THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 20, 1995 TAG: 9508170209
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: [High School Football section:] Kickoff '95
SOURCE: BY JEFF ZEIGLER
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
Last year's high-powered Hertford County Bears will have a new look. Gone are 23 seniors and four ineligible players from a team that challenged for the top spot in the Big Eight Conference.
``This is the year to get the Bears,'' head coach Carl Brock joked when talking about his young team. ``We're going to have to keep improving to have a shot at the playoffs and not get any injuries.''
Last year, the Bears rolled to a 9-2 record, including 6-1 in the conference. A loss to Wilson Hunt late in the season in a matchup billed ``the game of the year in North Carolina'' cost the Bears the conference championship. In the post-season, Hertford County was shocked in the first round of the playoffs by D.H. Conley.
This year, the playoffs may be a tough task for the Bears, who are playing in one of the most competitive conferences in the state. It won't be easy to compete with teams like Tarboro, which has 28 seniors. Still, Hertford County is picked for fourth place by coaches.
The one offensive starter back from last year is offensive tackle Jacob Spears. The three starters back on defense are Marcus Holloman at cornerback, Ken Gatling at free safety and Quenton Walston at inside linebacker. Nicholas Privott also played some on both offense and defense last year.
Other positions will be filled by last year's JV players or first-time players.
``Every game is very important to us because we are inexperienced,'' Brock said. ``The game of the year to us is Northampton East, the first game of the season.''
The Bears have another tough pre-conference schedule, which includes 4A Northeastern (Sept. 8) and one of the better 1A schools in the area in Northampton East (Aug. 25).
``Our schedule has an upper progression to it before we hit the Big Eight. It's a good schedule to prepare with,'' Brock said. ``We always have a good time playing East, we see the wishbone with Currituck (Sept. 1), and Northeastern has a typical 4A program.''
Hertford County plays four of its first five games at home.
``It may help us playing at home early. However, in the past we've played better on the road for some reason,'' Brock said. ``I guess if playing home early is going to help us, this will be the time.''
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