GRANVILLE – July is the time to make an impression, and the Granville football coaching staff certainly had to take notice of Gavin Petersheim celebrating in the end zone July 20.
Petersheim, a senior receiver, caught multiple passes, including a touchdown from classmate Jackson McMillian as he beat the Newark Catholic defense down the right sideline during a passing scrimmage. The Blue Aces previously visited Newark earlier in the month and head to New Lexington for a competition July 22.
“It’s pretty fun being in those moments,” Petersheim said. “Being able to celebrate with your teammates makes those moments a lot better. We started off a little slow, but we finished out really strong. It’s a good step toward our goal of going far this year.”
NC was participating in its only passing scrimmage under new coach Tom Phillips, but the Green Wave certainty did not look rusty. Senior Malone Hutchison crisply threw to a bevy of receivers, and they closed passing lanes for three Granville quarterbacks.
“For our first 7-on-7, we did great,” senior running back Jaxon Holman said. “There’s obviously always little details you can fix up, but that will come. What these coaches have come in and done for us is great.”
McMillan and sophomore Carter Rhyan continued a strong rapport they began to develop down the stretch last fall. Rhyan caught multiple touchdowns, including a tumbling one-handed grab on a fade down the left sideline.
Coach Heath Hinton and his staff, however, used their deep roster to rotate in multiple shifts of skill players. Junior Parker Costa and sophomore Julian Fleming also took snaps against the NC varsity defense, and senior Luke Bosse, who ended the morning with an interception on defense, and junior Garrett Hannahs were among the frequent targets.
“Our only thing (for the underclassmen) is to keep putting in the work and your time will come,” Petersheim said. “Don’t rush anything.”
Holman has had his hand in most everything NC has done offensively the past two seasons, but he did not mind taking a bit of a back seat. Hutchison spread the ball to half-dozen receivers, including throwing TD passes to seniors Kyler Dales and Alex Nagel.
“We have so many young guys,” Holman said. “(Landon Cox) and (Colton Castle) from Lakewood, he’s good. Alex Nagel came in from golf, and he’s helping out. Kyler Dales, we have him for the whole year this year, so that will be great.”
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Granville, Newark Catholic show skill depth in passing scrimmage
Reporting by Kurt Snyder, Newark Advocate / Newark Advocate
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kurt Snyder, Newark Advocate | USA TODAY Network
