5 reasons why the Northview Chiefs can get back to the Class 1R state championship

There's a lot of pieces the Chiefs have to replace, but they feel confident about a return to Tallahassee

BRATT, FLORIDA- Last year's Class 1R state championship game between Hawthorne and Northview was a defensive slugfest. 

There's no other way to put it when taking a look at the rural title game. For the Chiefs, they were just some offense away from bringing home a championship back to the small town of Bratt. Since losing 13-2 against Hawthorne, the mindset has been finding a way to get back in the big game. 

Losing some very experienced players like running back/defensive end Jamarkus Jefferson and quarterback/defensive back Kaden Odom hurts, but Northview has talent coming back from the 2022 group. It should be enough for the Chiefs to navigate their way back to Tallahassee, plus an influx newbies on the scene. 

We give you five reasons why the Northview Chiefs can get back to the 1R state championship in December down below.  

5. Devin Kelly and Joe Wright stepping up on offense

Replacing a running back like Jamarkus Jefferson is no easy task for any coaching staff and it wasn't going to be easy for Summerford's. Jefferson rushed for well over 2,000 yards and the Chiefs might be able to match that total, but with more of a running back-by-committee approach. Two players that Summerford pointed out as two they'll be leaning on to run the rock early and often is Devin Kelly and Joe Wright. Kelly is a newbie to the Chiefs and has the ability to be a pretty good weapon within the offense. Wright returns to the team after racking up 92 tackles at middle linebacker last season. The backer will double up and play running back as well and combined with Kelly, could make a formidable duo. 

4. Leadership has impressed during the off-season 

One thing that Summerford has been really impressed with out of his current group heading into the season is the leadership shown by the returning players towards the underclassmen. "Just holding each other accountable," Summerford said. "I think that's what this always is. The old guys and the young guys just always working together. We've got to have our leaders lead that were fortunate enough to play in that game. This season you're going to see us put in some young guys who we are going to have to put in key roles early on in the season."

3. Wyatt Scruggs has to be a two-way factor 

If you're looking for Northview's 'slash' type player heading into this fall, it's almost undoubtedly Scruggs. Last season for the Chiefs, Scruggs on offense snagged 19 passes for 362 yards and six touchdowns. Flipping over to the defensive side of the ball, Scruggs tallied 64 tackles and six interceptions, including one in the state championship game versus Hawthorne. Summerford mentioned the possibility of Scruggs playing some quarterback as well for the Chiefs. Nonetheless, Scruggs in every single game for Northview this season have to be a factor on both sides of the ball in order for the Chiefs to be playing in December. 

2. Knowing the road ahead 

Going up against a Hawthorne program that had played in the state championship game a total of three times, experience between the two teams favored the bunch from Alachua County. Now having the experience of the road to Tallahassee, there's no wondering about how the path comes to fruition. It's more about finishing once they get to the state title game. To know where you're going, you have to know how to get there and Northview has the script. 

1. This defense is for real 

Whenever you hold an opposing offense to just one touchdown, you feel like you should be able to come away with a win. That was the position the Chiefs were in last season against eventual champion Hawthorne. This defense is about as good as they come in Class 1R, with Northview only yielding 195 points all of 2022. A myriad of starters are back on defense and that makes the Chiefs a team that can remain in the conversation of returning to Gene Cox Stadium come December. 

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.