New coach maintains Kendrick's focus

This is the 16th in an 18 part series previewing football teams around the Bi-City. For more, go online to www.ledger-enquirer.com/sports. Coming Tuesday: Brookstone.

A new face is running the Kendrick High football practices, but a similar intensity to the one under previous coach Jerry Dukes remains.

Over his last three seasons as the Cherokees coach, Dukes led them to 5-6, 7-5 and 5-5 records, good enough for the team's most wins in a three-year period since 1995-97.

Along with the loss of Dukes, the majority of both the offense and defense graduated from last year's team, leaving Kendrick in reloading mode.

New coach Cedric Ware said that the team is still focusing on personnel as they near the start of the regular season, trying to foster competition and find what players can do physically.

As it has in the past for Kendrick, it starts up front on the offensive side of the ball. Left and right guard Dacoya Wilson and DeAndre Singleton will be the leaders of the unit, along with junior tackle Austin Lisbon. The other linemen are younger and trying to earn their stripes up front.

At quarterback, freshman Swann Tarver is slated to start, so there will be some learning early on, Ware said, but they'll rely on running backs like Rickey Owens and Walter Boze to offset the youth of the unit.

"We're young, so it'll take a little time to get up to game speed," Ware said.

Defensively, only Kayleem Bonds, Steven Cooper and Daderian Denson return from a unit that was mostly solid a year ago. In six of 10 games, the Cherokees al

lowed fewer than 20 points. In three of their four losses, however, opponents scored over 40 points.

"We want 11 guys who can step up and run to the ball and hit some people," Ware said of his expectations on defense.

He said he likes how the unit is competing, but that it still has a long way to go to be where he wants it to be.

"They're working hard," he said. "But we're not there yet."

Kendrick has made the playoffs in two of the past three seasons, winning one postseason game in 2013 before failing to clinch a berth last season.

Ware said he wants this team to return to the postseason this season, but understands it won't be easy.

"It's a good region," he said. "Right now, we're just going to take it one game at a time."

Follow David on Twitter @leprepsports.

This story was originally published August 16, 2015 at 11:53 PM with the headline "New coach maintains Kendrick's focus ."