PAC 2026

[HHPatriots]

13 hours ago, Titan32 said:

OK.....it's July.  Conference predictions?  Who will the QB at Heritage Hills....inquirng minds want to know!

Tyce Winchell has been the backup behind Jett.  Unless something has changed, I'd say he is the guy, which is no secret.  He was as fast as Jett, but doesn't have the size.  Tyce is a great kid, humble, quiet, does his job and moves to the next play.  He has been a gunslinger, which comes with good and bad.  

Fact is you can always come up with a skinny kid to run fast--that's never the problem.  What is a problem and also no secret is that we graduated 5 veteran offensive lineman who also played DL.  

With all that said, we do have a secret, and it is kept about as well as the new head coach secret was kept.  

We are getting close.  I don't know if we will have anything for the Titans this year, but I think we will be competitive.  Kevin's first year at HC.....it was a rocky one for Todd in his first year, I'd say Kevin may have more to work with but losing generational talent won't help.

[Titan32]

1 hour ago, HHPatriots said:

Tyce Winchell has been the backup behind Jett.  Unless something has changed, I'd say he is the guy, which is no secret.  He was as fast as Jett, but doesn't have the size.  Tyce is a great kid, humble, quiet, does his job and moves to the next play.  He has been a gunslinger, which comes with good and bad.  

Fact is you can always come up with a skinny kid to run fast--that's never the problem.  What is a problem and also no secret is that we graduated 5 veteran offensive lineman who also played DL.  

With all that said, we do have a secret, and it is kept about as well as the new head coach secret was kept.  

We are getting close.  I don't know if we will have anything for the Titans this year, but I think we will be competitive.  Kevin's first year at HC.....it was a rocky one for Todd in his first year, I'd say Kevin may have more to work with but losing generational talent won't help.

Yeah not a huge secret...any help is help.  We have a ton of new faces in the trenches as well.  Maybe this is the year an SIAC team can actually get it done. LOL

Edited July 7 by Titan32

[HHPatriots]

2 hours ago, Titan32 said:

Yeah not a huge secret...any help is help.  We have a ton of new faces in the trenches as well.  Maybe this is the year an SIAC team can actually get it done. LOL

Who will be taking snaps for the Titans--Zach have a little brother?

Pending us getting our lives together, I do believe we will be very competitive to win the sectional.  Reitz will be tougher (I think) and Jasper is an unknown.  Putting a running clock on Jasper on their field in sectional was one of the most fun games I have ever watched. They deserved all that beat down.  But, there is a ton of football between now and then....if the draw puts us with Jasper, they will be out for blood.

Other conference stuff....For Southridge--Luke Messmer will change things for the better being on Coach B's staff.  I would bet that they will be bigger, stronger and faster with him on the staff.  

[Titan32]

31 minutes ago, HHPatriots said:

Who will be taking snaps for the Titans--Zach have a little brother?

Pending us getting our lives together, I do believe we will be very competitive to win the sectional.  Reitz will be tougher (I think) and Jasper is an unknown.  Putting a running clock on Jasper on their field in sectional was one of the most fun games I have ever watched. They deserved all that beat down.  But, there is a ton of football between now and then....if the draw puts us with Jasper, they will be out for blood.

Other conference stuff....For Southridge--Luke Messmer will change things for the better being on Coach B's staff.  I would bet that they will be bigger, stronger and faster with him on the staff.  

Caden Rochleau.  Fast 22MPH kinda kid with a top three arm in the Hart era in terms of pure velosity, maybe top 2.  Haven't seen his measurements for this season...last year 6'3" 185.  I like our skills A LOT.  I'll have to see how the trenches come together although they ran the ball down Reitzs throat at the scrimmage.  As usual we have a couple D lineman that are going to be a problem.  Zach has a couple little brothers....one not so little LOL.

SR always has a little something for us.....not to be taken lightly

Guys in the area have a betting pool on if Princeton will still have a team by week 9.

[HHPatriots]

On 7/7/2026 at 11:49 AM, Titan32 said:

Guys in the area have a betting pool on if Princeton will still have a team by week 9.

While I realize that we have to play them, it is such a waste of a week.  It does nobody any good.  Our county rivals are anything but rivals.  Good news for us is that this is supposedly the last year we are playing ours....but they are no longer in the conference.  Princeton should get in a different conference.

[Titan32]

 

Heritage Hills preview 

https://www.tristatehomepage.com/video/home-team-friday/8077470/
 

[Titan32]

6 minutes ago, Titan32 said:

 

Heritage Hills preview 

https://www.tristatehomepage.com/video/home-team-friday/8077470/
 

Better link https://www.tristatehomepage.com/sports/local-sports/patriots-putting-new-pieces-together/

[Titan32]

HPG interview with new Mt. Vernon head coach Brad Higginson.

Question 1
How would you assess your football team's overall improvement during these past 30 days of team drills camps and competitions?

We have made great strides as a team during the past 30 days. We have kept everything in house as far as competition, but we did get a chance to put on shoulder pads and have some physical practices and learn the standard of competing. We have spent some great time in the classroom learning the X's and O's of football. We have sharpened our skillset, football IQ, and cleaned up some scheme issues. The players have hit the weightroom hard at the same time and continue to build that toughness and strength we will need to compete in the PAC Big School Division.

Question 2
Who are some individual student athletes that have used this summer preparation period to improve their overall game and put themselves into position to contribute heavily this fall?

Gavin Schu who is an OL/DL type player has been a great leader and pushed himself and others to compete at a high level. He has emerged as a player to watch this year for sure as a Senior.  
Saint Henderson has been flying around the field as a RB/TE/LB. He is picking up things quickly and is always playing at high speed. He is another player to watch in our area because of his size and speed at his position. He has been to some camps this summer and turned some heads at multiple levels as a Junior.
Eastin Hall is a workhorse for both Offense and Defense. He is smart and powerful. He is going to be our goto guy in the mix for energy and expectations to win as a Senior. He holds the players accountable and pushes the culture to another level.
Ryan Lilleston is a great athlete that will contribute a lot on Defense. He is a smart player, and we will put him in the position to make some in game adjustments. He has been working hard in the weight room and film room to be a leader on the field as a Junior.

Question 3
As you look at your current roster, where do you see position groups of greatest strength and others with opportunities for improvement?

I would say that our OL room is going to be one to watch. We have made great strides the last month up front. We have size and strength and that is a great start to establish a tough and physical mindset. With the stable of runners behind them, we as coaches are excited to see how they continue to progress into the season.
Defense will be fixed on the middle core of the group. The LB/Safety group will be big and athletic which will allow us to use multiple styles of play throughout the season. We will have be able to tackle at the point of attack and be physical in the pass game to force takeaways.

Question 4
What are your top priorities over the next 30 days in terms of final preparations relative to getting your football team ready to hit August camp fully healthy and with plenty of positive momentum?

Our priorities will be to continue to add to the playbook to learn as much as we can in the first part of August. We have to continue to work with the players on getting them as healthy as we can be going into Week 1. We are excited to scrimmage another team to get a better feel of our progress from the Summer work we put in. The momentum is in the newness of the Culture of our Program and expectations for the season.

Question 5
What are the roadblocks and challenges standing in the way of your program reaching its full potential this fall?

Our roadblocks are the heat and dealing with the adversity of playing with high temps and getting everyone on the same page. We are working with other programs to make sure we have complete access to what we need to train and practice at the optimal time and not be limited due to the weather.