MADISON- What a turnaround for the Scott Skyhawks and first year coach Jeremy Dolin.
A Skyhawk team that had won just four years in the past three years has soared to new heights in 2021. Behind the arm of Matt Frye and the legs of Cooper Martin and Landon Stone, the Skyhawks won seven regular season games and qualified for the Class AA playoffs for the first time since 2014.
Stone, a senior who came out for football after Dolin was hired in December, is one of Scott’s main contributors on offense and defense.
“We recruited the hallways really hard, and I spent a lot of time at basketball games and anywhere else I could be seeing kids and talking to kids,” Dolin said. “Landon hadn’t played for several years and was one of the athletes that came out and we knew he was one of the kids that could come out and contribute right away.”
Stone leads the team in receiving yards (507), touchdowns (12), touchdown receptions (5). He is tied for the lead in sacks (4) and ranks second in rushing yards (620), rushing touchdowns (6), receptions (22) and tackles (61).
“He has lined up at every running back position at some point in the season whether it be tailback, wingback or fullback,” Dolin said. “He has had a real good year and he is averaging about six yards a carry.”
Senior running back Cooper Martin has had a phenomenal year in the backfield for the Skyhawks. Martin, one of the top rushers in the Cardinal Conference, has rushed for 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns on 211 carries. He also has seven games of 100-yards-or-more rushing with a season high of 151 against Winfield on Oct. 29.
“Cooper has been our work horse and has rushed for over 1,100 yards,” Dolin said. “I don’t know where that puts him in the Cardinal Conference, but I was talking to (Winfield) coach (Craig) Snyder at our conference meeting, and I know his back was right around that same statistic.”
As a team the Skyhawks have rushed for 2,257 yards with Martin and Stone combining to rush for 1,754 yards this season. Freshman Carson Brinegar has rushed for 195 yards and is averaging 7.2 yards per carry.
“Carson doesn’t see as many carries as the other two guys,” Dolin said. “We got a good stable of running backs that has really keyed the rushing game.”
Frye, who is just a sophomore, has improved as the season has progressed at quarterback. Frye has completed 78-of-149 passes for 1,555 yards and 15 touchdowns. In his last three games, Frye is 36-of-62 for 614 yards and seven touchdowns.
“His poise and maturity level for a sophomore is probably better than some juniors and seniors around the state,” Dolin said. “He can make all the throws, and his read recognition level gets better every week.”
“There is always a stumbling block here or there throughout the season,” Dolin said. “His biggest thing is that when he makes a mistake he has learned from that mistake, and you don’t usually see that mistake again.”
Despite missing three games due to injury, junior receiver Jayden Sharps leads the team in receptions (25) and is second in receiving yards (441) and is tied for third in touchdown receptions (2). Sharps, who Dolin considers one of the best receivers in the Cardinal Conference, returned to the lineup on Oct. 29 against Winfield.
Freshmen Brinegar and Isaiah Bush have made contributions in the receiving game. Brinegar has caught 19 passes for 330 yards and two touchdowns while Bush has three receptions for 140 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore tight end Preston Cooper, who Dolin says may have the best hands on the team, has caught eight balls for 105 yards for three touchdowns.
“Jayden’s injury allowed us to see some of the other kids develop, and Carson really came on during that time,” Dolin said. “Preston Cooper has really flown under the radar and has caught touchdown passes the last few weeks, and if you throw something to him then he is going to catch it.”
