully this year with the juniors and seniors we’ve got it’s their turn to get a little bit lucky.”
The time is now for Summers. Evans has had most of his starters on the offensive line for three years so they know what the coach expects of them. They’re not the biggest bunch but the offseason strength and conditioning work has led to a vote of confidence.
“Those kids have dedicated themselves to the weight room the last two years,” Evans said. “We’re still undersized. I think our biggest kid is Tyler Richmond and he’s 260 pounds. He broke his leg this summer so we won’t have him until the Shady game. We’ve plugged and played a little bit and these kids are just grinders. They’ve put in the work and know what it takes to be successful. They haven’t gotten heavier but they’ve gotten stronger and faster. We’re going to be about 195 to 210 pounds across the front but it is what it is and these kids know what to expect and they’ll work hard.”
The Bobcats field a roster of just 25 players but just like those on the line there’s a list of talented and experienced players returning including a couple three-year starters at wide receiver, quarterback and linebacker.
“We’ve got some of the best skill players in the southern part of the state in my opinion,” Evans said. “Brandan Isaac is our QB and one of the best players I’ve coached in my life. Maybe not athletically but as a person and a student of the game he’s a competitor. He’s a 4.6 GPA student and he doesn’t make bad decisions. He understands what’s going on. We’ve got Ryan Oliveros on the outside and he played some quarterback for us last year and when B came back we got Ryan back to WR and he’s dynamic out there. On defense he’s also one of the best cover corners I’ve had. Tyson Adkins is 205 pounds at fullback and he’s been a two-time all-state linebacker for us. It’s always great to have him. Then you have Drake Cole who had about 1,300 yards for us last year. He’s gained some weight and he’s about 190 pounds. That core group is amazing and they want to win.”
The experience that bunch brings will be necessary. In each of Evans’s first two years Summers has played a pair of teams that have gone on to play for state titles in Independence (’21) and James Monroe (’22). The Mavericks highlight a difficult schedule with playoff teams such as Greenbrier West and Clay County still in the fold. But to be the bets you have to beat the best.
“When I came here I said we were going to play good competition,” Evans said. “We’re not going to try and out-schedule ourselves but us beating an 0-10 team does nothing for us. It doesn’t get us prepared for when we do have to play. I’d hate to go 8-2 or 9-1 and miss the playoffs. I think that’s ridiculous. I’d rather be 6-4 and be tested because those 6-4 teams that are tested usually do something. With our numbers being down you might wish we’d have some easier games on there but in the same sense we’re going to play competitive football and we’ve proven we put a competitive product on the field so there’s no use in us playing 0-10 teams. We want our kids to be the best so we’ll put them against some of the best.”
The path to the postseason is a difficult one for the Bobcats but getting there and winning a game is the ultimate goal. It’s long been Evans’ focus to build the program into one that’s mentioned as a contender each year. That starts with getting to the postseason and pushing through to win a game instead of being content being there.
“Playoffs are always the expectations,” Evans said. “Since 1995, Summers has made the playoffs seven times and has only won two games. We’re tying to set a new standard. Coach (Chris) Vicars had a good run at it in ’17 when he won those two playoff games but those were the only two the school has won. We’ve got to develop that pride back into this place to make it and win one. Back in the day, Hinton was no joke and you knew you were in for it when you came here. They did some really good stuff. They’ve had some good teams but how we judge our success is making it and winning at least one game. That’s what we want right now and anything after that is a bonus. After that the culture sticks. I played for coach (Frank) Spangler and from 1997-2003 it was expected we’d go to the playoffs. You walked into the locker room and knew you were going to the playoffs for four years because it was a culture.”
Summers opens its season Aug. 24 when it hosts PikeView.