Jul. 3—Tahlequah’s offensive line going into next season is still a work in progress and will be throughout fall camp in August.
There’s just one constant from a year ago — senior Luis Hernandez — and he more than likely will be learning a new position.
Hernandez started at center in all but one game 2020 at center, but he could potentially move to guard this season.
“We will start up front with Luis Hernandez,” Gilbert said. “He’s our most experienced guy returning from last year. We could move him to guard this year, which would make us better.”
After Hernandez there are question marks, although Gilbert and offensive line coach Gary McClure like their options.
“We have a bunch of guys who haven’t played much, but we like what we have,” Gilbert said. “They had a really good spring and they went up to team camp and performed well. We have some guys who have some size, they’ve got to continue to work and earn the opportunity to play.”
Tate Whittmore and Braxton Rooster, both juniors, offer a lot of size. Both are listed at 6-foot-4 and are near 300 pounds.
Seniors that will play roles and could make big impacts are Bryce Anderson, a move-in from Colorado prior to last season, Alec Willard, Parker Whisenhunt and Kyron Tobey.
“These guys are program guys, and that’s what we win with,” Gilbert said. “Every team has guys that can make plays, but those games that you go into where you’re even with [your opponent], I really believe that the better your program guys are, they’re going to allow you to win those games. These are guys that show up every day, they understand the expectations within the program and they’re going to give you 100 percent.”
Sophomore Kale Shankle, Josh Thornton, Bryson Smith and Luke Chaffin will provide depth at a position group that Gilbert likes to establish a rotation year after year.
“We’ve got some guys and we’re excited about where we’re at overall as a group,” Gilbert said. “We think we’re going to have more guys that can play on Friday night this year than what we did last year.
“Coach [Gary] McClure does a great job with those guys every year. We’re just trying to find a combination of the best five, and we’d really like to play seven or eight guys if we can throughout the course of the year, especially early. We think we’ll be able to do that.”
The biggest unknown is who will play where.
“It is a continual puzzle that moves constantly,” Gilbert said. “We just don’t know what pieces fit where just yet. We’ve got some ideas of what we would like, we just don’t know if that will pan out. It’s just a work in progress. There’s a good chance that week one’s starters will be different from what we put out there in week four.”