When ITG Next spoke with Yulee High head football coach Kyle Dougherty back in the spring of this year, he was reflecting on his team’s 2022 season as he was preparing the team for its upcoming campaign.
“There’s a lot to be excited about if you’re a Yulee football fan,” Dougherty said. “I think we’re headed in the right direction.”
The Hornets coach had every reason to be optimistic. Last season, Yulee advanced to the playoffs for the first time in seven years. A 10-point loss to powerhouse Baker County did nothing to dampen the spirits of Dougherty, his players, and especially fans of the Yulee football program.
Fast-forward eight months, and the optimism and pride surrounding Yulee High football continues to swell. Yulee finished the regular season 8-2, the best record in school history. This is Dougherty’s third season as the Yulee head coach, and following a 4-6 record in his first season and a 6-4 mark last year, it’s obvious that the program is on the rise. Besides the improved record for the third straight season, there are other measurements of success within the Yulee football program, according to Dougherty.
“Our middle school, junior varsity, and varsity football programs all won the battle of the county [defeating fellow Nassau County rivals Fernandina Beach and West Nassau], and we had a winner-take-all district championship game against Baker County that we lost 32-14, but the progress of us getting to that point cannot be disputed,” Dougherty said.
The success of any varsity sports program depends a lot on the quality of the feeder system, and Dougherty said those Yulee middle school and junior varsity football teams have been a big reason for the success at the high school level.
“The head coach of our middle school is Matt Ricks, who I work closely with,” Dougherty said. “He led them to a 6-1 record this year and has done a phenomenal job with them.”
One of the players emerging from the middle school system is PJ Willamson, an eighth grader who was selected for the Under Armour 8th Grade All-American Game.
“He is a phenomenal athlete,” Dougherty said. “He is very special. He scored three touchdowns in the first quarter in a game earlier this year, and there were three different ways he scored.”
Dougherty expects Williamson to join the varsity squad next year: “He will come in and make an impact as a freshman next year. No doubt about it.”
While Yulee certainly will be awaiting Williamson with open arms in 2024, another Yulee youngster is already starting to make an impact at the varsity level. His name is Preston Matricardi.
The ninth grader is known primarily as one of the top young baseball prospects in the country. (He committed to Florida State as an eighth grader.) But he’s actually a three-sport athlete who was the JV quarterback this year, and he joined the varsity team once the JV season was over. He was inserted into the lineup at receiver and made an impact right away, scoring 2 touchdowns, and likely will make an impact for the Hornets through the playoffs.
The 2023 Hornets have a lot of business still to tend to. According to Dougherty, the offense is young, but is “playing significantly better.” They are led by Ware County (GA) transfer Nikao Smith, who lines up at quarterback. Smith was actually the QB at Yulee two seasons ago, when Dougherty first arrived. He transferred to Ware County before the start of last season, and he led the Gators to a state championship. Then he decided to transfer back to Yulee this offseason, and Dougherty immediately reinstated him as the Hornets starting QB. In leading the Hornets to their 8-2 record, Smith has passed for 1,833 yards and 17 TDs, and he also has 1 rushing TD.
Smith’s top target is wide receiver Tyson Wharton, a senior who has 40 catches for 591 yards and 3 TDs in 2023. He too is a transfer, having arrived at Yulee in the offseason after playing for Trinity Christian last year
Junior wideout DJ Mason is another standout target in Yulee’s passing game. He has 30 receptions for 445 yards and 3 TDs this season.
“DJ is talented,” said Dougherty. “He is a playmaker.”
Ethan Myers is another receiver who factors heavily into the Yulee offense. He is averaging 14.4 yards per catch, and he has 2 TDs as he and his Hornets teammates head into the playoffs.
Leading the Yulee rushing attack is senior RB Teonte Artis-Croxton, who has rushed for 639 yards and 7 TDs. Shamarion Gibbs, a safety on defense, is also one of the Hornets top rushers, having scored 6 TDs on 36 carries.
While the skill positions have been a big boost to the team’s offensive performance, it’s the offensive line that Dougherty says has been the biggest surprise of 2023.
“They keep our quarterback clean for the most part,” he said.
On the other side of the ball, the defense is a senior-heavy group that has a lot of experience, said Dougherty. “We have a lot of experience and talent on the defense. They are a very talented group.”
The leader on defense is Braylon Ricks, the reigning District Player of the Year.
“Braylon is unbelievable,” Dougherty said. “He is athletically gifted, and he is so smart, too. He is one of our team leaders, and having him is the same as having another coach on the field for us.”
Gibbs is also one of the team’s top defensive players.
“We roll him up a lot against run-heavy teams,” the coach said. “He has been a complete difference maker for us.
Dougherty said he could go on: “We have a lot of really good defensive players on this team.”
This Yulee High football team will need them, too. If the Hornets hope to go far in the state playoffs, they will have to survive a gauntlet of teams such as Baker County and coach Jamie Rogers’ Bradford Tornadoes.
“We have a very talented group of kids, but those teams are where we want to be,” said Dougherty.
Sounds he has these Hornets on the right track.
