2025 Preview: Landrum Cardinals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mike Reid's been fairly busy since mid-May.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Reid got the head coaching job at Landrum on May 12, and has been nonstop since then. It's not a tremendous adjustment, though. Reid was on the Cardinals' staff, and is just adjusting to the big chair.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It's just been jumping in," Reid said. "We're running the same offense. And being there the last two years, we've got a lot of guys on the defensive staff who are great coaches. We're doing the same things, it's not like we're changing a bunch. But we're going to put our twist on it and go from there."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Landrum has some talent coming back from a team that started hot right out of the gate last season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"We've got <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592305' first='Ty' last='Foster']</strong> coming back at quarterback," Reid said. "He's going to be a third year starter with a lot of experience under his belt, and we're excited about him being back. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592581' first='AJ' last='Lindsey']</strong> is back at running back and linebacker, and can do it all honestly. H-Back, tight end, anywhere we can get the ball in his hands. And then <strong>Blake Bridges</strong> will be a four-year starter dating back to his time at Broome, and he brings a whole lot of experience up front that we're going to count on.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Foster is one of those textbook 2A guys, a player who does whatever the team needs, whenever he's called on. He's also got the advantage of being a multi-year starter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"I think the most important thing is being familiar with receivers and knowing the linemen, because we do have a lot of returners at those positions as well," Foster said. "That's my main thing, having that connection with them and having those relationships. I can trust them and they can trust me, and we can work together. It's definitely also an advantage to be able to get more and more comfortable with the offense. I've definitely become more comfortable."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cardinals also have a good group of underclassmen who will step into pivotal roles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"<strong>Braylon Revis</strong> is going to be a big weapon for us offensively," Reid said. "Last year he injured his hand early in the year and played more defense for us. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1822470' first='Vuthy' last='Som']</strong> is a junior, a really strong kid in the weight room, and he's put in a lot of work. We're excited about him. He's going to play offensive line and defensive line for us. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1819959' first='Korbin' last='Mehaffey']</strong> is now a second-year starter who's grown a lot in the weight room and gotten a lot bigger. There are a couple of guys we're really excited about.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>STARS SET TO SHINE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hank Martindale</strong> DB, 2026 - Martindale helped lead the secondary last season, with 25 tackles and a pair of interceptions. He's one of those guys who's sneaky-good: you might not notice him much on Friday nights, but you'll sure see him on game film on Saturdays. He's a player who does a lot of things really, really well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592305' first='Ty' last='Foster']</strong> QB, 2026 - Foster is a rarity in the recent past at Landrum, a QB who has more than two years in the system. He's starting his third, and will be trying to build on a 1,900-yard passing, 750-yard rushing season that saw him account for 27 total touchdowns. A true dual-threat QB, Foster is absolutely crucial to what Landrum wants to do.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592581' first='AJ' last='Lindsey']</strong> ATH, 2026 - How important was Lindsey to the Cardinals last season? Well, he was fourth on the team in rushing yards, third in receiving, and fifth in all-purpose yards, scoring six total touchdowns. He did all that while leading the team in tackles with 105, tackles for loss with 13, and pass deflections with six. He grabbed two interceptions, forced four fumbles, and recovered two.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blake Bridges</strong> OL/DL, 2026 - Bridges is a big, strong, experienced, nasty offensive lineman. He can play guard or center, and routinely neutralizes the guy across the line from him. He can pull, he can pass block, and he can do pretty much whatever the Cardinals need from him up front. He had 20 pancake blocks last season, and another year of experience and work in the weight room might have even more in store for him.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>FILM REVIEW</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cooper Tidwell</strong> WR/DB, - Tidwell's another guy who just does a lot of things well that you might not notice at first glance. Reid mentioned his "quiet, good games", and the stats back it up. Tidwell had 40 tackles and a tackle for loss last season, picking off a pass and knocking down three more and adding a forced fumble. He's fast, he's a big hitter, and he seems to always be in the right place.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/18851244/67365815364a9f3dc096cd98' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-68751a7e695bd"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>BIGGEST LOSSES</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Aidan Kelly</strong> RB - Kelly was the team's leading rusher and a key complementary piece to Foster in the backfield. The Cardinals will have to find a way to replace his 900 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Titus Poore</strong> ATH - Poore truly did it all for the Cardinals. He had more than 800 total yards across rushing, receiving, and return categories, and added 33 tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and two forced fumbles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>UP-AND-COMING POTENTIAL</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1819959' first='Korbin' last='Mehaffey']</strong> - Mehaffey will be in his second year starting for the Cardinals, and Reid likes his work in the off-season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Braylon Revis</strong> - Revis might be a little bit of a wrinkle for Landrum. He had 26 tackles and knocked down a team-high eight passes to go with two picks last season after having to shift almost exclusively to defense because of an early injury. This year he's healthy and ready to contribute on the offensive side of the ball.</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":1709288,"_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1822470' first='Vuthy' last='Som']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'8u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"216","_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":"Landrum","_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-68751a7e6d27a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Som played well on both sides of the ball for the Cardinals as a sophomore, and they're expecting even better things as he's got a year of experience under his belt. His athleticism at linebacker translates extremely well when the Cardinals use him at guard. His speed and agility make up for a weight disadvantage, and he's a standout at pulling and blocking downfield.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/20213953/683bdae35a2ea131f9989049' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-68751a7e6d310"} /-->