By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
Despite three full seasons and more than 1,400 days separating Abilene High School from their last win on the gridiron, the Cowboys remain optimistic about the upcoming 2022 season.
Under the direction of third-year head coach Brad Nicks, Abilene has been quietly plugging away behind the scenes and hopes to see the fruits of their rebuild come to fruition this year.
“Our kids had a great offseason in the weight room,” Nicks said. “We haven’t had summer numbers like that here at Abilene in a long time and that’s a testament to how hard these kids have worked and how badly they want to be better.”
The Cowboys will return a number of key starters on both sides of the ball for the 2022 season but still face an uphill climb as the smallest school in Class 4A by student population.
Despite lacking in numbers, Abilene will have an air of experience about them that had been missing in their previous 0-6 and 0-9 campaigns.
“I think our strength this year is in our maturity,” he said. “Last year we played a lot of freshmen and sophomores but those guys are all a year older now and they’re hungry to turn this thing around.”
The biggest returning piece for the Cowboys comes in the form of junior quarterback Stockton Timbrook, who threw for 1,100 yards and six touchdowns in six games last season before missing the final three due to an illness.
“He has all the tools to be an incredible football player,” Nicks said. “His work ethic is off the charts and he’s a lot more relaxed and a lot more confident this year. His ability to read defenses has improved and we’re excited to have him back.”
Timbrook will be joined in the backfield by Zach Miller and Keaton Hargrave, with weapons like Brax Fisher and Weston Rock split out wide throughout the season.
The biggest questions Abilene must answer will come on the offensive and defensive lines. On offense, seniors Tristan Randles and Richard Ortiz will return alongside sophomore Devin Alvarez, but positional battles continue in practice to see who else is up to the task of protecting Timbrook.
“We’re a lot smaller upfront than some of these other teams but they’ve worked really hard and gotten a lot stronger in the offseason,” Nicks said.
Even more, questions persist on the D-Line, where the Cowboys graduated three critical seniors over the offseason.
While the personnel in the trenches is still taking shape, Abilene will have considerably fewer questions to answer in their linebacker corps, returning three veterans in Zach Miller, Richard Ortiz, and Landon Taplin to fill out their 4-2-5.
In the secondary Brax Fisher, Keaton Hargrave, and Braden Wilson return to patrol the deepest parts of the field while newcomers like Judah Bowell, Weston Rock, and Taygen Funston slot in at corner.
Despite their recent woes, expectations in the Abilene locker room remain high as the Cowboys look to right the ship in 2022.
“Our seniors have a lot of goals and expectations for how things will look at practice this year,” Nicks said. “Our big goal is still to host a home playoff game in week nine and give ourselves an opportunity to play in week ten.”
Abilene will kick off the new season on September 2nd when they host the Marysville Bulldogs fresh off a 2-6 2021 campaign.