Sloan wants Tigers to compete ‘night in and night out’

Eric Sloan takes his football team 225 miles from home each summer for camp. It’s for a specific reason.

“People have asked, ‘Why are you going to Higginsville?’” Sloan said. “Because we’ll never see any of those teams.”

Sloan said he has many times seen his team compete against impressive programs at camp. It was the case again this summer for Houston as the team played well against a Class 5 playoff team from last year.

But when it comes to competing against the best schools back home, Sloan said his players have struggled.

“We see those guys roll up on the bus – Mountain Grove, Liberty and Ava – and we freak out,” Sloan said. “I hope that we can compete and get over looking at the opponent. I think we’re defeated sometimes before we ever get started because of who we are playing.

“It’s just a mental block we have.”

That mental part of the game will be critical for the 2017 Tigers, according to their third-year coach.

Houston still has many key pieces from last year’s team that struggled to a 1-9 finish. The defense returns seven of its top nine tacklers and the offense brings back its quarterback and three starting offensive linemen.

Now those veteran players – along with some talented upcoming freshmen –must learn how to rise to the challenge of playing in the South Central Association that features some of the top small school programs in the state.

“I want to compete night in and night out,” Sloan said. “We haven’t done that, especially with the back half of the schedule.”

The Tigers’ offense will be led by second-year starting quarterback Paydon Dixon. The junior threw for 452 yards a year ago and had 175 yards on the ground as the team’s second-leading rusher.

Senior Evan Richardson, who has battled a bone bruise in his foot this preseason, slides from the slot to running back for departed two-year starter Chance Hunter. Aiden Sawyer will start at fullback – named the “sniffer” position in the HHS offense.

Gavin Alston will be the slot receiver with John Lane at the other wideout position and Michael Clayton, who received all-SCA honors last year at fullback, moves to tight end. Connor Wilson and Dakota Burchett provide backup depth at wideout. CJ Lee is the backup tight end.

Up front, senior Dalton James, an honorable mention all-conference selection last year, returns along with Josh Hurst and Dawson Koch. They’ll be joined in the starting lineup by Robert Faupel and Ethan Mitchell. Lane Revelle and William Wilson will also figure into the mix.

Hunter, who ran for 1,000-plus yards as a junior and had eight of the team’s 11 rushing touchdowns last season, was the focal point of the Tigers’ offense the past two years. Now that role goes to Dixon, who Sloan said will have an increased workload in 2017.

“The offense will run through him,” Sloan said. “He’ll have a lot of flexibility. We’ll call run plays where he’ll have the option to throw, and the receivers will know that as well. We’ll put the ball in his hands and let him read defenses. He may give it or keep it.”

The HHS offense has been slightly tweaked with Sloan now the offensive coordinator. He said he hopes to better spread the field, including bigger splits for the linemen, and use less motion. Sloan said the Tigers could occasionally line up with two running backs along with showing twins and trips looks with their wide receivers.

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One weapon Sloan hopes to utilize is Alston on the perimeter. He believes Alston will be overlooked by defenses because of his 5-foot-3 frame.

“I think Gavin gives us the ability to open up the field some more,” Sloan said.

Two players that could figure into the backfield mix are freshmen Braydan Martin and Daniel Hutcheson. The duo are among a talented group of first-year high school players who in the spring were the undefeated champions of Ozarks Football League as eighth graders.

“Right now, there are four or five of them that can contribute on Friday nights on special teams,” Sloan said. “I don’t exactly want to see them in a role where they will get swallowed up by varsity guys. If they are ready, we’ll play them. I don’t think they are completely there yet.”

The defense will also be under new leadership as Shane Wright, who joined the staff in the summer, takes over for retired defensive coordinator Ken Cooperman.

Sloan said there is new terminology with Wright and likely more defensive line stunts. But he says the Tigers will still play a similar aggressive style from a 4-4 base look.

Houston returns an experienced group of linebackers as Hurst, who received honorable mention all-SCA honors last year, Sawyer and Lee return after playing big minutes in 2016. Hurst was the team’s third-leading tackler and also ranked third with seven tackles for loss. Sawyer and Lee were fifth and ninth, respectively, in stops.

Hutcheson will also start at linebacker and can drop to strong safety when the Tigers go to a Cover 2 package.

The defensive line is led by Clayton, who had a team-best 10 tackles for losses, at defensive end and James, who had eight stops in the backfield, at defensive tackle. Ethan Mitchell and Faupel will also start on the defensive line. Alex Flores and Trevor Mitchell are backups.

Dixon, a safety, returns in the secondary after ranking second on the team with 86 tackles last season. He led Houston with two of the team’s five interceptions.

Two seniors – Richardson and Noah Mosley – are the starting cornerbacks. Alston, Wilson and Burchett will provide secondary depth.

“We have some veteran guys on defense,” Sloan said. “Hopefully they’ll be tired of getting whipped and play to their capabilities.”

Behind a big group of seniors in 2015, the Tigers made big strides in Sloan’s first year leading the program. The team went 4-6 to win more games than the previous five years combined.

Last season – with just two returning starters – Houston managed just one win as it was outscored 417-107.

“We’re going to be an older team. It’ll be nice to look out there not see a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, knowing that we’re setting ourselves up to be in trouble,” Sloan said.

“The senior group, as a whole, has never really won, so that’s concerning. But they’ve worked pretty hard in the offseason to get where we’re at.”

Where exactly that is will be determined beginning with the season opener Friday at Ash Grove.

“I want to compete night in and night out. We haven’t done that, especially with the back half of the schedule.”

HHS HEAD FOOTBALL COACH ERIC SLOAN