Whitehouse focusing on the ‘buy-in’ entering new season

Published 4:22 pm Monday, August 22, 2022

As the 2022 high school football season gets closer for the Whitehouse Wildcats, the key term has been “buy-in.”

“They’ve had a big buy-in this year with our offseason,” second-year Whitehouse head coach Kyle Westerberg said. “We got beat by Texas High to end last year, and I told them it’s time to roll our sleeves up and go to work and that the taste we had last year, we don’t want to go through that again. They had a big buy-in this offseason, and they had a great summer.”

“The buy-in has to stay there all season long,” senior defensive lineman Ladarius Pitts said. “We can’t fall off track. If we stay on track, the expectations should go through the roof.”

Whitehouse started the season 0-7 last year and finished with a 2-8 record, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

Pitts (73 tackles, 17 tackles for loss and 10 sacks in 2021) will be one of the leaders on defense, along with junior linebacker Hayden Ross.

“I think I’m going to have to be one of the leaders of the defense,” Ross said. “Playing middle linebacker, I’m right there, kind of like the quarterback of the defense you could say.”

On offense, the Wildcats have senior receiver Jermod McCoy (464 yards and four touchdowns in 2021), a three-star recruit who is committed to Tulane.

“I’m ready to get out on the field and play,” McCoy said. “We just have to come together and play as a team. If everybody comes together and gets their job done, it will be a good season.”

The Wildcats host North Forney in the season opener Friday at Wildcat Stadium.

“It’s just about these guys believing in one goal,” Westerberg said. “Our goal is to make the postseason. I think if we can get everybody on the same page and everybody have the same type of enthusiasm, I think it’s going to go the way we want it to go.”

Aug. 26: North Forney

Sept. 2: at Jacksonville

Sept. 9: Corsicana

Sept. 16: at Henderson

Sept. 23: *at Nacogdoches

Oct. 7: *Pine Tree

Oct. 14: *at Hallsville

Oct. 21: *Mount Pleasant

Oct. 28: *at Texas High

Nov. 11: *Marshall

*District 8-5A Division II Game

All games at 7:30 p.m.