SZ+: Bluefield State, Concord, Bluefield University Football Season Previews

GHENT, WV (WVNS) - Fall Saturdays are quickly approaching, which can only mean one thing: college football is almost back.

Several of our local college teams are putting in the work in hopes of stacking a winning season. Bluefield State University head coach Davon Morgan is heading into his 3rd season at the helm and has led the Big Blue to steady growth. Coach Morgan has put a special emphasis on the trenches this offseason, recruiting big linemen to help their ground game defensively and offensively.

He is excited to see what all they can achieve as a unit this season.

“Being at Bluefield State, trying to change the culture and bring guys together has been fun, you know. We got guys like Brandon Wiley who’s a Bluefield kid. He’s stepped up in a major leadership role. We got Crawley. He’s coming out, looking for a big year and then we got some guys on defense that are returning and they’re looking forward to really showing guys what Bluefield State defense is about,” said Morgan.

The Bluefield University Rams also sent their reigning All-Appalachian Athletic Conference First Teamers from last season to give us a look at the Rams before the season starts. This team that almost went .500 returns a tight-knit core with something to prove this season.

Receiver Marlin Haywood is bracing for even more production after earning the Conference’s Offensive Freshman of the Year. Offensive linemen Ryan Capranica is continuing to mesh with his newfound position on the field after 1 year in the system.

“We’ve talked a lot about “Iron sharpens iron”. Especially with the O-Line, D-Line group because we’re sitting with only about 2 freshmen, I believe. For that offensive line group and D-Line – they’ve got a bunch of freshmen. So, I mean, we’re just trying to make each other better and that’s been a big part of it,” said Capranica.  

The Concord University Mountain Lions caught up with us after a preseason practice to share about their preparations. You can find all these previews, plus some of the latest high school sports news on this week’s edition of SportsZone+.