2024 Preview: Mountainview Prep Stars

The pre-season questionnaire for Mountain View Prep was light on information at the top of the page.   No returning starters. Nobody up from the JV team. Nothing much to see.   With a brand-new program, the Stars are getting used to being on the field together, and finding where they mesh.   "From a football perspective, we have had to evaluate and adapt on the fly," MVP coach Grey Ramsey said. "During the spring, we had weekly staff meetings to try to plan for the summer. This included install plans, practice plans, and team building exercises. The hard part was doing this blind and not knowing what your roster would look like. Every day we have re-evaluated and changed something within our plans, even if it was minor. As the summer has gone along, we have maintained our commitment to build our schemes to fit the strength of our players and not just what we want to do as a staff. Now that we are at the end of the summer and approaching the fall, we have a good grasp on the direction of our schemes and development of our roster. It has been a joy to see them grow in so many areas. Not to over simplify the game or coaching, but we now know basic things that are needed in order to be successful on Friday Nights. We now know who are playmakers are, we have built depth charts, we have designed schemes to fit personnel, we have moved players to different positions, we have found out what players are in shape, we have found out what players are leaders, we have found out who we can count on, etc. For most schools, this takes place over the course of an entire year. We have had to accomplish this in a much faster pace...in six weeks. Our team will continue to evolve over the course of the fall. The non-region slate of our schedule will allow us to see who we are. Our hope is to be playing some of our better football come October when we start region play. The teams within our region will be well coached and talented. We are excited about the opportunity to play against such tradition rich programs."   Players have embraced the chance to play at Mountainview, but with different players from different programs, Ramsey and his staff have had to find a way to put everything together.   "My challenge has been taking a group of kids who all have been in different programs and shift their mindset to being part of something new," he said. "The word culture gets used a lot in this profession. Culture is not a slogan, or graphics, or something you create by force. Every day I have challenged our players to create the culture of MVP that they want it to be. They have a special opportunity to make a school their own. It can be known for anything they want it to be. Our goal is for people to see our players and be proud of who they are as people, not just proud of how well they perform on a football field. As the summer has progressed, our staff has done a tremendous job of making the most out of our limited time together. Our building was under construction most of the summer along with the completion of our weight room and practice field. I quickly learned that some of the things you take for granted in this profession were not going to be as accessible to us early on. Our players have answered every hurdle thrown at them and really bought into the standard that we are trying to create. I have been so proud of our effort, intentionality, attendance, and attention to detail. Our players have been challenged all summer to start building a foundation for becoming great in every aspect of their lives."   STARS SET TO SHINE   [player_tooltip player_id='1395046' first='KD' last='Hainsworth'] WR, 2026   Hainsworth is a big play waiting to happen. He led Dorman in both receptions and touchdowns last season, and five of his six TDs came from more than 40 yards. He averaged 17 yards per catch and 80 yards per game, and could be on the verge of a breakout year.   [player_tooltip player_id='473001' first='Jaylen' last='McGill'] RB, 2026   McGill is, put simply, among the elite RBs in the state. He's got a rare combination of balance, power, speed, and explosiveness, and it's easy to see why he's on everybody's recruiting list. He's a legitimate threat every time he touches the ball.   [player_tooltip player_id='595830' first='Quay' last='McCauley'] DL, 2025   McCauley is deceptively light on his feet for his size, and has good reach and power. He gets off the ball particularly quickly, and he excels at chasing down plays from behind.   [player_tooltip player_id='1253999' first='Shamon' last='Black'] DB, 2025   Black is one of the most athletic cover guys in the Upstate, and that athleticism could lead him to shine on both sides of the ball for the stars. On defense, though, he's got plenty of speed and excellent footwork, and he does a good job of jumping routes and tracking down the ball.   FILM REVIEW   [player_tooltip player_id='349806' first='Bryson' last='Drummond'] QB, 2025   Drummond led Greenville on a deep playoff run last season, throwing for more than 2,200 yards and 23 touchdowns. There's not a throw he can't make, he's got great pocket presence, and he's deadly on the move.    UP-AND-COMING POTENTIAL   Allen Edmondson DL, 2025   Edmondson is a big, strong guy on the defensive front for the Stars. He does a good job winning one-on-one matchups at the line, sheds blockers, and has a knack for finding the ball.   [player_tooltip player_id='1253952' first='Eli' last='Smith'] MLB, 2025   A transfer from Blue Ridge, Smith looks like a prototype MLB at 6-foot-1 and 225 pounds. He's versatile enough to play DL, and he brings with him more than 109 tackles, including 70 solos, and 14 tackles for loss.    Gassoway is a shifty runner with a tremendous burst who's also physical enough to run through tackles. He's also got a firm grasp on how to use his size to his advantage, patiently picking his way behind his blockers, disappearing at times, until it's time to go.

The pre-season questionnaire for Mountain View Prep was light on information at the top of the page.