By Chris Parker
Logan-Rogersville football has a new head coach in Joel Wells this season.
Wells has made six coaching stops across a long career including stints at Cassville, Washington, Liberty (KC), Nixa, Kickapoo and Harrison (Ark.).
He took a three-year break from coaching before jumping back in at Logan-Rogersville this season.
“I knew I wanted a place that wasn’t a huge school, but a place that had some room to grow,” Wells said. “Logan-Rogersville really fits the bill as far as that is concerned. They have been pretty good in everything except football lately. We will see if we can get them pointed in the right direction.”
He wants to see his new team get off to a fast start to build confidence this season.
“We want to get off to a good start, gain some momentum and get our kids to believe that they can win football games,” Wells said. “I think that is the biggest part of it. I think the biggest thing I see right now is we need to gain confidence in what we are doing because we do have some athletic kids that can be competitive.”
Wells hopes to pair a fast start with a fast offense.
“We want to play a more up-tempo style of football offensively,” Wells said.
Quarterback Sam Frieze returns after splitting time at the position last season. He completed 68 passes for 871 yards and nine touchdowns as a junior.
“He has been real committed to what we are doing. He hasn’t missed a day of anything,” Wells said. “He has done a good job of committing to the program and buying into what we are doing. I look for him to have a good year.”
One thing Frieze will have to adjust to is a new style of running game.
“We do a lot of reading in the running game,” Wells said. “He hasn’t run the football that much on designed runs. He has got to get used to reading down linemen and not just coverages.”
Carl Westerling ang Joe Roche will handle most of the backfield duties running the ball. Westerling had 74 carries for 302 yards and seven touchdowns last season.
Cash Clark, an all-conference defensive back last season, will see time at both receiver and running back.
Sophomores Gage Hale and Skye Vaughn will be the top two receivers coming off all-conference selections as freshmen. Hale led the team with 42 receptions for 565 yards and four touchdowns. Vaughn was just behind him with 41 catches for 505 yards and four touchdowns.
Look for Nate Knowles and Ben Bisher at tight end.
Vance Nally returns on the offensive line. He holds several college offers including from FCS Eastern Illinois according to Wells.
“He passes the looks test. He works hard and is big, strong and athletic,” Wells said.
Parker White, Grayson Harris and Carson Stinnett will also be on the offensive line.
On the other side of the ball veteran coach Rich Rehagen is the new defensive coordinator for the Wildcats.
He will have a strong secondary to work with.
“Our back end is probably the strength of our defense at this time,” Wells said.
Clark is the leading returning tackler with 87 total tackles last season. He also had four interceptions. Hale led the team with five interceptions and contributed 60 total tackles.
Vaughn, Lucas White, Broden Cantrell and Lucas White will also be in the secondary.
Stinnett will be on the defensive line.
The second level is where Logan-Rogersville is working to develop some linebackers after the graduation of Jacob Shinkarevich and his 181 total tackles.
“What we are looking for right now is linebackers,” Wells said. “They graduated a really good linebacker last year with a lot of tackles. A really good football player. That is the position we are focusing on trying to find the guys who can play in there and get better.”
Westerling, Kael Sharp, Jack Cole, Caden Hall, Fisher Dedmon and Dallas Boyer are all options at linebacker.
Logan-Rogersville will jamboree with Central, Hillcrest and Strafford at Central on Aug. 22 before opening the season on Aug. 29 at Reeds Spring.
“I am going to be extremely disappointed if we are not competitive each and every night that we go out there,” Wells said. “I think it is important that we get off to a good start. If we can get off to a good start and have two or three wins under our belt going into conference play, it will make it much more competitive.
