Tyler Corbit -- 
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The Alexander Spartans football program took a massive leap in the 2018 season. After consecutive 1-9 seasons and winless in conference seasons, the Spartans bounced back in a big way, going 4-6 on the year with a 2-4 record in conference, including a win over a strong Vinton County team.
 
As head coach Earich Dean enters his third year, he enters with something new, expectations. The 2018 program showed that Dean had what it takes to win with a small program and many should be expecting the program to take another step in the right direction.
 
Alexander is just four seasons removed from their 2015 league title and the program is looking to recapture the magic that the team brought to Albany.
 
What we already know

Lukas Moore --

Phil Faires will be coaching his 26th Trimble football team in the 2019 season. It has been an accomplishment filled 25 years, three regional titles, two state championship appearances, and an utter domination of the TVC-Hocking in most seasons. Faires has adjusted schemes and strategies to fit his players over the years to ensure no Trimble team is a carbon copy of another. From the wishbone to spread, run heavy to pass heavy, the Tomcats have evolved constantly.

There has been one constant in the Faires era. Trimble will hit and hit hard on every play. They'll play with a ferociousness and physicality that's hard to find in the game of football these days. It's old-school how intensely the kids from Glouster swarm the football and annihilate ball carriers and blockers. They wear down most opponents by continuously hitting them, even if they aren't bigger than their opponent, they'll certainly be tougher.

This was on full display in their Monday scrimmage against the Chesapeake Panthers. It wasn't even 25 plays before Chesapeake looked tired of getting hit. The Panthers are a division five school that is 9-11 over their last two seasons. Trimble had its first live look, against solid competition, to see if their team has a chance to meet the lofty expectations that come with returning nearly everybody from a team that played in Canton.

What we already knew

Lukas Moore --

Most coaches tell the media that their goal to start the season is to win the conference. But, new Vikings coach Travis Bethel decided to keep it real, "Vinton County has not had a winning season in 15 years, so to hit that 6-4 or better mark is our goal, then compete for the TVC," he said. It's a refreshing splash of realism from Bethel, who was a member of the last Viking TVC championship in 1999. He brings a balanced coaching staff and is establishing an entire new system on both offense and defense.

Bethel had his staff selected before he was even hired by Vinton County, and he takes over a program primed for a culture change. The Vikings have consistently found ways to lose games, the collapse against Minford a season ago was a prime example. How about the excruciating loss to Nelsonville-York in week nine two seasons ago; Vikings fans assuredly remember then-sophomore Keegan Wilburn catching a last second touchdown at Boston Field.

The first step for Bethel and his staff is eliminating the types of losses that make Vikings fans yearn for basketball season. After watching the Vikings in practice, they'll have a good chance at the TVC-Ohio title, and an even better chance at their first winning season in 15 years.

What we already knew