GREENWOOD — When you walk outside you can literally smell it in the air!! It’s football season and what better place to be than Center Grove high school on a Friday to see the Trojans get loose!! Well playas…in less than a week they’ll take the field on the road at defending Class 6A state champion, Warren Central, and you’d better pack your grandmother’s lunch because it’s about to be Chris Brown up in that piece “On and Poppin’!”
The Trojans are coming off of an impressive 9-4 season and a Top 5 ranking with a bunch of horses still in the stables. They’ve got 13 returning starters coming back as hungry as a pack of wild dogs roaming the streets looking for dinner. That’s hungry.
They’re obviously led by the No.1 horse in the state, the War Horse, Carson Steele, the junior All-American that took the M.I.C. by storm dragging boyz all over three counties as a freshman finishing with more than 1,700 yards averaging more than 150 yards per game. Then he followed his debut up with an even more impressive sophomore season piling up more than 2,270 yards averaging 174 yards per game!! That’s NUTS!!! Now boyz have to deal with him for two more seasons? I can’t wait to see what he’s got under his sleeve for 2019!!!
I wanted to know who else would be getting off of the bus with the War Horse to lead the Trojans so I hollered at Coach Eric Moore on Friday. I asked him who else has emerged as leaders of his team? He says that “Our linebackers, our two inside guys, they’re not big kids but they’re really good football players, Gabe Boyd and Cody Robinson. They are really vocal and lead by example. They’ve done a great job.”
He goes on to say, “Our offensive center Ethan Crowe. I think he’s a great leader. He doesn’t say much. He just leads by example. We have a lot of leaders that lead by example, Luke Piper our offensive guard. That’s been fun to watch those kids finally get their chance.”
With all of the guys that are vocal leaders along with those that lead by example, I had to ask him was Carson Steele the type of guy that talks more or does he just go out and get it done? Moore said, “I never hear Carson say a word. He can rush for 400 yards and won’t say a word. “Are you okay, ‘Yes Sir!’ Are you… ‘No Sir!'”
Moore goes on to say, “There’s nothing better at halftime to motivate your team than to look over and see a 15 year old kid sitting there with his elbows cut up, his knees cut up, his chin bleeding and you know…ready to go out and get 200 more yard for you. There’s no one that plays harder than he plays when he’s playing in a game. He doesn’t talk about it he just shows it.”
In the words of Coach Moore, “Let’s GO!!!” I brain farted and asked him who they opened up with next week and he said, “Have you been living under a freakin’ rock!!!” I totally spaced that the first game of the season every year is Warren Central vs. Center Grove!!! It’s where TheJayGravesReport ALWAYS opens the season!!! So in my Eric Moore voice, “LET’S GO!!!” And stop me when I start lyin’!
