St. James 7-on-7: News, Notes, Analysis

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MYRTLE BEACH |</strong> Bradley Adams knew he wasn't coming into a golden system when he returned to Georgetown this spring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bulldogs are riding a 20-game losing streak dating back to the 2021 season, losing all of those games by double digits. It's a far cry from the program Adams led to a 40-27 record during his first stint between 2010-2015.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But - and it's a good but for Georgetown - the cupboard is far from bare.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bulldogs showed during Wednesday's four-team 7-on-7 at St. James there are some pieces ready to start turning things around.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A pair of receivers are both north of 6-foot, and Adams intends to work in <strong>Ty Stanley</strong> and <strong>Zack Krause</strong> early and often this season. Stanley is currently 6-foot-3 and 175 pounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Charged with getting them the ball will be <strong>Owen Powell</strong>, the team's returning quarterback. Powell, though, will have a bigger ask than just throwing the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“It's a lot of pressure on our quarterback,” Adams said. “But he can handle it. In our system in general, there's a lot of pressure on the quarterback because we want to make sure we're in the right play at all times. He has to be the one to put us in that. He doesn't just need to know his personnel. He needs to be in tune with the game. He's probably going to have as much pressure of anybody on this football team this year.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After an early injury sidelined another receiver, back-up <strong>Trent Parker</strong> picked up the slack. He ended the day with four touchdown receptions, providing another positive sign for a team that needs as many as it can get after such a rough stretch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Myrtle Beach continued to work on developing quarterback <strong>Landon Cloninger</strong>, the soon-to-be first-year starter at the position after playing primarily receiver a year ago. The Chiefs are preaching patience with him, asking him to tuck it away instead of forcing it.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>His favorite target was <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='929482' first='Kaden' last='Gore']</strong>, the team's leader in receiving yards (422) and touchdowns (three).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The coaching staff is simultaneously working on depth at quarterback. That means an unlikely source at bigger schools. <strong>Aaron Bowers</strong>, who played in seven games at defensive tackle last season, is repping at the No. 2 spot behind Cloninger.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bowers, a former sub-varsity signal caller, isn't quite to Cloninger's level, but he does provide some decent size. The 6-foot, 230 pounder stands out in the backfield because of his build. He also showed off some decent arm strength in a session against Socastee, as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>His primary spot will remain on the defensive line, where he put up 11 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and a fumble recovery last fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Socastee is going through this summer without starting tailback [player_tooltip player_id='340389' first='Caden' last='O'Keefe'], who suffered a leg injury during the lacrosse season and then reaggravated it early in football practices. That is giving the Braves time to test out some younger players, but also to fine-tune a passing game that will be centered around quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='139313' first='Rocco' last='Wojcik'] and receivers [player_tooltip player_id='771237' first='Quadir' last='Scott'] and [player_tooltip player_id='413888' first='Josh' last='Brown'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On several occasions, they linked up for long and easy touchdown receptions. If all three stay healthy throughout the season, it could be a jump start for the offense once O'Keefe returns, which is expected to happen sometime in mid-late August.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The host school didn't stray too far from what we're expecting.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='91513' first='Connor' last='Schwalm'] (pictured) was the most productive quarterback on the field Wednesday. The Sharks' senior has a command of the offense (even the amended 7-on-7 one) and knows where his receivers are supposed to be.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He laid a ball in the hands of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1312432' first='Jace' last='Shropshire']</strong> on a deep ball late in the session. Shropshire (11 receptions, 180 yards, two touchdowns last season) hauled in the touchdown in the back of the end zone.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Almost immediately, St. James coach Tommy Norwood said Shropshire would be the “new <strong>Ben Sandt</strong>,” a hat tip to the Sharks' 700-yard receiver from last season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While it may still be a bit premature - thanks to Schwalm's presence - <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1267347' first='Alex' last='Sandt']</strong> is a step closer to his own time in the spotlight. The 6-foot, 165-pound quarterback has put on a little bit of weight and grew an inch in the last 12 months.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a few rough snaps against Georgetown, Sandt settled in and hit two receivers in stride on strong throws. Schwalm is still the guy, but St. James knows it has its next guy, too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->