Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Hubbard head coach Brian Hoffman gives his players direction during a practice earlier this summer.

HUBBARD –After losing players from key positions due to graduation the Eagles enter the fall a bit greener than normal.

With a young roster, 2023 will be a year of growing for Hubbard while it still hopes to maintain the high standards and levels of expectation.

The Eagles haven’t missed the postseason since 2017 and have posted a record of .500 or better over the past 24 years. With that being said, 17th-year head coach Brian Hoffman is optimistic about the new set of opportunities the new season always brings.

“The unknowns and just the growing, maturity rate, how fast you can get guys prepared and ready, I think that all kind of plays into it,” Hoffman said. “The good part is that we’ve had an opportunity to get some of those younger guys some experience last year here and there in some varsity games, and that always helps.

“Being on the field as a sophomore, or even a freshman, it kind of gives you a little bit of a confidence that they could be under the lights and kind of have a little confidence in themselves.”

Seasons like this highlight the senior leadership that does return, especially in a league full of talented teams like South Range, Girard, Poland and Struthers.

“It’s a good conference, a lot of good coaches, a lot of guys that have been in this for a while and have built and developed strong programs,” Hoffman said. “There’s no easy games in the conference. On any given night you can lose a game or win a game. So you have to get your kids prepared, and just come out and play your best football.”

Naturally, the early non-conference schedule gives Hubbard an opportunity to grit its teeth and really allow some of the younger positions to gain a foothold on the turf.

It starts with a trip to Rayen Stadium for a season-opening contest against East. Then they head for contests followed against Greenville (PA) and Howland.

“I’d say they’re extremely important, especially when you have a younger group that you’re bringing into a season,” Hoffman said. “Anytime you can gain confidence and get some wins under your belt, it helps before you get into conference play. But to be honest with you, those first three weeks are three pretty rigorous games. I look at the schedule and say we have to come to play every week, there’s no gimmies, that’s for sure.”

Last year, the Eagles traveled to Greenville and earned an 8-3 win. As more and more local programs schedule teams from Pennsylvania like Struthers, Austintown Fitch, and Warren G. Harding to name a few, Hoffman sees the type of play across the boarder akin to what you’d see in the Mahoning Valley.

“After playing Greenville last year, I’d say they’re very similar,” he said. “Western PA and this part of Ohio, I think our brand of football is all pretty comparable. I don’t see any grand differences. I think they’re pretty well coached, there’s some really good programs just across the border.”

OFFENSE

Sophomore Braydon Songer has some limited varsity experience, but takes over under center following the graduation of two-year starter Nik Hendrix.

“Braydon is a headsy kid, from what I’ve seen so far,” Hoffman said. “He has confidence in his ability, he definitely is a guy that can run and throw as well. He’s a dual-threat guy. I think the biggest thing for him will be making good decisions early on with the football. He has a strong arm and can make some throws in tight windows, so I like that about him.

“In watching him progress through the program, he has a lot of poise and so far he’s made good decisions, so I like that about him.”

Valuable leadership is found within the backfield in the form of senior running back Garland Warren, a 5-foot-11, 220-pound back who earned 383 yards on the ground with a pair of touchdowns. Fellow senior Xzander Owens returns as the wing back after tallying 199 rushing yards, 125 receiving yards and four total touchdowns.

Senior receiver Lavonte Daniels will lead a receiver corps that also consists of sophomores Matt Chaney, Michael Hazimihalis, Rome Odem and junior Baron Reynolds-Penny.

Senior Nunzio Scacchetti and sophomore Brady Krisuk step in at the tight end position.

“We have a little bit of depth at that spot right now, hopefully they continue to progress through the summer,” Hoffman said.

Where the Eagles will excel is across the offensive line, as they return all but one of their starters. It’s a platoon headed by seniors Nick Bowser (6-0, 280 pounds), Joey Komlanc (6-3, 230 pounds), Lucas Seese (5-11, 215 pounds) and junior Gabe Hamrock (5-11, 245 pounds).

Senior Nick Pallante (6-3, 310 pounds) also saw considerable playing time last fall.

“Having some experience back on your offensive line really does help, especially when you’re trying to groom a young quarterback,” Hoffman said. “To have some experience on the line is very advantageous. (Bowser), some of those guys have been three-four year starters, so they do have game experience. They know our system, our run game, pass game, so that helps us.”

Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes
Hubbard running back Garland Warren runs for a gain during a practice earlier this offseason.

DEFENSE

Junior Joe Hamm (6-0, 190 pounds, 28 tackles, for a loss and two sacks) returns as a defensive end for the Eagles. Bowser (69 tackles, 15 for a loss, and four sacks) and Komlanc are also back on the defensive line.

Owens (26 tackles), Seese (20 tackles) and Warren are the inside linebackers. Scacchetti (53 tackles, 14 for a loss, six sacks, three blocked punts), Hazimihalis, and Krisuk will play on the outside.

Having to replace its entire secondary, Hubbard eyes Chaney, Songer, Daniels, and Odem as options for the corner back and safety positions.

Hubbard is changing from an even-front scheme to an odd-front, leading to some differences on the defensive line play compared to last season.

“It’ll be a little bit of an adjustment for our defensive linemen, so they’ll be a little bit of a growing period, but we’ve kind of bounced between an off-front and even-front for the last few years anyway. So we make those decisions based on the personnel we have,” Hoffman said. “The past few years we were pretty blessed with defensive end-type bodies, so we ran more of even-front. This year we have a few more linebacker type bodies than guys that can run, so we’re looking at more of a 3-4.”

With so many faces going two-ways, keeping players fresh, especially with some of the less experienced players, is always a challenge in and of itself.

“That’s the key, they have to be in shape, that’s for sure,” Hoffman said. “You want to put your best out on the field, so you have to coach the other guys up and make sure you have other guys that can understand their importance to the team. If we have guys that can fill in and take so many plays and get those guys a break here and there, that only helps your team.

“You’re going to have to rely on your kids that are experienced to step up and be leaders for you and kind of rally the troops when it’s time, so we are hopeful they’ll do that.”

SPECIAL TEAMS

Hubbard does retain two kickers from its soccer program with sophomores Caleb Mackay and Trent Reinard.

Reinard will handle punting duties, while Mackay will handle place kicking.

2023 Schedule

Aug. 18 at Youngstown East 7 p.m.

Aug. 25 vs. Greenville (Pa.) 7 p.m.

Sept. 1 vs. Howland 7 p.m.

Sept. 8 at Niles* 7 p.m.

Sept. 15 vs. Poland* 7 p.m.

Sept. 22 at Struthers* 7 p.m.

Sept. 29 vs. Beaver Local 7 p.m.

Oct. 6 at Lakeview* 7 p.m.

Oct. 13 vs. Girard* 7 p.m.

Oct. 20 at South Range* 7 p.m.

*Northeast-8 Conference game

2022 Results (6-5)

vs. Youngstown East (1-9) W 28-8

at Greenville (Pa.) (2-8) W 8-3

at Howland (2-8) W 20-8

at Poland (5-6) L 21-28

vs. Struthers (7-5) W 21-14

at Jefferson Area (11-4) L 13-25

vs. Lakeview (3-7) W 22-0

at Girard (8-4) L 14-49

vs. Niles McKinley (2-8) W 37-20

vs. South Range (16-0) L 0-28

#at Girard (8-4) L 20-30

#-OHSAA playoffs

Coaching staff

Head coach: Brian Hoffman

Staff: Ron Fox, John Schiraldi, Tim Schiraldi, Dennis Parise, James Chaney, Jim Hazimihalis, Jeff Songer, George Taylor, Hunter Meyer, Rick Bowser

Team facts

Division IV, Region 13

Northeast-8 Conference

Players on roster: 55

Returning letterwinners (17): Rome Odem, Lavonte Daniles, Xzander Owens, Mathew Chaney, Braydon Songer, Nunzio Scacchetti, Michael Hazimihalis, Joe Hamm, Caleb Mackay, Joey Komlanc, Gabe Hamrock, Nathan Cochrane, Lucas Seese, Nick Bowser, Nick Pallante, Garland Warren, Brady Krisuk

2022 season: After starting off the year with three straight victories, the Eagles split their six games before dropping back-to-back contests to end the year. They lost to both South Range and Girard at the end of the season. They started off the year with wins over Youngstown East, Greenville (Pa.) and Howland. They also earned a overtime victory over Struthers.