Preseason X Factors: McCallie Football

<p>McCallie has been a mainstay as one of the top programs in the private school classifications and overall in the entire state of Tennessee under the guidance of head coach Joel Bradford.</p>   <p>However, the majority of his long-standing core has now moved on from the program and Bradford has one more year with veteran talent this season as he attempts to build a strong foundation of young talent to complement the veterans this season and sustain the success into the future.</p>   <p>With that being said, several veterans will have to step up in a major way this season to lead their position group and will be crucial to holding together this year's McCallie team.</p>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2028 QB [player_tooltip player_id='1362634' first='Louis' last='Fortier']</h2>   <p>There will be a new quarterback running the offense this year and with the departure of the top two receiving targets, the burden will be on the shoulders on [player_tooltip player_id='1362634' first='Louis' last='Fortier'] to make the difference.</p>   <p>The good news is that he certainly has the ability with a very strong arm that can make any throw required from him and he will have a couple of talented receiving targets at his disposal still. Underclassmen such as [player_tooltip player_id='1455068' first='Levi' last='Scott III'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1704651' first='Cullen' last='Heck'] will be two targets to know at receiver and it will be up to Fortier to give his young playmakers the opportunities to create big plays.</p>   <p>Despite a frame that is similar to that of a tight end, he is a good athlete and will offer a decent amount of threat with his legs. It will be interesting to see the step forward that he takes in his development this season. This will be the most that McCallie has relied on their quarterback in a while, but they have a player with big-time potential to handle the job.</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/StephenHargis/status/1974271722372079706?s=20 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2027 RB [player_tooltip player_id='2112022' first='Xavier' last='Fillion']</h2>   <p>Something that can help take some pressure off a new quarterback is something that McCallie has always boasted: a strong rushing attack. It will be led by [player_tooltip player_id='2112022' first='Xavier' last='Fillion'] again this fall after the Canadian burst on to the scene in his first year at the program.</p>   <p>He has a compact build and is excellent at accelerating around the line of scrimmage, making him difficult to bring down at first or second contact.</p>   <p>McCallie has a couple younger options to complement him, but this will be his backfield and look for him to take full advantage of the opportunity.</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ScenicCitySprts/status/1992025435430162903?s=20 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2027 OL [player_tooltip player_id='1312032' first='Bowen' last='Gottselig']</h2>   <p>McCallie has been known to have well-coached trenches, but most of the entire offensive line room are now out the door, leaving a massive hole up front heading into the offseason.</p>   <p>Left tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1857508' first='Titus' last='Tervanen'] was a reliable anchor of the offensive line unit last season and will be in that role again this season, but the program will be looking to build the rest of the offensive line out from there. That's where transfer [player_tooltip player_id='1312032' first='Bowen' last='Gottselig'] enters the equation as he has good length and technique, but most importantly, has the skillset to play either tackle or guard.</p>   <p>With right tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1355869' first='Jamil' last='Thompson'] coming in as well, Gottselig gives some flexibility with how the team can build the front five and not take a step back with the play on the field.</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/shaynep_media/status/2031573024495800409?s=20 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2027 ILB [player_tooltip player_id='2179210' first='Cannon' last='Voiles']</h2>   <p>The front seven loses a lot of production, but a young defensive front should have McCallie fans expecting some breakout seasons up front. [player_tooltip player_id='2179210' first='Cannon' last='Voiles'] will step into the middle linebacker role and it will be important that he makes sure everyone inside the young front seven is on the same page and knows their assignments.</p>   <p>He will be relied upon to clean up plays against the run and provide insurance for the linemen in front of him. If he can provide that consistently, that could open the front to pin their ears back and be aggressive, which would be good news for the squad.</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/cannon_voiles/status/2047149666802831833?s=20 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2028 DB [player_tooltip player_id='1316718' first='Mylz' last='Williams']</h2>   <p>McCallie will be searching for defensive backs to step up and provide quality starter-level play this season, projecting as the biggest need for this team as the current situation stands. However, one big piece of the puzzle that the coaching staff can rely on is versatile defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='1316718' first='Mylz' last='Williams'].</p>   <p>Coming from a football family, he has the ability and versatility to play all over the secondary which is huge for what will be a completely new-look unit.</p>   <p>He will likely slide down to be a full-time corner that matches up with the opposing team's top receiving option every single week. With [player_tooltip player_id='1704651' first='Cullen' last='Heck'] coming in to likely man a safety position, having two reliable playmakers on the backend will go a long way as they hope for young talent to emerge around them.</p>

McCallie has been a mainstay as one of the top programs in the private school classifications and overall in the entire state of Tennessee under the guidance of head coach Joel Bradford.