CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – It’s no secret that last year was a tumultuous season for Northeast, but now that the dust has settled, the Eagles will look to put 2018 in their rearview mirror and turn their attention to a brand-new football campaign in 2019.

“As far as what happened last season, we don’t really bring that up or talk about it,” Northeast head coach Brandon Clark said. “At any program I’ve ever been at, we work on focusing on the present regardless if we had a losing or winning season the year before.”

Entering his first year at the helm for the Eagles, Clark previously coached at Houston County for nine seasons before joining the Northeast coaching staff two years ago as the defensive coordinator.

“There are a lot of similarities and differences between big schools and small schools,” Clark said. “Obviously, there are more athletes at the 5A level than the 2A level. That can go both ways though… I get to coach more athletes, but I also have to coach against more athletes. Football is football though. I am still teaching kids how to block, tackle, and run.”

Clark admitted that it was actually his passion for offense that ultimately led him to become more of a defensive-minded coach.

“I always wanted to be an offensive coordinator growing up,” Clark said. “I would study different types of offenses and make my own playbooks as a kid. I thought I was training myself to be an offensive coordinator, but in reality, I was learning how those offenses worked and it was preparing me to be a defensive coordinator.”

The turnover from last year’s Northeast team cannot be understated. The Eagles return just two starters on each side of the ball with six or seven players from last season’s group receiving Division I offers.

Even though Northeast currently has 20 seniors on its roster, they are still a fairly inexperienced team entering 2019.

“We had several seniors last year that were two and three-year starters,” Clark said. “That leaves us this season with several players who do not have much varsity experience. We don’t have the luxury of experience, so we are working on basic concepts offensively and defensively right now.”

One new addition to this year’s Eagles team is quarterback J’Lin Powell who appears primed and ready to lead Northeast under center after spending last year in Hopkinsville, Kentucky as Christian County’s starting quarterback.

“J’Lin attended NEHS in ninth and 10th grade so he naturally fit back in with the team,” Clark said. “Even though he is now running a different system than last season, it does make a big difference to have a veteran QB.”

When it comes to goals and expectations, Clark simply wants to see it “all come together” for his program in 2019.

“I want us to start running like a well-oiled machine and eliminate simple mistakes,” Clark said. “Some teams get it quick, some teams take longer. We will strive to improve every week. Our goal is to teach our players at Northeast how to deal with adversity. The more chemistry we have overall, the more we will overcome the adversity that occurs in a football game.”

Aside from football, Clark is currently focusing on instilling discipline and stressing the importance of academics to his players.

“Culture is our number one goal,” Clark said. “We are working on building a first-class culture at Northeast to prepare these young men for whatever endeavor that they choose to engage in the future.”

Northeast (0-2) travels to take on Kenwood (0-2) Friday, Sept. 6.

2019 Schedule
Aug. 23 at Riverdale            (L) 42-6
Aug. 30 at F.J. Reitz (Ind.) (L) 45-24
Sept. 6 at Kenwood
Sept. 13 Rossview
Sept. 20 at Dyer County
Sept. 27 West Creek
Oct. 4 at Clarksville High
Oct. 11 Northwest
Oct. 18 Bye
Oct. 25 at Henry County
Nov. 1 at Antioch
Nov. 8 Playoffs round one