SEASON OUTLOOK
Marlon Humphrey is a name recruiting enthusiasts will want to remember. The cornerback is drawing comparisons to elite defensive backs of years past.
Photo by Joe Boyd
Toughest game: South Panola. The Bucs will get tested early by a much-improved South Panola squad that was very young last season. Hoover’s young receivers will need to step up and provide a vertical threat that seemed to be missing when the teams met last fall.
Question mark: How good will the offensive line be? It’s frightening for a team to go into the season with so many new bodies up front, even for a program with the resources and depth that Hoover possesses.
Local look: Last year’s state champion Prattville should be a bit down in 2012, after graduating numerous Division I players and losing head coach Jamey Dubose. Clay-Chalkville, which returns a dozen starters, will also be very strong. Always talented, Oxford has the potential to make a state title run as well.
Overall outlook: This team will likely be even stronger in 2013, but the 2012 Hoover team will be very, very good. It’s the early favorite to capture the Class 6A state title, but it will have stiff competition. While there’s a bounty of young talent on the roster, it is the team’s seniors - Short, Lucas, Tullo, Earl - that will need to carry the Bucs when the team faces adversity.
Coach quote: “We’ve had a good offseason. People talk about ‘What about the running back? What about this?’ I don’t worry about that as much as developing leaders. If the running back is a leader, he’ll be a good running back.”
- Head coach Josh Niblett
