PENDLETON — 56-7. 84-17. 63-9.
They are scores the players don’t want to be reminded of by the coaches. But they are reminded, on a regular basis, of what conference foe and state power New Palestine has done to the Pendleton Heights football team the past three years.
Those scores serve as a reminder of where the Arabians have been and motivation for where they want to go.
Pendleton Heights head coach Jed Richman heads into his second season at the helm, having seen improvement, excited about the direction of the program and optimistic about the future.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryBut he knows attaining the level he and the players are striving for won’t happen overnight — and it won’t be easy.
“They enforce their will, and we have a lot of respect for them,” Richman said of the Dragons. “They’re at the top, they haven’t lost a conference game in four or five years, so they are the team to beat.”
Richman said the Arabians are doing what they need to do now in order to raise the level of Pendleton Heights football. They are working hard.
“I want to be a championship-caliber program,” he said. “You may never win a championship, but the reality is that how you go about your work says everything you need to know. This is a special community; that’s what I want at the end of the day, is to give this community something to be proud of. These guys have to be here at 6:30 in the morning to lift and then they’re back in the evening, so there’s a movement happening.”
This year’s Arabian offense will be guided by junior quarterback Christian Conkling. He started most of last season, completing 49 percent of his passes for 965 yards, six touchdowns and eight interceptions.
“He’s a hard worker; he’s still 6 foot 3, but he’s gotten stronger,” Richman said. “He’s my coach on the field.”
Conkling has plenty of targets to throw to, including junior Tristen Spinks, who led the Arabians in receiving last season with 31 catches for 262 yards. Senior Luke Drye and juniors Eli Pancol, Anikan Allison and Evan Douglas add downfield speed for the Arabian passing game to stretch the field.
The Arabians’ top two ground gainers from last year — Payton Huth (948 yards) and Corbin Cox (585 yards) — have graduated, leaving Conkling (97 yards) as the leading returning rusher. With depth at the position, there could be several different players carrying the ball on the ground this season.
“Evan Douglas is a guy we’ve moved from slot, and he made big plays all over the field last year,” Richman said. “He’s going to be a factor there, but I don’t know that we’ll have a workhorse like Payton last year.”
Richman said junior Taylor White and sophomores Camden Earley and Joseph Rios are all players who could see time at running back.
“We’ve got some depth that we didn’t have last year,” Richman said. “I’m not saying we’re stacked, but at least we’ve got some guys and some options.”
On the other side of the ball, senior Evan Suter will play middle linebacker and will be a key playmaker on defense. Richman said the team missed Suter a year ago, when he went out with a broken hand.
“He’s our signal caller on defense,” Richman said. “It was a new defense, and it was new to all these guys on the field, then we lose him. That hurt, trying to overcome that.”
Allison is another important player at safety; Richman described him as a player who is always in the right place. Seniors Aaron Candiano and Andrew Jameson will be starting at outside linebacker, flanking Suter, while Douglas and junior Hunter Thompson will join Allison in the Arabian defensive backfield. Junior Tremor Bynum is one returning starter on the defensive front.
“Up front, that’s still a bit of a mystery for us,” Richman said.
One area that’s not a mystery is the excitement for Arabian football. Even coming off a 3-8 season, Richman said he has 80 players in camp this summer looking to make the Pendleton Heights team. That’s what energizes him.
“I’m really excited, and I’m looking forward to see where we’re at,” he said. “We want to win, and we are doing everything we can to do it. No one is expecting us to beat Muncie Central, they put 80 on us the last two years. So, there is no pressure, but we want to be better at sectional and in the postseason. We’ll get better as the season progresses.”
The Arabians will open the season at home at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18, as they host the Bearcats.
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VARSITY:
Katie Ferguson 10
Abby Galliher 12
Kennady Garris 11
Hailey Graybill 12
Charlcie Holden 12
Taylor Hubble 11
Erin Isaacs 11
Alexyss Jackson 12
Tatum King 12
Karli Norton 10
Ellie Poindexter 10
Addie Rogers 11
Hattie Sebastian 10
Rylee Tomey 12
Kylie Wolverton 12
Mascot: Jessica MacMillan 12
Head Coach: Brenda Jamerson
JUNIOR VARSITY:
Ashley Bell 9
Avery Cook 9
Ashley Duncan 9
Sarah Fendel 10
Ashley Gibson 10
Olivia Link 9
Ally McCambridge 10
Jaden Pratt 9
Jillian Sabotnik 9
Hannah Skinner 9
Nevaeh Spinks 9
Lindsey Weddle 9
Deanna West 9
Coach: Marah Kasdorf
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# Name Year Off-Def
2 Justin Wallace 12 WR-DB
3 Daylen Irby 11 WR-DB
4 Kirby Hess 10 QB-DB
5 Gavin Schugg 9 TE-LB
7 Aaron Candiano 12 TE-LB
8 Anakin Allison 11 WR-DB-P
9 Kaleb Wilson 10 QB-DB
10 Eli Pancol 11 WR-DB
11 Christian Jones 11 WR-DB
12 Christian Conkling 11 QB-DB
13 Camden Tomey 10 WR-DB
14 Thomas Quiroga 12 WR-DB-K
15 Tristen Spinks 11 WR-DB
17 Brennan Jones 10 K
18 Cameron Ledbetter 10 WR-LB
20 Kamden Earley 10 RB-LB
21 Jared Miller 11 RB-LB
22 Collin Reynolds 10 RB-LB
23 Joseph Rios 10 RB-LB
24 Luke Drye 12 WR-DB
25 Hunter Thompson 11 WR-DB
26 Evan Douglas 11 RB-DB
28 Luke Bays 9 RB-LB
30 Caden McClain 9 RB-LB
31 Conner Cochran 11 RB-LB
33 Braden Gustin 9 RB-LB
36 Christian Roberts 9 RB-LB
40 Aaron Faulk 12 RB-LB
42 Taylor White 11 RB-LB
44 Colyn Griffith 10 TE-LB
45 Seth Mabry 10 TE-LB
48 Andrew Jamison 12 TE-LB
50 Chaston Gardner 11 OL-DL
51 Benjamin Kuhns 11 OL-DL
52 Cole Miller 11 OL-DL
54 Evan Suter 12 OL-LB
55 Kannin Boulware 10 OL-DL
56 Cater Lamper 11 OL-DL
57 Timothy Gregoire 11 OL-DL
58 Drew Lively 10 OL-DL
59 Manny Quiroga 10 OL-DL
60 Mack Riley 10 OL-DL
61 Austin Schnepp 11 OL-DL
62 Blake Fesler 12 OL-DL
63 Adam Brosio 11 OL-DL
64 Miller Smith 10 OL-DL
65 Cameron Cummins 10 OL-DL
66 Cole Robison 11 OL-LB
67 Izac Scruggs 11 OL-DL
68 Grant Skinner 12 OL-DL
70 Nicholas Gonima 10 OL-DL
72 John Canada 10 OL-DL
74 Ryan Reed 11 OL-DL
75 Cade Campbell 10 OL-DL
76 Tremor Bynum 11 OL-DL
77 Isaac Lowder 10 OL-DL
78 Caige Williams 10 OL-DL
81 Austin Hiegle 10 TE-LB
85 Tristen Bragg 9 TE-LB
86 Tommy Long 10 WR-DB
87 Connor Jamison 12 WR-DB
88 Hunter Graybill 12 WR-DB
89 Payton Burmeister 12 RB-DB
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7:30 p.m. Aug. 18 MUNCIE CENTRAL
7 p.m. Aug. 25 at Anderson
7:30 p.m. Sept. 1 NEW CASTLE
7:30 p.m. Sept. 8 GREENFIELD-CENTRAL
7:30 p.m. Sept. at New Palestine
7:30 p.m. Sept. 22 at Mt. Vernon
7:30 p.m. Sept. 29 DELTA (Homecoming)
7:30 p.m. Oct. 6 at Yorktown
7:30 p.m. Oct. 13 SHELBYVILLE
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