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Show WEEKLY REFLEX DAVIS NEWS JOURNAL, NORTH DAVIS LEADER, SEPTEMBER 3, 1981 '81 Lami(D(Sirs DUmiimgpy By KF.1TH DUNCAN For the Layton Lancers, winter was much like that of the Pittsburg Steelers, full of nightmares. Afterall. after being in post season play oil s for as long as you can remember, then all of a sudden not being there, winters can stretch a mile too life last long. FYEN THOUGH Layton did gain a playoff to reach the playoffs and lost. L.ancer fans found that to be a far cry from what they have been given in the past. It's no secret that the Lancers are known for their football, especially in 1978 when Gary Hansen and his crew finally tucked away the state championship. Since 1968 the school has known only three seasons of nonparticipation in the state playoffs. SO IN 1980. the fans ex- pected the usual, only to have the unusual take place, to sit at Rice Stadium and view Utah's top eight prep teams and not find their squad among them. It will have to be players like Robert Gray, Alan Gentry and some other seniors, who if anyone, will turn Layton's football fortunes into what they used to be. AND AS Coach Hansen has remarked early in the year, don't be surprised if a bunch of juniors are out there too. Gray has dominated the defensive tackle positon so far. At 6'3", 200 pounds, he isn't hard to find on this line. From a passive sophomore who was lackadaisical in his play, Gray has improved a lot more than the economy has and is clearly one of the Lancer best. Hansen will also have him playing with the offensive line at tackle. GF.NTRY MAY not have the flair that Mark Vigil had or the power of a Dave Burke, but he does have experience and enough talent to get the job done at one of the running back spots. Hansen says he is expecting a lot from Gentry who is one of only five returning He'll also get plenty of playing time on defense at a corner positon. UNTIL RFGION Onetime rolls around. Hansen isn't too sure who will be starting at most positions, but is sure plenty of juniors will be in the lineup. A closer look at the offense finds Al Clarke at one tackle and possibly Mike Moss at tight end. Brian Pierce, Basil Chelmes, Tony LaClukc, David Glover and Alan Overmoe will all be staging a battle for linemen positions. ham didn't play last year, he has been impressive so far. Another receiver could turn out to be Robbie Johnson w ho had his hand in a cast for most of the summer. THF KICKING game could be handled by Brad Merrill and a junior in camp who kicks soccer style. Linebacker positions at Layton are pretty well open with only Craig Kennedy as a clear candidate for a position. If he doesnt play the weakside backer spot, he'll be playing at strong safety. Jeff Roberts could also see action at linebacker. Casey Olsen, a senior, may see action at the middle linebacker spot or even the outside. UP FRONT the Lancers appear set on Gray, Cliff Hillard and David Glover, with the latter two being juniors. Defensive back positions appear tied down by Gentry, Bunting, Mark Childs, Ken Heath, Jeff Moon and Floyd Kearl. AS HANSF.N said just prior to Laytons opener against Bountiful, "We just keep improving, improving, improving. Layton is headed back to the glorified football days it has known in past years. A few teams may overlook the Lancers and wish they hadn't. MORE JUNIORS are pushing seniors for starting positions which is something that didn't exist around Layton last season. Coach Carter Cook, the defensive coordinator, feels overall the attitude is much better than last year and getting better each day. ALONG S1DF Gentry in the hackfield will be senior Jeff Roberts w ho Hansen expects more than average re- Robert Gray is one of only live returning lettermen for the Layton Lancers. He'll have one of tackle positions sults from. The quarterback position is up for grabs at this early point in the season, but Hansen is confident that his club will be stronger at this position than last year. iced. MIKE BUNTINGS name usually gets mentioned when talking about the QB spot, but there are a couple of juniors who could very well fill in too. Whoever the signal caller is he'll be throwing to Robbie Cunningham at one receiver spot. Even though Cunning- - f n Basil Chelmes will help Gary Hansen through the 81 season on either offense or defense. Mike Bunting will sec lots of action at the quarterback position, in this his final year as a Lancer. He also plays in the defensive hackfield. Alan Gentry will serve both in the running back and a defensive back position. He is another returning letterman. |