RedZone: Linden shuns noise, focuses on task ahead

They’ve been here before. They’ve heard it all before.

“This is their year.”

“This is the team.”

“If they don’t do it now, they’ll never do it.”

That was supposed to be true of Linden High virtually every year under Andro Williams. They’ve had big senior classes. They’ve had dozens of collegiate signees. They’ve been a perennial Top 5 team for the better part of the last decade. So what’s different about this team? A team of which many in the know say, “That’s the team to watch. This is their year. This is the team. If they don’t do it now, they’ll never do it.”

These are the post-hype Patriots. They didn’t get the same level of respect in year one under coach Demetrice Jackson. They were afterthoughts, also-rans as the illustrious coach that built the program relocated to Brewton. And they took their lumps in 2017, comparatively speaking. But they gave Maplesville all it wanted in the first round of the playoffs. And the Patriots carried that momentum right into the offseason with the knowledge that nearly everybody from that 2017 squad was donning primary colors for at least one more year.

So here we are. It’s 2018. This is their year. This is the team. But it feels more like a business itinerary than a long-elusive hope for the 2018 Linden Patriots. They’ve come to work.

Where last season’s team struggled to find its footing, this team seems poised to establish itself early and probably often. The Patriots open with a home date against Class 4A Sumter Central before beginning region play on the road at Keith. Those two games immediately precede the meatiest part of the Patriot slate. Linden will get Maplesville, Isabella and 6A Selma all at home. The games with Maplesville and Isabella likely decide the region, but A.L. Johnson, Ellwood Christian, Holy Spirit and Francis Marion will try to have a say in that as well.

So, what else makes the post-hype Pats different from their predecessors? It begins with balance and ends with depth. The Patriots proved adept in the passing game down the stretch in 2017. For a squad that has always been elite at running the ball, the ability and willingness to spread it out and let Graderius Brown sling it around made the offense as deadly as it has been in some time. Brown went 70 of 112 through the air last year for 1,281 yards and 16 touchdowns while also rushing for 453 yards and three scores. Add in to the kick return TDs and you have a dangerous athlete that touches the football often. But Brown may be allowed to air it out more this season as wideout Kevin Green showed himself to be a reliable deep threat in limited opportunities. He averaged 23.17 yards per catch last season and eight of his 18 receptions went for touchdowns. He, too, proved a versatile threat with three return touchdowns as well as five interceptions on the defensive side.

Add to that duo the dynamic backfield presence of Timothy Thurman and several others and the Linden offense should click all season. It helps that the Patriots have 17 of 22 starters back including all five on the offensive line.

So maybe this team is the one. Or maybe it isn’t. Time will tell and the 1A South gauntlet of Sweet Water, Marengo, St. Luke’s, Lanett, Wadley, Elba, Brantley and Georgiana will demand the cream rise to the top. Regardless, this promises to be a memorable squad.