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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

The Vincent Yellow Jackets are no longer the surprise contender they’ve been in the last few years as coach Lucas Weatherford’s winning culture has fully taken effect.

Playoffs are no longer a rarity but an expectation for the program as it enters year seven under Weatherford, and Ethan McElrath believes that sustained success has come from hard work and a wide support system from the school and the Vincent community.

“I’ve been working out with Weatherford since sixth grade and seeing some of those older guys who would skip reps, he was on us early,” McElrath said. “Since sixth grade, this whole group has been large and we’ve always worked hard. I really think we’ve changed the culture of the school and the community and our hard work and ability to face adversity.”

While the Jackets made another appearance in the postseason in 2023, it was a season that fell far short of their lofty expectations. After going 10-2 in 2022 behind a talented senior class, Vincent weathered a big storm of injuries and adversity that led to a 6-5 record and a playoff loss to Clarke County for the second straight season.

Weatherford knows now how fine the margins of success are and hopes that since they went through those challenges last season, this year’s team will handle adversity better.

“Last year, I felt like we left money on the table because I felt we had the team to be 8-2, 9-1 again and I feel like we lost a couple of games,” Weatherford said. “That inexperience shot us in the foot. We lost a couple games I feel like we should have won, not taking away from away from teams that beat us, but it’s just inexperience showing up.

“So, I want us to get through those games when we do have things go against us, let’s overcome that and go win those games and go even further. With the region we play in, to get out of our region to the playoffs is going to be a win, so we’ve got to stay healthy and we got to make sure we take advantage of stuff when we can and not let the adversity set us back too much.”

However, reclassification gave Vincent a big challenge out of the gate as it enters a brand-new region in Class 2A, Region 5 that has plenty of long road trips and six playoff teams from a year ago, including quarterfinalist Tuscaloosa Academy and second-round side Sulligent.

This year’s Jackets are looking forward to the challenge, knowing much of the region looks at them as a difficult test as well, and have the experience to draw from to succeed.

For Aiden Poe, Casen Fields, Ethan McElrath and Vincent’s other dual-sport athletes, they can pull from their experience from their recent baseball success that put them in high pressure situations.

“Especially with the playoff runs we’ve had in baseball, we know how to handle adversity and that moment, the big moment,” Poe said. “And so, we’re both good at simplifying the moment and being able to work together even in those tough situations. We have such deep chemistry from that, and so it’s really the same mindset and culture, it’s just a different ball.”

One of those players who went through a lot of adversity last season was Fields, whose first season as a starting quarterback was hampered due to injuries that forced Poe and Lane Mims in for stretches.

Fields felt a lot of pressure to succeed Blake Allums at quarterback last season, but now, he has more confidence in himself and his teammates that has made a big difference in his approach.

“Last year, coming in as a first-year starter, it was really hard to step into the role that our quarterback had two years ago,” Fields said. “He was a really good guy. I think this year coming in, I’m going to have a lot more confidence, not only in my receivers but in myself, and I think that’s really going to help me a lot.”

Those supporting pieces are as solid as any in recent memory, with Deontaye Robertson, Poe, Phoenix Maxwell and Landon Archer as pass-catching options and the promising Jayden Roberts sliding into Rykelus Robertson’s starting running back role behind a talented offensive line.

Fields hailed his linemen as people he can trust to protect him and give him spots to escape even if things go wrong. Deontaye Robertson will be one of the ones he can rely on in tight defensive situations, as Poe hyped up the way he’s fought through tight coverage in OTAs.

Flipping it over to the defense, it’s many of the same players as the offense, but they’re an intriguing group led by returning All-State linebacker Grayson Gulde.

Poe and McElrath said that they are strong run defenders on both the line and at linebackers, and that frees up the secondary to swam the ball and make plays.

They’re coming off of a 2023 season where they were third in the county to just Thompson and Montevallo in points allowed per game, and this year, they’re confident in their abilities and believe they can do something special.

“I think we have one of the best defenses in school history this year,” McElrath said. “Our d-line, we have three guys that are really quick off the ball, they’re big bodies, tough to block, and all our linebackers, they’re really fast to the ball, and we all swarm to it really well with our secondary also.”

Speaking of special, that’s exactly what this senior class is to Weatherford. The Class of 2025 were just sixth graders when he took over the program, meaning this is the first class that he will see from start to finish at Vincent Middle High School.

He compared them to the Class of 2023 that went 10-2 in their senior year, and he credits that to the time they spent learning behind them during that 2022 season as sophomores.

For Poe, it goes back to that culture that Weatherford established that has now set them up to follow in the footsteps of the successful Jackets teams that came before them.

“We’ve got a culture of doing your job the right way and leading by example, and that really did develop two years ago,” Poe said. “So, being able to learn from those guys, now we know what it looks like to teach the guys behind you.”