Preseason Preview: Class 5A/Region 6

<!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Everything in this region runs through the Buccaneers of Beech High School. The rest of the teams are fighting for second place and it should be a fun battle to watch between Hendersonville, Portland and Station Camp. </h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5A-Region 6</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Beech Buccaneers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Hendersonville, TN (Sumner Co.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach: </strong>Anthony Crabtree&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 Finish: </strong>11-2 Overall (5-1 Region)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Returning Players: </strong>(OT/G) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1114738' first='Jack' last='Fuchs']</strong>, (TE) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='866718' first='Kaden' last='Powell']</strong>, (RB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='800803' first='Chelton' last='Swafford']</strong>, (TE/LB) <strong>Champ Nix</strong>, (WR/S) <strong>Jack Becker</strong>, (DT/OL) <strong>Jaxon Warren</strong>, (LB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1595509' first='Wyatt' last='Davis']</strong>, (DB/WR) <strong>Anton Wright</strong>, (S) <strong>Brock Miller</strong>, (WR) <strong>Colin Dupin</strong>, ‘27 (RB/LB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1206523' first='D.K.' last='Williams']</strong>, ‘27 (G/C) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1634767' first='London' last='Parks']</strong>, ‘27 (QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1317766' first='Sawyer' last='Phillips']</strong>, ‘27 (Ath) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1657131' first='J.R.' last='French']</strong>, ‘27 (RB) <strong>Devin Crutcher</strong>, ‘27 (G/C) <strong>Jonas Green</strong>, ‘28 (Ath) <strong>Jeremy Laster, Jr</strong>, ‘28 (TE/DE) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1027749' first='Sam' last='Keith']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hendersonville Commandos&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Hendersonville, TN (Sumner Co.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach: </strong>James Beasley&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 Finish: </strong>7-4 Overall (3-2 Region)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Returning Players: </strong>(RB/DB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1800401' first='Adrian' last='Spence']</strong>, (TE/LB) <strong>Brock Murray</strong>, (LB) <strong>E.J. Simmons</strong>, (S) <strong>Marco Giordani</strong>, (TE/DE) <strong>Blake Luallen</strong>, (RB/DB) <strong>Ford Proctor</strong>, (Ath) <strong>Karon Wilson</strong>, (OL/DT) <strong>Elijah Ortega</strong>, (K/P) <strong>Colin Brown</strong>, ‘27 (C/G) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1602208' first='Colt' last='Patterson']</strong>, ‘27 (WR/S) <strong>Andrew Bodnar</strong>, ‘27 (DT/OL) <strong>Damien Laub</strong>, ‘27 (QB/S) <strong>Christopher Jordan</strong>, ‘27 (DT/OL) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='853765' first='Gibson' last='Blair']</strong>, ‘27 (OL) <strong>Teagan Parizek</strong>, ‘27 (RB/S) <strong>Mason Armstrong</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1799540,"width":"251px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/08/cpatterson2.jpg?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1799540" style="width:251px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hunters Lane Warriors</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Nashville, TN (Davidson Co.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach: </strong>Devlin Culliver</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 Finish: </strong>2-8 Overall (0-5 Region)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Returning Players: </strong>(DB) <strong>Santarius Moore</strong>, (RB) <strong>Maliek Joseph</strong>, (Ath) <strong>Elijah Jarmon</strong>, (WR/S) <strong>Sir'Andreus Matthews</strong>, ‘27 (DT/OL) <strong>Braylan White</strong>, (WR) <strong>Kejuan Walker</strong>, ‘28 (S) <strong>Ian Taylor&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Portland Panthers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Portland, TN (Sumner Co.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach: </strong>Hunter Hicks&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 Finish: </strong>6-4 Overall (2-3 Region)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Returning Players: </strong>(S/WR) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1154541' first='Keilen' last='Dalton']</strong>, (DE) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1512350' first='Avery' last='Hughes']</strong>, (WR/DB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1602182' first='Aiden' last='Bell']</strong>, (DB) <strong>Jay Burnley</strong>, (RB) <strong>Isaac Hoke</strong>, (WR) <strong>Alex Swift</strong>, (QB/LB) <strong>Brogan High</strong>, (G/C) <strong>Tuff Meadors</strong>, (WR/DB) <strong>Emiliano Duke</strong>, (C/DT) <strong>Jason Cruz</strong>, (RB/FB) <strong>Shawn Sebring</strong>, ‘27 (S) <strong>Rylee Rubio</strong>, ‘28 (DE) <strong>D.J. Goode</strong>, (G/C) <strong>R.J. Prochaska</strong>, (DT) <strong>Braxton Maiden</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1799546,"width":"274px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/08/keidalton.jpg?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1799546" style="width:274px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Station Camp Bison</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Location: </strong>Gallatin, TN (Sumner Co.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Head Coach: </strong>Christopher Bain</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2024 Finish: </strong>6-6 Overall (5-2 Region)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Returning Players: </strong>(DE/Edge) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1261313' first='Ryland' last='Keefe']</strong>, (RB) <strong>Matthew Dickens</strong>, (OL/DT) <strong>Brady Estep</strong>, (LB) <strong>Will Stevens</strong>, ‘27 (QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1535793' first='Colton' last='Overbey']</strong>, (OL/DT) <strong>Tyler Ogan</strong>,<strong> </strong>(LB) <strong>Treyson Pettis</strong>, (WR/DB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='906617' first='Eric' last='Ginther']</strong>, (Ath) <strong>Collin Gillespie</strong>, (RB) <strong>Brandon Campbell, Jr</strong>, (S) <strong>Aaron Mason-Grimmig</strong>, (K/P) <strong>Gavin Hastings</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Region Overview: </strong>A newly formed region here during the off-season puts some programs together that makes sense from a geographical stand point, which should make things fun for the foreseeable future. The team to beat in this region for the Fall season and moving forward is Beech. The Buccaneers have a culture of winning and I expect the winning to continue as they return a solid veteran core along with several college caliber prospects. The Bucs lean on their run game and they should have a potent rushing attack this Fall, spearheaded by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='800803' first='Chelton' last='Swafford'] </strong>and junior two-way prospect <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1206523' first='D.K.' last='Williams']</strong>. There appears to be a new guy under center in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1317766' first='Sawyer' last='Phillips'] </strong>as incumbent quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='866718' first='Kaden' last='Powell'] </strong>moves to tight end. Look out for sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1648680' first='Jeramy' last='Laster, Jr'] </strong>to become a breakout player for the Bucs as their go-to explosive playmaker.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Battling with Beech for that top spot will be interesting as I could see Hendersonville, Portland and Station Camp all fighting for second place while giving the Bucs a run for their money. As things sit right now, I have the Commandos preseason picked for 2nd place but it's not by a large margin. Hendersonville is a disciplined team that plays physically in the trenches with the eagerness to run the ball. They should have the pieces this season to pound the ball with two-way talent <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1800401' first='Adrian' last='Spence'] </strong>taking carries behind a solid offensive line, led by junior stud <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1602208' first='Colt' last='Patterson']</strong>. The Commandos should be solid on defense as well but there are plenty of areas throughout the team that need continued development going into the season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If Station Camp had more senior-laden prospects back for the 2025 season, I might have picked them second but the Bison will have to lean on their junior class and some new names into starting roles this year, so early on, they might find a few struggles before coming together late in the year. What the Bison does have is a multi-year starter at quarterback in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1535793' first='Colton' last='Overbey'] </strong>and one of the better college prospects in this region with defensive end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1261313' first='Ryland' last='Keefe']</strong>. The Bison must develop their defense behind Keefe if they want a shot at competing for a region title.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1647256,"width":"248px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/03/rykeefe.webp?w=400" alt="" class="wp-image-1647256" style="width:248px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Placing four inside our preseason predictions is Portland. The Panthers have possibly the best defensive prospect in this region with defensive end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1512350' first='Avery' last='Hughes'] </strong>and two under the radar talents with <strong>Keilan Dalton </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1602182' first='Aiden' last='Bell'] </strong>but I'm unsure about the rest of the roster. There appears to be a lot of holes within this team that must get shored up as we start the season next week. I do think the Panthers could eventually form a solid defense but getting their offense figured out is key towards a successful season. The final team from this region is Hunters Lane and it could be a tough year for the Warriors. They have a new coaching staff in place with a roster that sports a lot of unknowns. Gaining a few victories this year could be a good thing for Hunters Lane and their hopes of building a program for the future.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#PRZTN Preseason Predictions</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Predicted Order of Finish</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. Beech</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. Hendersonville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. Station Camp</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. Portland&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5. Hunters Lane&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>- - - - -&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Preseason Regional Top Honors</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Reg. MVP: </strong>(RB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='800803' first='Chelton' last='Swafford'] </strong>- Beech&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Off. POTY: </strong>‘27 (QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1535793' first='Colton' last='Overbey'] </strong>- Station Camp</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Def. POTY: </strong>(DE) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1512350' first='Avery' last='Hughes'] </strong>- Portland&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lineman POTY: </strong>(OL) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1114738' first='Jack' last='Fuchs'] </strong>- Beech&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Coach of the Year: Anthony Crabtree </strong>- Beech&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mr. Football Contenders: </strong>(RB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='800803' first='Chelton' last='Swafford'] </strong>- Beech, (DE) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1512350' first='Avery' last='Hughes'] </strong>- Portland, ‘27 (QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1535793' first='Colton' last='Overbey'] </strong>- Station Camp, ‘27 (QB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1317766' first='Sawyer' last='Phillips'] </strong>- Beech, ‘27 (RB/LB) <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1206523' first='D.K.' last='Williams'] </strong>- Beech</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1799570,"width":"325px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/08/dkwilliams-crop-762x500-1755115417.jpg?w=761" alt="" class="wp-image-1799570" style="width:325px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image -->