Pioneers lose three seniors: Langford dismissed, 2 more quit

By ROB NUNLEY / Sports Editor for the Southern Standard

Pioneer senior Tyler Boyd, right, goes head-to-head with center Jonathan Kelly during offensive line drills at Thursday’s WCHS practice session while assistant coach Matt Turner directs the drill. (Rob Nunley photo)

If the number of players participating in Thursday afternoon’s practice is any indication, rumors of a mass exodus from the Warren County High School football program have been greatly exaggerated.

A group of approximately 46 Pioneers hit the field Thursday, with three seniors who had been on the team’s starting lineup missing from their numbers.

Head coach Gerald Tidwell, in an interview early Thursday afternoon, confirmed that senior tight end/linebacker Cole Langford had been dismissed from the team, while classmates Ramsey Black and Chad Sullens had chosen to leave the squad.

Langford, Tidwell confirmed, was dismissed from the squad for violating a team rule during last Friday’s loss to Chattanooga Central. The incident sparked further controversy when Langford’s father confronted Tidwell and offensive coordinator Mike Lytle after the game.

Earlier this week, Black — who played fullback and linebacker as well as serving as the Pioneers’ punter and place kicker — elected to leave the team, while Sullens — a tight end/defensive back who recorded an interception against Livingston Academy this season — decided to quit the program later in the week.

“Those are the only three I can confirm are no longer with us,” Tidwell said. “We had a few kid miss practice on Tuesday, but today the rest of the team, I am told, is here and ready to go.

“I understood there were kids talking about whether they wanted to keep playing or not, but they’re all here. When you have a young group looking up to the senior leaders, then the seniors start leaving, the young kids are going to wonder if they should stay with it. We’ve heard there’s been a lot of talk about players quitting, but as of (Thursday) we don’t think it’s going to be that many.”

Conversely, Tidwell noted this week has seen a surprising amount of interest from WCHS students who are thinking of joining the program.

“We’ve actually had about as many freshmen and sophomores wanting to join now as we’ve had upperclassmen leave,” he said. “We’ve had kids coming by the football offices, and we’ll continue to have an open door policy with any of these freshmen and sophomores who want to try for a spot with this team.”

With an open date this week, Tidwell said he and his staff have tried to encourage their players to focus on preparing for next Friday’s White County game, and moving on from their latest off-field controversy.

“Things are fragile now, obviously,” he said, “but we’ve got a young group of players everyone knows is talented, and we’ve still got a lot of seniors who will be here to provide the leadership they need.

“We’re just ready to move on.”