Dragons on throne

The defending champion in Class 2A has a new man in charge, but one who knows how the Junction City Dragons operate.

Brad Smith, who has been an assistant coach at Junction City since 2003 and was the defensive coordinator since 2009, takes over for Steven Jones as the Dragons’ head coach.

But Smith doesn’t feel like a first-time head coach. He credits that to the responsibility given to him by former coaches David Carpenter and Jones.

“Coach Carpenter gave me a ton of autonomy,” Smith said. “It’s really not that big of a deal so far. We haven’t shot any bullets yet.”

Fortunately for Smith, he’s got an experienced group to work with in 2019.

Junction City has 12 seniors, including running back Jakiron Cook and quarterback Brady Hutcheson. Cook rushed for 1,214 yards with 18 touchdowns on 160 carries in 2018 for the Dragons. Hutcheson passed for 1,108 yards with 12 touchdowns and 5 interceptions a season ago.

The Dragons’ senior class has been part of the school’s past two state championship game appearances — the 2017 Class 3A state final loss to River-crest and last season’s Class 2A triumph against Hazen.

“They’re very special,” Smith said. “The work ethic is so great here. The expectations that they have, it makes this job a lot easier than it should be. You know that you’re not going to be questioned. Whatever you’re going to tell them to do, they’ll put on the hard hat and go to work.

“They expect to succeed. It’s not hoping or wishing.”

Gurdon Coach Kyle Jackson said Junction City is the team to beat in Class 2A.

“Until somebody beats them, you have to look at Junction,” he said. “Year in and year out, with the tradition of winning, they put in the work. They’re always going to be near the top.”

Hazen Coach Joe Besancon saw Junction City firsthand in 2018, with his Hornets losing to the Dragons in the state championship game.

He expects Class 2A to be competitive again this season, and he expects to see Junction City among the top contenders again.

“It’s a tough classification,” Besancon said. “We beat Gurdon last year, but they were young. Gurdon is a team you’ll have to watch.”

Other key Class 2A contenders include Hazen in 6-2A and Gurdon from the 7-2A.

Besancon said the Hornets are determined to get back to the state championship game. The Hornets led 22-12 with 7:03 remaining in the third quarter, but the Dragons scored the final 24 points to win its seventh state championship game.

“We felt like we let one slip away,” Besancon said. “We had a chance to win that football game.

“I don’t have to say a whole lot about it to them. They know what they have to do.”

Senior athlete Blayne Toll, who plays quarterback and defensive end and has orally committed to the University of Arkansas, returns for his fourth season as a starter. This season, he’ll add a third main position to his resume — tight end.

“ We ’ r e m o v i n g h i m around a whole lot,” Besancon said. “We’re letting him be more versatile.”

Besancon said the Hornets plan to use freshman Luke King at quarterback along with Toll. King played for Hazen’s junior high team last season, and Besancon said he is ready to step up to the varsity level as a ninth-grader.

Gurdon switched to the Wishbone offense in 2018, and the Go-Devils’ success with it has Jackson raring to go this season.

“It’s going to pay off having a second year in our offensive system,” he said.

Gurdon is led by junior running back/wide receiver Jameson Threadgill and quarterback /cornerback Dean Anna. The Go-Devils’ junior class is at 16 players.

“We’ve got an extremely talented junior class,” Jackson said.

When Gurdon dropped from Class 3A to Class 2A, it was a welcome change, Jackson said.

“The biggest difference was up front, offensive and defensive line depth,” Jackson said. “We always had the skill kids to match. We were excited to be back. We set the bar back to where we’re used to.”

While Jackson likes his talent, he’s not buying in to all of the talk surrounding the Gurdon program.

“I think we’ve got a chance to be a pretty good team potentially,” Jackson said. “But until we do something in November into early December, it’s all talk, honestly.”

Junction City has won seven state championships, all since 2003. But Smith and the Dragons never have set that as the ultimate goal going into any season, including this one.

“We have a little saying down here,” Smith said. “Do it as hard as you can, as fast as you can, all the time. If you do those things, then you’ll be really good.

“If you start talking about winning certain things, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. You have to go compete and do the best you can.”