Young Russellville team looking forward to challenges of new football campaign
Heading into his second campaign in charge of the Russellville High School varsity football program, Coach Dustin Goodwin is no stranger to turnover.
In his first season with the Golden Tigers, Goodwin oversaw a team that lost nearly all of its starters to graduation the year before. That 2024 squad finished 7-4 overall and was literally just about a yard shy of winning the Class 5A Region 7 title. This year, Russellville’s personnel situation is very similar to last year’s as RHS has, between both sides of the ball, just a handful of returning starters from which to build the foundation of a depth chart.
“Last year when we got here we had lost a big senior group so most of the guys that played last year were new, and this year’s really no different: Most of the guys who played last year were seniors,” Goodwin said.
The good news is that Goodwin, having spent a season and two full offseasons with his players entering his second year, better knows now who and what he’s working with as he fills out his team.
“The biggest thing going into year two is you have a better relationship with your kids, and you understand the individual a little better than you did when you were first coming in and trying to build those relationships,” Goodwin said. “Knowing who you’re working with and what they’re made of hopefully makes it a little easier as you move forward. Figuring out strengths and weaknesses is more difficult than adjusting to them once you know what those are.”
On the offensive side of the ball, the Golden Tigers lost nearly every starter at the skill positions from wide receiver to running back. That includes the unexpected loss of the Class 5A Back of the Year from last season, Cameron Phinizee, who unenrolled from RHS after being charged in a pending criminal case earlier this year. Russellville also lost all of its starting line, anchored by Neyland Baker, who signed to play college football at the University of North Alabama.
Russellville’s two returning starters are junior fullback Jackson Smith and sophomore quarterback Whit Goodwin.
Goodwin (the QB) threw for over 1,000 yards and had 10 passing touchdowns his freshman year. He was also a threat with his legs, rushing for 252 yards and six rushing touchdowns.
With the quarterback a year older and more experienced, and as one of the few returning starters, it is probably safe to say the signal-caller will play an even larger leading role this season. But Goodwin (the coach) said don’t expect the Golden Tigers to change their overall offensive philosophy because of it.
“Ultimately what we do each week is dictated by the picture we get from the other side,” Goodwin said. “We want to be multiple, we want to stay balanced in what we do, and we want to be able to adjust. Sometimes you plan all week for this one thing and then the picture changes when you get out there, so you have to be able to adjust and do something different.
“I think we would like to put the ball in the air a little more, but at the same time, football isn’t a complicated game; you’ve got to be able to block the right people, tackle, and take care of the football. If we can do those three things then I think we’ll give ourselves a chance to win every game, but if the opportunity presents itself to throw the ball down the field and we’ve got guys we can count on to make that happen then that’s something we’ll do,” he added. “At the end of the day, though, our goal is to put points on the board and we’re willing to do that however we can get it done.”
Defensively, the Golden Tigers have junior linebacker Keifer Hallmark, junior defensive lineman Sam Wilson, junior linebacker Daniel Aycock, and senior defensive lineman Andres Gaspar back in the fold. Russellville will also be boosted by the return of senior defensive back Ben Pounders, who missed all of last season due to injury.
To fill some of the starting holes left on both sides of the ball, Golden Tiger fans can expect to see junior running back Tarus Davis, who rushed for over 400 yards and five touchdowns last year, to get plenty of carries this season. Senior Tyrese Wilson, who played on the defensive side of the ball last year, is moving to the offensive side of the trenches; Pounders will see double duty at defensive back and wide receiver; and Hallmark, in addition to his reps at linebacker, can also expect some rushing attempts.
To fill out the remainder of the depth chart, Goodwin said they will be expecting competition to guide them.
“We have guys that have stepped into some of those positions that did get playing time last year but just weren’t usually the first ones out on the field, so we do have some of that experience coming back,” he said. “The way we see it and approach it is that positions are always open, and we expect them to come to work everyday and work to get better and be the best guy for that position. We like to tell them, ‘Make us play you. Perform at a level where we don’t have a choice.’
“We’re looking at starting five sophomores and I think we have five or six seniors starting, so we’re a young football team. We’re definitely going to be relying on our seniors to lead, but overall we’re going to be young. The good thing is hopefully these younger guys getting experience, that carries over into next year,” he added. “We’re hoping to stay injury free and continue to get buy-in and contributions from everyone on the team, because we’d like nothing more than to be playing 22 different guys on both sides of the ball.”
The Golden Tigers will kick the season off August 22 against Deshler in what has become a traditional week one matchup for both programs. Last year Russellville defeated Deshler 35-21 and the Golden Tigers will want to get off to a similarly hot start this go around.
“It’s important to start fast. We know we’re going into a great environment at Deshler, and they’re going to be just as excited to start the season as we are. We know we’ll have to play well to win that one,” Goodwin said.
A win over the Tigers of Deshler would provide welcomed confidence as Russellville then hosts its next opponent, Mars Hill, who, although the results were tight, the Golden Tigers have yet to beat in three attempts. After that RHS will start region play against rival Lawrence County, a circled date on the calendar for both sides.
“If you win the first (game) then you feel better about things and have that confidence heading into the next one. Mars Hill is going to be good again and not anyone that you can sleep on. It’s been three years without a win against Mars Hill, so that’s obviously something we’d like to get on the right side of,” Goodwin said. “After that we start region play, and ultimately those are the games that matter. You want to find a way to get yourself in the playoffs and peak at the right time, but you have to win your region games to do that.”
The Lawrence County matchup will be followed by region games against East Limestone and Ardmore and then an open week before the Golden Tigers take on reigning region champ Fairview. This year’s contest will be a rematch of an incredible, three-overtime 50-49 thriller which ended after the Golden Tigers came up just short and on the wrong end of a two-point conversion attempt.
“We fell a game short of being region champs last year with Fairview. They’re going to be really good again,” Goodwin said. “Coach (George) Redding and his staff do a good job of having a hard-nosed and they have good players.”
Russellville, after a road game at Hatton, will wrap up region play hosting West Point and Priceville in weeks eight and nine.
At the start of the season, Goodwin said, it’s difficult to predict just how good each region opponent will be and where your team will end up. The Golden Tigers have to focus on themselves, he said, knowing that each opponent will be a challenge.
“We have some up-and-coming teams in this region. You know, Ardmore was one of the biggest teams we faced last year and we were fortunate to walk out of there with a win. Until you start watching other teams and get them on film and find out their strengths and weaknesses…it’s hard to say, you know, ‘this team is going to miss the playoffs’ or ‘this team is going to win the region,” Goodwin said. “We just know that we’re going to have to prepare well each week and focus on the game in front of us—and for us right now that’s Deshler.”
With the 2025 season just days away, Goodwin said he’s looking forward to another challenge and looking forward to challenging his players while ensuring the experience is a rewarding one for everyone involved.
“I told the team and I’ve said it a lot everywhere I’ve been, but we want this to be extremely challenging for our kids; we want them to really enjoy it and enjoy the strain of the challenge as a team,” he said. “As football coaches it’s our job to maximize the potential of our team and our players and try to win football games in the process. It's the players’ job to show up and work to get better every day, and that’s all we can ask.
“We’re really excited about this group. Their character is really high and they love each other and they’re working well together,” Goodwin added. “They’re pushing each other so we just hope we can continue to grow and enjoy the ride together.
“There’s nothing that brings people together like the sport of football. All walks of life, different salary brackets, all ethnicities—it doesn’t matter. Football brings people together, so we’re really excited to get started.”
2025 RUSSELLVILLE SCHEDULE
8/22 @ Deshler
8/29 vs. Mars Hill
9/5 vs. Lawrence County*
9/12 vs. East Limestone*
9/19 @ Ardmore*
10/3 @ Fairview*
10/10 @ Hatton
10/17 vs. West Point*
10/24 vs. Priceville*
10/31 @ Athens
* - denotes region game