Douglas Tigers Season Preview
Updated: Aug. 3, 2024
By: J. Ray Dockter
Sorry, this was a day late, better late than never.
We are just under two weeks away from the start of high school football in the Silver State and I couldn't be more excited. Over the next few weeks, I'll be previewing many teams from our local area as well as a few other surprises, before getting into football season full swing on Aug. 16th when the first games kickoff. Today's team: Douglas.
Head Coach: Kyle Mays, fourth season at Douglas (12-18 overall, 6-12 league in three seasons at Douglas and overall)
Previous Season Record: 10-2 overall, 5-0 league; 2023 NIAA Northern Region 5A-III Regular Season Champions.
Overview: Heading into last season Douglas and Coach Mays had endured a rough couple seasons, but that all changed last season when the Douglas Tigers became the first ever 5A-III Northern Region Regular Season Champions.
Unfortunately for the Tigers their season would end in heartbreaking fashion as they fell 18-7 to the Galena Grizzlies in the Northern Region Championship Game. To make matters worse the Tigers had defeated Galena by 30 points about six weeks earlier during the regular season, so the stunning end to the season was a hard pill to swallow as they had expected to be playing in the State Championship Game the following week. All things considered it was a great season for the boys from 'The County' as they got the program pointed in the right direction once again.
Last year's team included "24's and 25's that needed to come together for the Tigers to be successful." They successfully developed cohesion on their way to success and Mays said "our kids are working hard and developing to take over for last year's group." This year's team will include a smaller senior class with only nine kids, who will be expected to lead a group of juniors that will make up a majority of this year's roster, 36 to be exact, along with possibly one-two sophomores who are expected to contribute. Mays said, "We'll experience some growing pains this year."
The strength of this season's Tigers will be good depth along the offensive and defensive lines and that'll make the running game solid this season - like last year where Connor Jackson rushed for 2,176 yards and 31 TDs. Mays said "Offensively [we] base everything on the run game and playing solid defense. Our focus will be on running the ball." You can expect the Tigers to play solid special teams, limit turnovers and if that happens "we should be good, competitive this season," Mays said.
Players to Watch:
QB Jackson Ovard, Senior: Played really well after being thrust into the starting QB job last season, passing for 1,174 yards and 11 TDs; he should be a steadying force for the Tigers this season. I wouldn't be surprised if he was in line for postseason honors at the end of the year.
DB Brenton Weston, Senior: Starting safety that recorded is very physical, high football IQ, he's [very] smart. Weston racked up 53 tackles and four interceptions for the Tigers last season. Mays said, "[he] is going to be a big-time player for us this year."
RB/DB Zachary Jackson, Junior: Primarily a defensive back last season Jackson will be expected to take over the running back duties for this season's Tigers as his brother Connor had a season for the ages last year. While on defense last season Jackson proved that he was a playmaker tallying 32 tackles on the season to go along with four interceptions. Mays said "He worked his tail off the past spring [in track] to get faster. He'll get a lot of opportunities offensively." He has put on weight this offseason to get better prepared for his work load this upcoming season.
Looking ahead (Schedule breakdown): Five of the Tigers first six games are on the road before they finish their season with three of four at home and back-to-back home games to end the regular season. Will this schedule help the Tigers maintain their return to glory or will they experience heartbreak in the North's large class once again this season? Only time will tell if their reloading helps them make a run towards a championship this season in a new division. This team will be exciting to watch, nonetheless.
Quote worthy: Douglas Head Coach Kyle Mays "We play three high level 3A teams to start the season, followed by two really good [5A] Division-III teams that we expect to be better this season before going into league where it's going to be a competitive dogfight each week. Hopefully our structured schedule will get us ready to compete during league play."
Season Schedule:
Aug. 16 at Fernley
Aug. 23 at Elko
Aug. 30 vs. Spring Creek
Sep. 6 at North Valleys
Sep. 13 at Carson
Sep. 20 at Reno
Sep. 27 vs. Spanish Springs
Oct. 4 at McQueen
Oct. 18 vs. Reed
Oct. 24 vs. Bishop Manogue
J. Ray Dockter has been covering high school sports since 2022. If you have a story worth telling, let him know via Twitter @J_RayDoc.
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