Black Knights return strong group for 2020
Durham – Fear not, Black Knights fans: Robbinsville will be just fine next year.
Though the Knights are graduating 14 seniors – coincidentally, the same number of state championships Robbinsville can claim – the depth of impact players from this year’s history-making football team will play favorably into success when it comes time to defend the 1A crown next season.
Prolific running back Lex Hooper will be entering his senior season at the 2,663-yard mark for his career and looks to anchor the rushing game. Quarterback Nathan Collins will also be a senior, as will wide receivers Wade Hamilton, Hunter Blevins and Drey Keener. Cody Cline will continue to toe the special teams as a junior, while offensive and defensive nightmares such as Candler Edwards, Xavier Rattler, Carlos Wesley, Terry Sellers, Aaron Phillips and Rossi Wachacha are also expected to suit up in 2020.
Needless to say, Robbinsville has done a fine job of spreading the wealth and developing players throughout the season. That approach will pay dividends when the 2020 season kicks off.
“It’s very important,” Robbinsville head coach Dee Walsh said. “That’s why, at the end of the junior high season, we try to bring as many freshman kids as we can into our team. They may not be making a difference, but they’re out there every day and getting practice. They’re learning and seeing what it takes to get to this level.
“When you make it here, you get that many more days of practice for those kids that other teams don’t get.”
The Black Knights will not only be defending the 1A state championship next season, but also the honor and prestige of the Smoky Mountain Conference. The division won seven of the 10 1A state titles awarded in the 2010s.
“Our entire conference is proud of who we are,” Walsh said. “We feel like we’re the most competitive conference, anywhere. All of the coaches in our conference are really good, and all the players on those teams are just like our kids. They’re mountain boys, and they play with a lot of heart.
“We may not have the biggest or strongest athletes, but our kids play above their level because they’re playing for the mountains and the communities in our conference.”