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Brought to you by Harlan County Sports.

After a college coaching career that took him all around the country over the past four decades, former Middlesboro and University of Kentucky standout Brian Williams found his way back to southeastern Kentucky this spring for his first job as a high school coach at Harlan with the goal of turning the Green Dragons into consistent winners once again.

Harlan posted an 8-4 mark in 2022 and won a playoff game, but then dropped to 2-9 last fall for their sixth losing season in seven years. Williams is working to build numbers and boost confidence for a program that has fallen on hard times of late.

“I think it’s been a situation that changes daily while we’re trying to set standards and expectations,” Williams said. “The kids are coming out and giving super effort, and that’s all you can ask. I just want to get 11 guys on the field who will do what they are taught to do and give a super effort.”

As with most Class A schools, Harlan doesn’t have a lot of depth or numbers, but Williams isn’t phased by either issue.

“I played 2A football at Middlesboro and we didn’t have a large roster, so a lot of people had to play both ways. That comes with Class A and 2A football,” he said. “We’re a new staff trying to put in a new program, so there are a lot of moving parts at this point.”

Williams is confident he has the ingredients he needs on the current roster to be competitive.

“We have a few upperclassmen in the offensive and defensive lines that have a lot of experience,” he said. “They always seem to have a few skill guys at Harlan with pretty good ability.”

The Harlan offense will again revolve around senior tailback Darius Akal, who has already committed to Eastern Kentucky University after rushing for 960 yards and 10 touchdowns a year ago.

“No question that Darius is one of the guys we have to feature in the offense,” Williams said. “He does special things with the ball when he gets it in his hands, and he’s a true leader. He doesn’t miss anything and is where is supposed to be every day and tries to provide leadership. He is the total package that coaches like.”

Sedrick Washington, a junior who was second on the team in rushing last year with 257 yards, will also see action in the backfield.

Connor Daniels, a junior, and Hunter Clem, a senior, could see action at H back or as receivers. Nate Montanaro, a senior, led the team in receptions last year with 14 for 205 yards. Clem was second with 10 for 85 yards. Jonah Sharp will also see action at receiver.

Junior quarterback Baylor Varner, a baseball standout, joined the team at midseason last year and gave the Dragons a passing threat as he completed 29 of 64 attempts for 405 yards and four touchdowns.

“He’s penciled in now as our Day 1 starter. He’s an athletic kid and very competitive,” Williams said. “As long he continues to grasp our offense, he will be just fine.”

The offensive front should be a strength for the Dragons this year with three starters coming back in senior center Matthew Nunez, senior guard Peyton Thompson and sophomore tackle Jordan Rodriguez.

“The physicality of our offensive line is a plus. They seem to want to get after it,” Williams said. “Matt will be playing somewhere. He can play a lot of places. Matt and Peyton and all of them have stood out at some point. It’s hard to mention one over the others.”

Other possible starters up front include Landon Myers, Kameron Witt and Dejuan Forester.

The Dragons will play a “34” defense and feature an athletic secondary led by Montanaro at strong safety and Akal at a corner. Montanaro led the team in tackles last year with 37, including five and half for losses. Akal was tied for fifth in tackles with 16. Beck Bryson is expected to take over at free safety, with Jonah Sharp or Charlie Honeycutt at the other corner.

Harlan’s defensive front will be anchored by Clem at end, where he recorded 12 tackles last year, including two and a half for losses. Connor Witt will take over at nose tackles, with Thompson, Nunez and Rodriguez alternating at tackle.

“Connor Witt will be a force as a defensive lineman. His size will demand attention, and he plays with a lot of physicality,” Williams said.

Williams is most concerned with his linebackers on the defensive side.

“We’re looking for guys to step up, that’s all I can say, both inside and outside,” he said. “That’s one position that needs to step up. The strength of our team

Washington and Daniels made some highlight reels plays on defense a year ago and are likely starters.

“Sedrick is a guy who likes to fly around, and so will Brayden Doan,” Williams said. “Connor will be an outside linebacker and nickel type of guy. We’re trying a lot of people at outside linebacker. It’s a process.”

Williams said he wasn’t certain yet on who will handle kicking or punting duties.

Harlan finished third in District 7 last year behind Middlesboro and Williamsburg, the two teams that have won every district title since the Dragons last won the championship in 2015.

“From the seven-on-sevens we were involved in, it should be a very competitive district,” Williams said. “Any district will be very challenging. We know Middlesboro has been successful and Williamsburg has been successful. We want to raise our program to where we are competitive. We’re just trying to build our program where we’re competitive on a daily basis. We’ll take them one day at a time and one game at a time and we hope to stack some wins if our kids are on the same page.”