REFORM, Ala. — Patrick Plott is happy to be back closer to home.
If he had his choice, he never would have left Pickens County High School and his job as the school”s football coach. But a certification issue and the lack of a certified teaching position at the school resulted in Plott leaving the school after only one season leading the football program.
Following stints as football coach at Bullock County and Demopolis, Plott is back closer to his home of Carrollton, Ala., and ready to get the Tornadoes swirling in a high-speed, high-scoring offense.
“When this opportunity came, I thought it was a good chance to come back,” said Plott, who takes over for Scott Marchant, his former defensive coordinator, who is now the head football coach at Sulligent High. “(I remember) the kids being committed and the community behind you regardless of what you did. We always had a good group of kids that was going to be committed and work hard and always give you a chance to win.”
Pickens County will open its season at 7 p.m. Friday at American Christian Academy. The game will be provide a test for the Class 1A Tornadoes, but Plott is confident his players will be up for the challenge. He has that belief in part due to the return of veterans like Warren Betts, Demarco Hall, and LaJuan Doss. Those three players also were key contributors in a boys basketball program that has won back-to-back state titles.
“It feels good,” said Plott, who also will take over for Russ Wallace as the school”s boys basketball coach. “It is always good to be around good people, and we have good people here at the school and good people in town. Most of them know me, and I know most of them.”
Plott praised the work of Marchant and the coaches for maintaining the program. He said his goal is to take the program to the next level. To do that, he will have to break in a new quarterback. Sophomore Devonte Simon will take over for Deion Curry, a multi-talented playmaker on the football field and on the basketball court.
“It is always a challenge to replace a kid like Deion,” Plott said. “When you lose an athlete like that, it is tough to replace them. I think we have a kid in Devonte Simon who can get the job done. He is very intelligent, he works hard, he asks the questions about the little things. He is young and his going to make mistakes, but, in the long run, he is going to be a good one.”
Simon played in the secondary on the varsity squad last season. He is expected to lead an offense that will feature Betts and Doss at wide receiver, Hall at running back, and senior Nick Stewart on the offensive line.
“Those guys are going to play a lot, not only as playmakers but also as leaders,” Plott said. “We are going to count on those guys for leadership.”
Doss, who will play linebacker and safety, said he “loves” having Plott back at the school because his offense opens so many possibilities for playmakers. He is excited about going full speed and being a part of a no-huddle offense.
“I think it will be a big difference (from last year),” Doss said. “I have a lot of confidence in Devonte. In practice he puts the ball on the money, so he is going to do the same thing in the games.”
Betts echoes Doss” thoughts about the strength of the defense. In his fourth year on the varsity team, he said the Tornadoes will take on the personality of their coach and will work hard all of the time.
“I think we can be successful this year,” Betts said. “It is a big loss at quarterback, but Devonte is young and can get the job done. He can throw and run.
“Coach brings that confidence every day. If we work. I think we will have a good chance to win a state championship.”
Plott said he hasn”t scaled his spread offense back to accommodate for Simon”s inexperience. He said he has “thrown the playbook” at him and even added more. He can afford to
“He is picking up on it really good,” Plott said. “The weapons we have plus his skill set allow us to expand the playbook.”
Plott said he has more than 40 players on the roster, which will bolster his ability to build a program. The numbers have increased a little bit from previous seasons, but Plott said the depth the team has will allow it to rest players who are going to see a lot of action on both sides of the ball.
On defense, which returns nine starters, Plott said Terrien Steele and William Stewart, Nick”s cousin, will be anchors on the defensive line.
Plott said a test against a Class 2A team in the opener will give the Tornadoes a great look at what they can accomplish this season.
“I think if we can stay healthy and take it one game at a time, we have a chance to do something special,” Plott said. “I don”t know exactly what, but I think we have a chance.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.