2024 Preview: York Cougars

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York lost 24 seniors off of last year's team that finished 8-4 and lost to the eventual 4A state champion, Westside in 2023. But Cougars head coach Dean Boyd has been pleased with what he has seen from his team and is excited about what 2024 could bring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“I think we've had as good a summer since I've been here. Our culture is great. Our kids work hard. The weight room has been awesome. We won the state championship in weight lifting this year and that's attributed to those guys and how hard they work and buying into the culture and what we had to do so it's been going good and I'm really excited about it,” Boyd said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars will have one starter back on each side of the line of scrimmage with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='595706' first='Darrell' last='Harrison'] </strong>back on the defensive line, while <strong>Colton Green</strong> will be back on the offensive line. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York opens the 2024 season on the road against Indian Land on August 23.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>STARS SET TO SHINE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jay McCoy</strong> WR, 2025 – McCoy is a dynamic receiver on the outside who can make plays when the ball is in his hands. He is a vertical threat, but can also block on the outside for his teammates. He's also a difference maker on special teams as he took a kick back to the house for a touchdown against Rock Hill last year. He has an offer from UNC Pembroke.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Improvements heading into the 2024 season: “Definitely passing (routes) and staying focused on the task. We know what we have to do in this upcoming season.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jonathan Tobias </strong>DB, 2025 – Tobias (pictured above) will be one of the leaders for the defense in 2024. He is a hard hitter in space and can patrol the field like a center fielder. He reacts quickly when the ball is in the air. His athleticism translates over to the offensive side with his speed. He has an offer from Wofford.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Improvements heading into the 2024 season: “Playing with my eyes and seeing the field more. Reading the quarterback's eyes, reading the receivers. (And) when I'm on offense, just being a playmaker because when you're an athlete, you've got to make plays on both sides of the ball so just get around doing what I'm doing for my team and making the best of it.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592333' first='Tayshon' last='Freeman'] </strong>QB, 2026 – Freeman saw time at quarterback last year when Triston Barnett was injured last year against Clover and Boyd told us he's had a great summer. He has grown a lot and that will help him in 2024 as one of the leaders of the offense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>KEY LOSSES</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Triston Barnett </strong>QB – Barnett was a solid passer who could get it out to receivers quickly and manage the offense well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Debo Hall </strong>DB – Hall was the quarterback of the defense for the Cougars with his ability to bring the heat on every play. He is now at Presbyterian College.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>FILM REVIEW</strong>&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jeremiah Ellis </strong>DB/WR, 2025 – Ellis will be one of the leaders for the Cougars on defense in 2024. He is a hard hitting safety who can come up in run support and bring the fight to the running back. He can also make catches in the quick passing game at receiver.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16495040/6568c9a3176cd506fc65621e' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66aae0a055979"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>UP AND COMING POTENTIAL</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Ziggy Byers </strong>RB, 2025 – Byers will be looked at as the workhorse at running back for the Cougars in 2024. We anticipate that he'll get a good chunk of carries with his downhill running ability.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Improvements heading into the 2024 season: “</em><em>Not just running the ball just to run it and actually look at my reads.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Keep an eye on 2025 wide receiver and defensive back <strong>Chee Sanders </strong>as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1360047' first='Ryan' last='Carter']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2496","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"York","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66aae0a0595dd"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Carter can defeat blocks quickly and provide solid run support. He is a hard hitter when he comes and comes downhill. We were really impressed with his ability to diagnose plays as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16522775/655405204ba9320970a89064' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66aae0a059646"} /--> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->