Sophie B. Wright ready to rebound in 2020

Sophie B. Wright reached the Class 3A state playoffs in 2018 before falling to 2-8 a year ago.

Dennis Christopher guides the Warriors and continues to guide them through the murky, choppy waters of 2020.

“It’s been tough, with ups and downs, but we made it through,” Christopher said. “We practiced stopping and going in Phase 1 and Phase 2. Then, we dealt with potential hurricanes, the pandemic. The morale of the kids went up and down. You had to keep the kids motivated through Zoom meetings and talking to them. We have had to keep them motivated. It has been difficult.”

Sophie B. Wright is always battling the numbers game. This year is no exception but it is improving.

“It started off slow, with numbers in the low 20’s but they started trickling back,” Christopher said. “Some stayed away during the pandemic. It’s been up and down. Now, we’ve got about 38 kids so there is progress.”

Things started very well for Christopher in 2018.

“My first year, we won a district championship,” Christopher said. “I was nominated for Coach of the Year. The kids did well. I had a great freshman running back in Brandon Freeman, who tore his ACL in the beginning of the season last year. We were kind of tarnished but we kept fighting. We didn’t make the playoffs but we had some good, smart kids.”

Christopher has a pair of standouts on offense that he can count on this season.

“This upcoming year, we have a returnee at quarterback who is a big kid (6-3, 155) in junior Trevontay Alford,” Christopher said. “He’s a real smart kid with a 3.0 GPA. We have senior Jon McCall (6-3, 190) at receiver. We return seven guys on offense.”

The Warriors have ability on defense as well.

“On defense, we have five starters returning,” Christopher said. “We don’t have as many as on offense but we like the players we have and we are working toward the goal of winning a district championship.”

The Warriors are not scrimmaging an opponent this week but will have an intrasquad scrimmage, instead.

Sophie B. Wright opens with a tough opponent in East St. John.

“At the end of the day, we’re going to go out there and our kids will compete,” Christopher said. “We feel we can achieve. We believe we can be successful on Oct. 3. They have a great team, great defense, great quarterback and a great coach. It will be a good test for both teams.”

District 10-3A has lost one member for 2020 as Abramson Sci Academy has opted out of competing. The rest of the league remains tough.

“McDonogh 35 came and did a great job,” Christopher said. “They have a great team and a great head coach in Frank Daggs. Booker T. Washington also has a lot of kids returning with a great offense with an upcoming program that is doing well for three years now. Douglass has a great coach in Corey McCloud. It’s a tough district. We have to take it one game at a time.”

Christopher is happy that his players will get a chance to compete after the uncertainty of the past several months.

“It means a lot to these kids,” Christopher said. “Sports, even the band are so important for kids to get away, to be around other friends and just to be a kid with common goals. To have sports is a relief. It’s a great thing for them and for our adults. Our principal and our school have done their part to get to this point.”

Now, the game is about to be on.

“We are so thrilled,” Christopher said. “We cannot wait.”