Ads debut fresh offense in first scrimmage
The Farragut junior tailback muscled his way through the Greeneville defensive line, gaining a couple of yards amid the Admirals’ first taste of preseason action.
It was one play of several within Farragut’s new flex bone offense, which debuted in the Admirals’ scrimmage against the Greene Devils on Friday, July 31.
While FHS typically has run a more shotgun-heavy, spread offense since the late 2000s, third-year head coach Geoff Courtney made the switch this offseason — putting new quarterback Hayes Sharp under center with a fullback behind him and an H-back to each side.
Predicated on misdirection, the offense gained popularity with service academies and other college teams, such as Georgia Tech.
Now, it has arrived in Farragut for the 2026 season.
“With depth at certain positions, offensive line into skill, we have a lot of outside receivers, and personnel-wise, it gave us a true two-deep,” Courtney said. “We’re able to be a little more athletic up front.
“We’re still getting the hang of it and have seen some good things in practice, but we got challenged here tonight. First time with a young team under the lights, and we had a lot of guys that missed assignments. But that will improve.”
Courtney noted the last time FHS ran anything close to this was 2006 before switching to spread the following year.
“We had a lot of play-action pass, heavy run game,” he said. “So we had success with it then. Where our personnel is, we are young at quarterback, offensive line and the skill positions.
“So it will help our backs, tight ends, receivers and our quarterback will really improve in it. You’re just trying to stress the defense at all 11 positions.”
He noted the install has been “very systematic,” taking roughly a week this summer to put in a foundation that gave the Admirals one formation to run out of Friday night.
The Ads found success on their first drive of an inside run drill, as Abram Shelton and Dayton Parks found the end zone.
The following play resulted in a fumble, though, an aspect Farragut will have to work through as it adjusts to a new scheme.
“We didn’t handle the snap too well tonight — we haven’t had that issue until we got out here,” Courtney said. “But Greeneville has a couple big defensive tackles, so the center-quarterback exchange was under duress. That will improve, though.”
He added that he’s been impressed with tight ends Bailey Pyle and Max Hilton — who hauled in a pass from Sharp on a corner route during another drill — as well as Collier and Alcoa transfer Elijah Sadler, both of whom fielded punts during special teams work.
Cruz Williams snagged an interception shortly beforehand, Farragut’s lone turnover of the night.
“He’s one that may not have had as big of a role in the spring,” Courtney said, “but he’s gotten better this summer and this suits him.”
He added Thatcher Cherry, Grant Campbell and John Edelman — who was absent Friday — have all impressed up front, each one playing both ways.
So have Kaden Renfro on the defensive line and Shelton from his Star spot, as both found their way into the Devils’ backfield numerous times.
“Kaden, we moved him from linebacker to defensive tackle back in April, and he was a force then,” Courtney said. “He’s had a good summer and had a good night, very disruptive on the inside.
“Then Abram was on every special teams last year and has played quite a bit for us. That’s a cornerstone position of our defense, so you want a guy that’s versatile and makes plays in space while being physical around the box. That’s what he is, so we look for him to have a big year.”
Caleb Bell wrapped up the night with several impressive kicks, even hitting a 49-yarder amidst a 7-of-8 clip at one point once the teams moved over to the game field.
Going forward, Farragut will welcome the West Rebels for another scrimmage this Friday, Aug. 7. As the clock ticks toward the season opener, Courtney wants to see his team take another step this week.
“Everybody says you make the biggest improvement from game one to game two, and that’s what we set this up as with our preseason,” he said. “We saw some good things tonight, competitive in our group and one-on-one segments, then next week it will be a bit more of a game situation. We want to see improvements from game one to game two.”
