Staff file photo / R. Michael Semple Brookfield head coach Randy Clark leads his team onto the field before its first game at its new stadium last year against Valley Christian.

BROOKFIELD — After a down year a season ago, the Brookfield Warriors are ready to step up to the challenges of their conference and, as head coach Randy Clark believes, E.A.T.

The acronym, while commonly used as a moniker for doing something well, means a little more for the Warriors — effort, attitude and toughness.

“The effort, the attitude and the toughness are our main goals this year,” Clark said.

Last season, the Warriors finished 3-7 with the wins coming over Champion, Southeast and Newton Falls.

Accountability issues plagued the program, for which Clark takes responsibility.

“We had way too many off-the-field issues starting off in the summer, and then we had some kids not buying into the system. I have nobody to blame but myself,” he said. “Since January in the weight room, we’ve been working on that and it’s going really well. The turnaround has been very good and the kids have responded well. Their accountability has been outstanding and they’re working hard, so it’s going well. I’m excited for these kids because they’re letting us coach them and now they’ll be able to see the payoff of it.”

In the early months of the year in the weight room, Clark believes his team has really bought into the culture he and his staff have cultivated over his years as head coach.

He mentioned seeing a drastic turnaround from last year to this year and is pleased to see the increased accountability from his squad.

“I’ve never seen a group change so quickly and drastically in an opposite direction (from last year),” Clark said. “We really set the tone early in January and February that we weren’t putting up with certain things, and they responded to it. I mean, they’re all in.”

The Warriors return a large chunk of players, but are mostly juniors and underclassmen. Only four seniors return to the gridiron this season — but those four complement a good amount of experienced returning players.

“We still have about seven returning players on offense and seven returning players on defense. We started a young team last year. My two best classes are the sophomores and juniors this year. I have four damn good seniors this year. They’re great leaders,” Clark said. “Our seniors and juniors are leading this team in the right direction, and our sophomore class is following suit.”

That leadership, Clark believes, will translate on the field.

“We had no direction last year and I fully take the blame for that,” he said. “I’ve always said you don’t have to be a senior to be a captain or a leader.”

OFFENSE

At the quarterback position, Clark said Blake Hammond will be his signal caller.

Hammond saw increased playing time toward the end of last season and is primed to be QB1 this season.

“(Hammond’s) a great athlete and a great leader himself,” Clark said. “He’s very poised and composed. What he did for us in the last four games last season, it’s kind of amazing that anybody can do that at a high school level. This year with the whole offseason under his belt and having the summer to prepare and get ready leading up to two-a-day’s, he’s so much more mature, knows the position and is coachable.”

Clark added Hammond appears more comfortable under center. As a true freshman a year ago, Clark commended his ability to come in and run things during the latter half of the season. This year, with some experience and maturity, Clark anticipates Hammond to come into his own.

“It’s night-and-day with (Hammond) right now,” he said.

Also in the backfield, Clark continued to sing the praise of running back Rico Smith. Two years ago, Clark predicted Smith would be a force for the Warriors and still holds that belief to be true.

“He’s racked up just about 3,200 yards in two years and he’s a different man,” Clark said. “We had issues previously with (Smith) and accountability, but he’s different this year. He’s busting his ass in every drill and everything we do. I stand behind what I said. He’s the man.”

One area of Smith that has improved, according to Clark, is his understanding of the scheme of the offense. The tools of a sound running back are there, but Smith’s newfound understanding of how the offense is run will make him a more prolific runner.

“He got through the youth growing pains the hard way. He knows not every play is a touchdown. Maybe the last two years he didn’t know that,” Clark said. “He used to get frustrated when he didn’t get a good gain, but it’s been a total turnaround. He’s a team player. He’s a leader. He knows how much he means to the team and he knows how much the team means to him.”

The weapons surrounding Smith, however, will mean the offense won’t be run through him specifically. Clark anticipates a more well-rounded offense this season.

“We have plenty of weapons around (Smith),” Clark said. “(Hammond) is a dual-threat. We’re going to run a true spread offense and get back to what we’ve always used to run. We have one back with (Smith) but having (Hammond) there as well, it’s like we have two running backs.”

Some of those weapons also include the wide receivers.

Previously, Josh Rankin transitioned from receiver to quarterback. But this season, Clark moved Rankin back to his primary position. Also primed for catching passes is Bristol transfer Brody Smith, Cruz Torres and Ethan Martin.

Speaking of his receivers, Clark called all four athletic kids who can all do damage and help Brookfield win games.

In the trenches, Clark highlighted Devin Reardon, Jacob Hodge and Hunter Hopkins as the anchors on the offensive line. The youth and relative inexperience on the line will be circumvented by the group’s toughness, Clark said.

DEFENSE

On the other side of the ball, Clark said his defensive unit’s strength is its athletic ability.

“We’re going to be very fast and swarm the ball,” Clark said. “We’re going to be in multiple faces out there, bring some blitzes here and there and we have a strong group of skill-players back there. We have very athletic linebackers. They like contact and can run very well.”

Anchoring the defense as a unit, Clark is leaning on Rico Smith and Robbie Flynn as safeties, Martin and Brody Smith at corner and Hodge and Hoskins up front.

“We’ve got some new guys up front also that will bring a little experience, but we’re going to be alright. They’re going to be a fast defense and a fun defense,” Clark said.

For the linebacker group, Clark is relying on Nathan Kashmer, Rankin, Keithen Flynn and Torres to cause disruption. The skipper said Kashmer might find himself as a defensive end, depending on the team’s needs.

In addition to Hodge, Hoskins, and at times Kashmer, Clark said the defensive line will also feature Reardon. The athletic-themed defense extends to the line as well, according to Clark.

“The line is going to be athletic for alignments too,” he said. “They’re going to be able to have gap control and run to the ball. That’s going to be key. We are going to move them around a little and let them play.”

SPECIAL TEAMS

Up for contest as the season approaches is the kicker position. Currently, there is no specific kicker, according to Clark, but there are a number of athletes who could handle kicking duties.

“Right now we don’t have a kicker. We are working on that,” Clark said. “Right now, Brody Smith is probably the best kicker we’ve got. (Hammond) will be our punter.”

Handling return duties will be any combination of Rico Smith or Robbie Flynn.

The Warriors open the 2025 campaign Aug. 22 against Hubbard.