Jefferson football rebuilds with experience, grit
When Jefferson Middle School opens its 2025 football season, it will look to reverse its recent misfortunes on the gridiron.
The Eagles will also have a new head coach, as former assistant Sean Jesse takes the reins of the program. He replaces Rodney Ellison, who is now the offensive coordinator at West High School in Knoxville.
Jefferson is coming off back-to-back 1-7 seasons, but a majority of its players competed as sixth- and seventh-graders in the Tennessee Valley Athletic Conference — a league dominated by eighth-grade talent.
“We’re expecting to take big steps this year,” Jesse said. “We’re looking to improve on both offense and defense. One of our goals is to make the playoffs, and they only take the top four teams in the TVAC.”
The Eagles open the 2025 campaign Thursday night on the road at Lenoir City. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
Jefferson will field a veteran roster, but like all teams, will have to navigate adversity throughout the season.
“The biggest question for us is how we’re going to react to adversity and how we’ll respond when things go wrong,” Jesse said.
Top returners include eighth-graders Luke Jackson (running back/linebacker), Brandon Zamora (running back/middle linebacker), Easton Knipp (quarterback/free safety), Gabe Mognier (wide receiver/defensive back), Brogan Helle (wide receiver/defensive back), Aidan Laughridge (offensive/defensive line), Tucker Campbell (offensive/defensive line) and Liam Brumfield (wide receiver/defensive back); and seventh-graders Karson Ball (offensive/defensive line) and Nic Fletcher (running back/linebacker).
Key newcomers include Adrian Gomez (eighth grade, wide receiver/defensive back) and Jonathan Pennington, an eighth-grade soccer player who is joining the football team for the first time. Pennington will serve as kicker, and play on both the offensive and defensive lines.
Jesse said team strengths include depth and experience.
“We’re all excited — players and coaches,” he said. “We have a lot of experience and expect to be in every game. We’re excited about the offensive line, and we should also be strong in the secondary.
“Our biggest concern is depth at linebacker. We have depth at every position except there.”
