VAN, W.Va. — Not only did the Van Bulldogs post the program’s second undefeated and untied regular season last fall, they did so in dominating fashion. The Bulldogs outscored their opposition by an average of 31 points per game in a 10-0 campaign.
“It brought a buzz back to the community that used to be around years ago,” said Van head coach Mark Agosti. “These kids had a lot of fun. I was glad to let them see something and experience something that hadn’t been around here for a while. It was a good time.
“A few kids that had never played before came out this year. Through the summer, they talked about it in the weight room and that has been pretty busy. There’s a little excitement that has carried over. It is a good thing.”
Fourth-year head coach Mark Agosti must now make up for the loss of a senior class of eight players and all were key contributors for multiple seasons.
“We’ve got to develop some younger players. Always with us, depth is our problem. We are always small in numbers. Younger kids have to play. So we’ve got to develop these younger kids. That happens with playing time and getting on the field and getting reps in. That is our biggest challenge.”
The Bulldogs must replace their starting quarterback and a pair of thousand-yard rushers. Senior Gavin Branham accounted for 637 yards of total offense in 2022.
“He is like a coach on the field. He is a smart kid. He understands what is going on. He’s got great vision. He’s a competitor and is a tough kid.”
Junior Easton Moore finished second on the team in tackles last year with 71 stops and 20 of those were behind the line of scrimmage. He also had a dozen sacks.
“You don’t get any tougher than that kid. He plays hard. He runs like he is 230 pounds. He is only about 150 pounds. Defensively, he gets after it. He is going to be an asset for us.”
Agosti says training camp will be needed to build depth on both lines but several starters return up front.
“We’re returning most of our linemen. We’ll be pretty good up front, led by Dalton Kessinger. He is just a junior and he is definitely a player. That being said, we are thin there as far as depth goes. We don’t have a lot of depth on our line. As far as experience goes, we are pretty good with the five or six we’ve got out there.”