We tell you everything you need to know about the 2022 Fletcher football team in this preview. We take a look at roster changes and what fans can expect from the team this season.
2021 Stats
- Overall Record: 5-6
- Points Scored: 180
- Points Against: 208
Key Losses
The Fletcher High Senators lose some key playmakers on both sides of the ball, including several who signed to play collegiately. The group includes CB/RB Tariq Riley (Lane College), LB/RB Jaylen Harris (Edward Waters University), WR Trey Rose (Western Carolina), RB/DB Jackson Schrock (Coe College), and QB Keely Watson (St. Thomas University), who threw for 526 yards.
Linebacker Merrit Reynolds also will play college football, at the University of Chicago. He finished his Fletcher career with 103 tackles. Other defensive losses include DE Chad Elder, who had 42 tackles with a sack and an interception last season.
Fletcher has to replace one of the First Coast’s toughest running backs, Jabari Williams, who was a workhorse for the Senators with 160 carries for 713 yards and four TDs last season. Also gone is LB Maximus Pasko, who had 79 tackles, a sack, a 70-yard pick-six, and a blocked field goal.
Three-star DE Aaron Hester is following in the footsteps of his father, Ron, to play for Florida State. He had 46 tackles, including 14 tackles for loss, and five sacks. Kick returner and running back Turner Colbert also will be missed.
Who’s Back
Some really big bodies return to Neptune Beach to give new head coach Ciatrick Fason one of the heftiest teams in the state. Returning on the offensive line are 6-foot-2, 275-pound junior OG Jaden Potter and 6-foot-4, 265-pound OT Brayden Wallace, along with center Toby Matson (6 feet, 4 inches, 305 pounds) calling the shots in the middle. Three-star junior OG Ethan Profitt also returns, and he has offers from Iowa State and South Florida, with many more likely to come.
Sophomore TK Muex is back at defensive tackle, and he’ll likely start receiving attention from recruiters with his 6-foot-4, 300-pound frame. Another sophomore who will command attention is 6-foot-2 inch, 245-pound LB Travis Lan, who came up with 23 tackles and two sacks last year. Senior Amari Williams is a 6-foot-7 defensive end who has already committed to Campbell, as has cornerback Ron “Pop” Durden, a senior who had 38 tackles and an interception last season.
The defense should boast one of the best linebacker crews in North Florida with the return of Lan and seniors DJ Stuhr and Eli Durden, and the arrival of Matteo Davis, a transfer from Terry Parker.
The offense has a few playmakers back, too. Quarterback Marcellis Tate, who has received several college offers, returns and will have junior receiver Anthony Vaglienti as a main target. Senior RB Tajon Heath also is back, as is junior RB Noah Taylor. Senior Cornelius Davis could provide help at both wide receiver and free safety, where he came up with two interceptions and 24 tackles last season. He too is receiving attention from college recruiters, including Georgia Southern.
What To Expect
Fason will try to turn things around for the Senators, and with the level of returning talent he has to work with, you have to like his chances. Some key players are back, especially on defense and the offensive line, making Fletcher a team to watch this season.
Prediction
7-5 overall record.
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