The Naples Golden Eagles are entering football season with a fresh look. After reaching the state semifinals last year, the team is fielding younger roster this season.
Winning is the norm for Naples. This year, they face the challenge of maintaining that legacy with a new group of players. Head Coach Rick Martin is focused on developing a young team after graduating 28 seniors from last year’s squad that went 11-3.
“I think with most young teams, they struggle with consistency and I think that’s what we’re trying to find right now,” said Martin.
The Eagles return with less than ten starters. However, this inexperience presents an opportunity for the team to grow into a new identity.
“I think young guys are always hungry to prove themselves. They’re just excited to be out here and finally be a part of the Naples football thing and they’re just ready to go out and prove what they got,” said Martin.
The team is eager to live up to the high standards set by last year’s state semifinal team.
“I think everybody is grateful for the guys that came last year. Their lessons have been instilled to these younger players and I think we’ll be fine. We focus on the players that we have every year for the following season and not who we lost. I think that’s what keeps us in a perennial potential to win every year,” said senior safety Eli Chery.
Players like Chery and second-year starting quarterback Alijah Molina are now leading the young squad. Molina is looking forward to evolving the offense beyond the program’s traditional run-heavy style in his senior year.
“It feels good to throw the ball out, because people will say we’re a running team, like, all we do is run, but when we do come out there and throw, I feel like we do it good,” said Molina.
Coach Martin told WINK News that it’s been a long time since Naples has had such a young team, but sometimes a blank slate can be the best opportunity.
The Golden Eagles’ season kicks off on Friday, August 15 at home against Gulf Coast.