TRENTON — The Edgewood High School football team is off to a 1-4 start to the 2024 season under new head coach Trace Reynolds.
The Cougars, who joined the Southwestern Buckeye League last year, begin Southwestern Division play on Friday at home against Bellbrook.
Here are four takeaways from Edgewood’s first half of the season:
1. New coach, new system
Reynolds and his staff are still searching to put a complete product on the field, and the Cougar faithful should allow that to happen over time.
Reynolds said at the beginning of the season that his Cougars were up to the challenge of facing the toughest schedule in Butler County.
Edgewood has Bellbrook, Ross, Valley View, Franklin and Monroe left on its schedule. Those teams are currently a combined 15-10.
2. Offensive struggles
The Cougars are scoring a SWBL-worst 10.2 points a game — which is uncharacteristic for the program in Trenton.
Edgewood’s best offensive performance has come against then-winless Talawanda in Week 4, when it chalked up 525 total yards.
Senior quarterback Ryan French has thrown for 472 yards and three touchdowns with four interceptions. Sophomore running back Brody O’Banion went off for 219 yards and two scores in a 34-14 win over the Brave.
3. Protecting the ball
Edgewood does a satisfactory job of taking care of the football.
The Cougars turned it over twice in a 17-7 loss to Badin, once in their win over Talawanda and one more time in a 14-0 defeat against Chaminade Julienne.
Protect the ball in both of those two losses, Edgewood is competing for wins.
4. Youthful defensive leadership
The Cougars’ top four tacklers are underclassmen. Credit to the young talent stepping in to lead the way in that department.
Junior linebacker Solomon Rothermel has a team-best 28 tackles, while junior defensive back Roman Smith (25), junior linebacker Miller Fall (22) and sophomore linebacker Carter Breedlove (17) follow close behind.
Midseason Report Card: C+
