Pioneers ready to get rolling

The Pioneers are hoping the experience and talent in the trenches could be a key driver of success this fall — Photo from the WCPioneerFB Facebook Page.

There will be no easing into football season for the Pioneers.

Warren County will hold its first official practice Monday, then have only three days to prepare before Spring Hill arrives Thursday for the team’s first preseason scrimmage. After months of lifting, conditioning and installation - along with weeks of acclimation per TSSAA rules - the Pioneers are about to discover how much progress they have made and how quickly they can turn it into production.

The good news for coach Eric Belew is his team will not be starting from scratch.

Unlike last summer, when Warren County’s players were learning new offensive and defensive systems while also adjusting to a new coaching staff, the Pioneers enter Belew’s second season with a foundation already in place.

“The big difference is how comfortable they are as opposed to last year,” said Belew. “We had to throw a lot at them. They can take in so much more knowledge now because they’re not thinking it’s a new install every week.

“We’re really just building from what we did last year. We’re not making any wholesale changes, but we’re just kind of expanding.”

Warren County proved the new direction could work by finishing 6-5 in Belew’s debut season, earning the program’s first winning record since 2020 and just the third winning campaign in the last 40 years. The challenge now is proving that season was the beginning of something sustainable rather than a one-year breakthrough.

There are encouraging signs throughout the program.

During visits to Studio 605 for a coaches show along with former Pioneer QB Michael Thrower, Belew said Warren County has approximately 78 players in the high school program, including more than 20 freshmen. Attendance throughout summer workouts has improved and accountability is increasingly coming from within the locker room.

“I think it’s being self-led or peer-led by the players,” said Belew. “There’s always strength in numbers, so we’re really excited about that.”

Experience should also allow the Pioneers to move faster once practice begins. Several returning players have already spent a full year in the system and understand what Belew and his staff expect during meetings, drills and team periods.

That experience could be particularly valuable along the offensive line, a group that has the potential to become one of Warren County’s biggest strengths.

Ethan Holder returns after establishing himself as one of the area’s top linemen and earning an offer from Sewanee. His brother Camron Holder could add a jolt as a newcomer this year, while Ryan Romzek returns after making an immediate impact last fall. Johnny Garcia also brings experience and physicality to a group that includes several other players looking to reprise their roles in the trenches.

Belew believes the Pioneers could be at least eight-deep across the front line, with mixing and matching being something the coaches can focus on this week before battling with Spring Hill at Nunley Stadium. It’s a group the Pioneers will need to set the tone as the Pioneer offense is expected to remain committed to running the football.

That could be because Warren County also enters the fall with a new dimension at quarterback.

Rising junior AJ Whitman is healthy after undergoing hip surgery following last season and his ability to make plays with his arm and legs could significantly expand what the Pioneers can do. While Whitman was already elusive last year, Belew can already tell the difference in a player running full strength as opposed to a standout sophomore who gritted through the pain last fall.

He’s ready to get creative in using the dynamics at QB test defenses this year.

“We’re going to get in really unusual formations and even more so this year with AJ being a runner,” said Belew. “How unusual and how much conflict can we put the defense in with leverage and alignment?

“If we can live in that world where it’s not outside our zone of complexity, but it can put some stress on the defense, that can be really beneficial.”

Whitman made several strong throws during Warren County’s recent 7-on-7 work at Trousdale County. Belew also praised Christian Munoz and Wesley Romzek for their performances as the Pioneers continued developing their passing game. Young QB Brant Damon was also impressive throwing the ball in Trousdale County, giving the program faith its beginning to build a pipeline of signal callers to follow in the footsteps of record breaker Brady Swallows, who signed to play at Cumberland University in the spring.

While the pecking order at QB seems pretty secure going into this week’s work, Warren County will still be searching for answers at several positions once the pads come on. Belew has begun narrowing the depth chart, but he knows the lineup that begins preseason practice may not be the same one that opens the regular season.

Last year provided a painful reminder when Adrian Harris suffered a knee injury on the third offensive possession of the season.

“What you can’t do is get hyper-focused on a couple of guys,” said Belew. “You still have to get everybody reps. You never know who is going to be physically able to play come August.”

That makes the upcoming preseason schedule even more important.

After hosting Spring Hill on Thursday, Warren County will travel to face Columbia Central before hosting longtime rival Coffee County in the preseason jamboree at Nunley Stadium on August 14. Spring Hill reached the Class 4A playoffs last season, Columbia Central was a Class 5A playoff team and Coffee County will provide a familiar opponent in what should be an intense final tune-up.

Belew believes that level of competition will expose weaknesses and help the coaching staff determine which players are ready for larger roles.

“When you’re picking scrimmages, you want to know how many questions we can get answered,” said Belew. “Most of the spring is figuring out what the questions are and then hopefully in those games and scrimmages, we can get some of those questions answered.”

Before Warren County can worry about opponents, the Pioneers must learn how to practice with the intensity, discipline and efficiency the coaching staff expects.

“We want to get the maximum amount of work with the maximum amount of safety and efficiency,” said Belew. “There is a science to it. You have to learn how to do those things so you can have the most output.”

Monday begins that process. Kickoff is now just 26 days away.

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