OAKWOOD — After 10 straight seasons with no playoff appearances, Tony Lotti and his staff have enacted a turnaround for West Hall football, guiding the Spartans to three straight playoffs and a first-ever region title in 2014.
And despite a drop from nine wins in 2014 to just five in 2015, the Spartans are still in a position to continue their playoff streak in 2016 with a slew of good young talent mixed with experience in several key areas.
West Hall returns 14 starters, including a pair of quarterbacks in senior Jacob Satterfield and junior Cameron Shirley, who both saw action in 2015. Shirley also helps lead a good receiving corp along with senior Will Dague and twins Ashun and A.J. Favorite. Senior Tyrese Osborne and junior Cooper Adams are both poised to have breakout seasons at running back. They also will have an experienced group coming back along the line, including seniors Michael Kidd and Andrew Lilly,.
On defense, Kidd will anchor the line, while seniors Justin Hearn and George Lira lead a good linebacking group. Senior safety Patrick Hudson and junior cornerback TK Hendrix give the Spartans an athletic secondary.
"We have the talent across the board to compete, we believe," Lotti said. "The key will be how they handle the mental part of the season. The team as a whole has really come together in the offseason. Their maturity for a young overall has really come through."
The key question comes via the kicking game, where the Spartans were one of the best in the area with All-State punter Anthony Lotti (now at Wisconsin) and kicker Ceasr Villa. Junior Gavin Armour will take over for Lotti and junior Israel Lopez will handle the place-kicking duties in 2016.
"We really stress the importance of the kicking game and Anthony was a key factor in three of our wins last year in pinning teams back," Lotti said. "It takes time to develop a kicker like Anthony became, but Gavin has made a lot of strides in the offseason. We like what we have in Israel."
It may be hard to develop anything with the tough schedule the Spartans will navigate. They open against perennial power Gainesville and also face Washington-Wilkes, Jackson County, Dawson County and Rabun County, along with their traditional battle with rival Johnson in non-region games. With only four region contests, including state powers Marist and Blessed Trinity, along with what is expected to be an improved White County team, they will need to be as close to ready as they can be right out of the gate.
WEST HALL: NEED TO KNOW
- MASCOT: Spartans
- TEAM COLORS: Navy blue and Silver
- CURRENT REGION: 7-AAAA
- HEAD COACH/RECORD AT SCHOOL: Tony Lotti, fifth season, 23-20
- 2015 RECORD/ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 5-6, reached Class AAA first round
- KEY LOSSES: RB/LB/KR Tyquan Statham, RB/S/KR Kwon Williams, RB Tristian Hester, P Anthony Lotti, PK Cesar Villa
- OFFENSIVE STYLE: Multiple offense -- The Spartans will run to set up the pass and attempt a balanced attack.
- KEY OFFENSIVE PLAYERS: 7 returning starters -- Sr. RB Tyrese Osborne, Sr. WR Will Dague, Sr. QB Jacob Satterfield, Jr. QB/WR Cameron Shirley, Sr. RB/WR Ashun Favorite, Sr. RB/WR A.J. Favorite, Jr. RB Cooper Adams
- DEFENSIVE STYLE: 3-4 -- West Hall will rely on speed and aggression, mixing in the blitz.
- KEY DEFENSIVE PLAYERS: 7 returning starters -- Sr. DE Michael Kidd, Sr. LB Justin Hearn, Sr. LB George Lira, Sr. Saf Patrick Hudson, Jr. CB TK Hendrix
- SPECIAL TEAMS: Jr. P Gavin Armour, Jr. PK Israel Lopez
- STRENGTH: Unity/secondary/offensive line -- With 14 returning starters, team unity and chemistry should be solid. The secondary behind Hudson and Hendrix should be a good one and offensive line should be solid with four players returning with varsity experience.
- QUESTION: Kicking game -- Special teams are still a work in progress but Armour and Lopez have made strides during the offseason.
- KEY GAMES: The Spartans have a tough non-region schedule and hope to use that to prepare for their region schedule. They open region play on the road at Chestatee and need a good start with road games at Marist and White County to follow.
- TRENDING: Despite a drop from nine wins and a region title in 2014 to just five wins in 2015, the Spartans have some good young talent. Lotti and his staff have said they are "building a program and not just a team" and with the numbers up and enthusiasm for the program in the community, the future looks bright at "The Hot Gates."
2016 SCHEDULE
Aug. 19 vs. Gainesville
Aug. 26 at Johnson
Sept. 2 at Washington-Wilkes
Sept. 9 at Jackson County
Sept. 16 vs. Dawson County
Sept. 23 vs. Rabun County
Oct. 7 at *Chestatee
Oct. 14 vs. *Marist
Oct. 28 vs. *White County
Nov. 4 at *Blessed Trinity
*- Indicates region game
(All kickoffs scheduled for 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted)
