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RTCA and moved in and made a big impact. Gage Brantley is a four-year starter in Gage Brantley. He has been a key for the Crusaders and will be again this year.
Up front on the defense, they are looking to put three guys on the line with their hands in the dirt. Nose guard will be Lampp, who can fill up the middle. He has worked hard to turn into a player that will have a chance at the next level. At the end on the defense will be Holton and Hodges to seal off the ends.
At linebacker on the outside, they have Brantley and Powell, who can also come up to the line on certain plays. Both are strong guys that have good ball skills and will make a lot of tackles. Williamson will fill in the role at middle linebacker, and Durden and Mixon will rotate at the other linebacker position. Holton is working back from an injury and will fill that role.
In the secondary, Toole is a returning start at cornerback and has chip on his shoulder and is set to make a big impact on the defense. Brody Randall is a sophomore that has stepped up and will set at the other cornerback. He has worked hard over the summer and has come a long way. Avila will also play cornerback and will use his athletic ability. At safety, Cook will be at strong safety and is very good against the run. Mixon and Durden will rotate back and forth from linebacker and safety. Tabor will also get time in the secondary as will Hayden Meeks.
On special teams, Meeks will be the kicker for RTCA handling the kickoff and PAT’s. Punting the ball for RTCA will be Powell, who has a good leg. The long snapper for RTCA will be Williamson, who has come in and taken over that roll for the Crusaders.
Coach Meeks stated, “After losing so many guys, we have really had Bishop step into one of those leadership roles. He has found his voice and is making an impact as a senior for us. He is making the call on the line and has been big for us. Justin Powell is a quiet guy, but he leads through his example and gets everyone on the same page. Blake is learning how to be a leader for us. He has had some missteps in camps this summer and that has put him on a mission to get better.”
Coach Meeks added, “We get such great support from the administration, the faculty, the community. My wife and I talk about it all the time how great the people here are and how much they care about these kids. Scott Tuck, as Head of School, has been great with us in his first year. He has our back, and they have our support as well. He is going to hold us accountable, but he is going to help us along the way as well.
“All the parents and alumni, they just do so much for us. They are truly involved in what we do on our campus and we are so happy with all that they do for us. They do so much for us. Our board with Mitchell Pittman as the Chairman, he is our voice on Friday nights, he lets us know what he sees that we can do. His family is just vested in our program and our school.
“Since I started here five years ago as an assistant, we have grown from 13 kids on the team to 24 on the team last year and 21 this year after losing 10 seniors is just wonderful.”
The Crusaders are going to be in Region 3 in the GIAA Single A Division. They will have three other teams in the Region with Southland Academy, Southwest Georgia Academy and Trinity Christian. It will be a competitive Region this year, and RTCA is going to have to play well in those final games of the season to get a good seed in the playoffs.
RTCA will kick off their season on Thursday, August 15, against Pinewood Christian in Bellville at 7:30 p.m.
