Countdown to Kickoff: Cherokee Chiefs looking to build on last season’s momentuem
· Yahoo Sports
ROGERSVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — In Countdown to Kickoff, we head to Rogersville to check in on the Cherokee Chiefs and sixth-year head coach Josh Hensley.
Last season was a great year for the Chiefs, who finished 7-4 and played in the opening round of the playoffs, where they lost to eventual state champion Alcoa.
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The Chiefs return a few top linemen, and that is good news for their all-state running back, Jayden Weston. On defense, the Chiefs return Eli Boyd, who will be asked to do a lot of things on that side of the ball. Their goal this season is to keep the momentum rolling from last year.
“Defensively, we’re super physical. I mean, we’ve got a lot of guys who are going to be aggressive and get to the ball quickly. And offensively, we’ve got the bodies and the athletes to make big plays,” linebacker Eli Boyd said.
“We want to win the first game. I mean, you can’t start a fire without a spark. Go out, compete every night. Don’t back down from nobody and just go play. Go play football,” running back Jayden Weston said.
“We’re just hoping that we’ve put enough cement in the ground to make sure that this is a program that can sustain what we’ve had. So that’s what we’ve been talking about, making sure that we’re fighting and making sure that we’re putting our names in with some of the greats that have been here at Cherokee High School,” Coach Hensley said.
Cherokee opens the regular season at home against Pigeon Forge on Friday, Aug. 21. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
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