SPENCER, W.Va. — Two of the deepest postseason runs in Roane County history have come in the last two seasons. The Raiders have advanced to the Class AA quarterfinals in back-to-back years. Last season, Roane’s only loss was a one-point defeat to North Marion in the second round as the Raiders finished 11-1.
“We returned a lot of starters last year and a lot of guys that have really been impact players for us,” said Roane County head coach Paul Burdette. “We knew the capability was there. We just had to take it one game at a time and get to that point.”
Roane must replace a pair of senior running backs in Skyler Delk and Briar Begler. The duo combined for 2,732 rushing yards and 42 touchdowns last fall. Junior Shay Harper and senior Brandon Richardson will take on greater roles in 2023. Harper toted the ball for 683 yards and 10 touchdowns a year ago.
“We really feel like we still have a good stable of backs. Shay Harper is returning and he will be just a junior this year. Brandon Richardson returns as a senior. We moved him all over the field last year. He’ll carry the ball a lot more this year as well.”
Sophomore quarterback Jacob Greathouse could take on more responsibilities on offense. He played in all twelve games last season.
“We didn’t want to put a lot of pressure on his last year. We just kind of had him deal the cards to the guys in the backfield that were going to get the job done. But he did a really good job of doing that and our play action passes. There will be a little bit more on him this year but we are still going to run the ball a lot as well.”
The Raiders rushed the ball on 91 percent of their snaps last season and their offensive line will welcome in a trio of new starters.
“We return two starters and a couple guys that had some playing time. Just getting those guys in sync and in tune and working as a unit completely, we’ve had a really good summer working with them. They’ve worked really hard and they are coming along really nicely.”
Roane County’s defense did not allow more than 20 points a game last season and they yielded an average of just 12 points per contest. Combining that strong defense with a ball control offense could be the recipe for the Raiders to advance to the state semifinals for the first time in school history.
“The level of focus and work ethic — not that it has been bad in the past, it has been good — but it has kind of taken a step up because our guys do realize the success they have had and also where they want to get to as they move forward.”