Minerva football starts rebuild with new head coach Tim Speakman

They’re doing it the Minerva way — through hard work and patience.

Minerva High School’s football team is looking to pour a strong foundation this fall, and what better way to do that than under the direction of a person who has played in the Lions’ system?

Tim Speakman, a 1983 Minerva grad who played for coaches Garth Evans and Fred Johnson during his playing days for the Lions, is Minerva’s new head coach.

Speakman, who has 42 players out for the team, including freshmen, is ready to roll up his sleeves and rebuild the Lions’ rich history in the sport, which includes a state poll title and many playoff appearances.

“The strength, I think, we have right now is the kids have bought into what we’re telling and preaching to them,” said Speakman. “They’ve worked hard all summer long. They just continue to work and work hard.

“The numbers are up a little bit, but not where we want them to be,” continued Speakman. “Being a guy who is from Minerva I’m used to bigger numbers and I understand it’s different now but we’ve got to get the excitement back here in Minerva football.”

The Lions, 0-10 last fall, have 18 letterwinners returning but nearly half lettered as non-starters.

“I’ve watched a lot of film from last year and we have eight true guys who were starters who played significantly,” said Speakman. “We only have six seniors, the rest are underclassmen.”

One of the senior leaders for the Lions is Anthony Fletcher, a senior running back/inside linebacker who already notices a difference in the spirit of the team.

“This year I can tell the morale has gone up a whole lot,” said Fletcher. “Everything goes through stages and I say Minerva is on the come up — starting this year.

“I love him as a coach,” continued Fletcher of Speakman, who has coached in Florida and North Carolina. “I’ve been here forever and playing Minerva football and this guy knows what he’s talking about — he’s coached at all levels.”

Fletcher, a two-way starter, just loves the game of football, whether it’s on offense or defense.

“I like the excitement of playing inside linebacker and getting ready to get in the hole and hit somebody,” he said, “but I like running the ball also.”

Speakman said Fletcher leads by example.

“Offensively Anthony Fletcher is one of the players we’re counting on because he’s a leader,” explained the Minerva mentor. “I’m not talking a leader who sits there and talks a lot, because that kid leads by example, so we’re depending on him to just continue to be Anthony Fletcher.”

And Fletcher’s goals?

“I really want everybody to grow because this is my last year,” said Fletcher. “I want to have a good year myself but I really want Minerva to grow as a whole.”

Minerva is in a new offense under Speakman, attacking from a run-dominated split-back veer.

“We’re going to go with the split-back veer because we want our running backs running downhill,” said the Lions’ boss. “We basically put an offense in that we think with the personnel that we have [gives the team the best chance]. “I’m going to be honest, we have a long way to go in the weight room.”

Two players are vying for the starting quarterback spot, including sophomore Hunter Dietrich and junior Eli Miller.

“They’re both battling things out for quarterback, but as we told them, if they’re not at quarterback, they have to be on the field somewhere else,” noted Speakman. “Eli is also a wide receiver, so he never really comes off the field. He’s out there at wide receiver and then he jumps in for snaps at quarterback.”

Another player to watch is two-way starter Matt Phillips at tight end and linebacker.

“Matt Phillips is a kid we’re relying on at the tight end position,” said Speakman. “And with our offense that’s a big position for us.”

The key to the Lions’ offensive success depends on the development along the line.

“We’re relying on a group of guys on the offensive line,” explained Speakman. “I can’t sit here and single one guy out because they’ve got to learn to work as a unit. The offensive line is something we’re really relying on.”

Two players expected to lead the Lions’ front are returning senior guard William Benedict and returning junior Gavin Wolick.

On defense, the Lions’ will attack from a 4-2-5 alignment.

“We have more defensive back-type guys,” said Speakman. “We have to play assignment football. I’m very lucky to get Bob Altenhof as my defensive coordinator. He’s been at West Branch for quite a while and what a huge addition that’s been, so he’ll be taking over our defense and we’re getting our kids to play his style of defense.”

One of the leaders on the Lions’ defense is sophomore middle linebacker Joel Gropp.

“We’re really relying on him at inside linebacker,” noted Speakman. “He’s another kid that leads by example.”

Other top defenders, according to Speakman, are sophomore strong safety Jayden Yerger and Matt Phillips at defensive end.

“Most of our kids are going both ways,” said the Minerva head coach.

The new Lions’ coach sized up the Eastern Buckeye Conference title chase.

“West Branch, Salem and Alliance — all five (league) teams we play, you don’t have an easy team on the schedule,” said Speakman.

The Lions will play two new opponents on the schedule in East Liverpool and Crestwood which replace United Local and Canton South which departed the EBC for the PAC-7 after last season.

“I want us to improve week by week,” asserted Speakman of his first-year goals for the Lions. “That’s all I ask. I’m not sitting here saying we’re going to be 10-0. All I want to do is improve each day and each week. That’s what we do on a daily basis when we come out to practice. I want to make sure we’re being competitive. I don’t want to see the heads down, because we talk a lot about body language.”

Speakman knows building up the program will come by staying on task through hard work and perseverance.

“I feel blessed with the coaching staff I have because they have worked so hard through the summer — and so have the kids,” he closed.

The Lions open the 2022 campaign Friday night against East Liverpool at Dr. Robert Hines Stadium.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Minerva football turns to graduate Tim Speakman as new head coach