By David Shelton
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27 Aug, 2023
Goose Creek – Stratford head football coach Dennie McDaniel expected better things last season than what he and his Knights produced, but last year’s 2-9 record is a distant memory. McDaniel has put his focus on 2023 and again feels his team, despite some obvious youth in some areas, can be a team that improves as the season progresses. The Knights will have to do that improving against a competitive non-region slate of games that includes AAAA top 10 James Island, and AAAAA top 10 teams Lexington, Dutch Fork and Summerville. Stratford opened the season on Aug. 18 against James Island, taking a 25-7 loss. “It’s a challenging schedule for sure but we feel like it’s also an opportunity to improve,” said McDaniel, a former Stratford player now in his fifth season as head coach. “The goal is to improve, stay healthy as we can, and be ready to compete with the teams in our region. We certainly should be battle-tested going into region play.” Stratford has as good a chance as any team in region 6-AAAAA to come away with a region title. The league has been won by Goose Creek for the last four years but the Gators are rebuilding a bit this fall. Cane Bay, Berkeley and Wando are teams Stratford competed very well against last season. McDaniel feels his team showed great determination in the offseason work. His projected starting lineup will include a mix of underclassmen and seniors but far less experience on the offensive side of the ball. Leading that young offense is sophomore quarterback Jachin Davis, who took the reins midway through last season and performed well. Davis already is attracting major college interest and offers. “He’s just a sophomore with so much more ahead of him but he has great arm talent and is a special athlete,” McDaniel said. “He is certainly the key to our success offensively.” The offensive line is the most experienced area of the team, led by senior third-year starter Landon Stradcutter. Junior tackles DJ Crawford and Wes Snowden are potential Division I prospects as well. Junior Kerwin Squire arrives from the junior varsity team and will be a primary performer at running back. Heading up the receiving corps is sophomore JQ Crosby, with Warrick Yoder, a transfer from Hawaii, expected to make an impact. Junior tight end Jacob Deacon also figures into the mix as a threat. Senior outside linebackers Trey Davis and Anhrei McMillan will be key leaders defensively. On the inside are Josh Faucett and Darrell Holmes, who was a two-year starter at defensive end. Anchoring the front is nose tackle Otis Gardner, a returning starter. Silas Carr has moved over from the offensive line to occupy a role along the defensive line, Also moving from offense to defense is safety Will Aleff.