by Rusty Ellis
The Smith County Owls put their program on the map in 2022 with an 11-2 record that saw them win two playoff games and finish just two games short of playing for a state championship.
Matt Dyer’s squad enters the 2023 season with a lot of expectations, and even with the departure of sophomore Kaden Powell, Dyer has plenty of reason to be excited about his new signal-caller.
“We’ve got Riley Martin back there,” Dyer said. “He’s a talented player and highly regarded baseball prospect with multiple SEC looks going into his freshman year. He’s got a heck of an arm and great touch. He’s athletic and mature.”
It helps that Martin has a plethora of weapons at his disposal as well, as players like Peyton Hix will be two-way stars for the Owls, and a loaded backfield features players like Ethan Madewell and Jaeden Evans as the primary rushing attacks.
“Peyton Hix has been our go-to guy on defense and has made a lot of plays the past two years,” Dyer added. “Ethan Madewell and Jaeden Evans have had a good day; they’ve been our bell cows at running back. Ryne Martin is another one who will make a lot of plays for us.”
Other players to keep an eye on are speedster Kylan Johnson, Key Harris and Jermaine Cason, last year’s backup quarterback who Dyer says will see a little bit of a different role this season.
” Kylan Johnson is coming into his senior year, last year he played running back and we moved him to receiver late,” Dyer said. “We’ve just got to find creative ways to get him the ball because he’s one of the fastest guys on the team. Key Harris is another guy that had a great Spring, Jermaine Cason was our backup quarterback last year, but we’re also going to feature him as well and get the ball to him as well.”
Add in some serious size on the offensive line with players such as Javy Gaspar and Ty Martin, there’s no reason to believe the Owls won’t be just as lethal in the ground-game as they have been in the past. Gaspar and Martin will also anchor the defensive line as well, giving Smith County a chance to generate pressure every play.
The Owls will be competing in both a new classification and a new region in 2023, as they dropped down to 2A and will face East Robertson, Westmoreland, Monterey, Trousdale County and Jackson County in Region 3-2A. The Owls are expected to be the favorites in the region alongside East Robertson after last season’s success, but Dyer is quick to say he doesn’t want his team resting on last season’s laurels.
He wants them focused on being 1-0 each week and tackling those challenges as they come.
“We did a good job of trying to go 1-0 each week and then moving on to the next,” Dyer said. “We convinced our guys that nobody cares about what they did the year or week before. We care about what you’re doing this week in getting ready for our game and executing the game-plan. It’s all about what you’re doing today.”
The Owls open the season against cross-county rival Gordonsville on Aug. 17.