State of the Program ... Jasper (AL)
Jasper (AL)
Head Coach: Tripp Otis (8th at Jasper; 11th overall)
Staff: Hezzie Morgan, Chris Goetz, Kalton Roye
The Jasper Vikings finished 6th in a combined 5A-6A a year ago and with the split into two classes … the Vikings should be in the hunt for the top spot in 5A this season. The Vikings lose State Placer Preston Reed and State Qualifier Moises Sanchez, but return the majority of their team including State Champ Cole Carter. Carter is joined by State Placers Colin Langley, Cooper Brooks, and Ethan Caldwell. All four will look to claim the top step this February. The strength of the Vikings lineup is up top with 2022 State Qualifier Jamie Burnham joining Carter and Langley … making 182-285 particularly tough for any other team.
The Vikings are also strong from 120-145 with State Qualifier Antonio Nash joining Caldwell and Brooks. If the Vikings can get Garrett Caldwell and JJ Martinez to make some noise at from 145 to 160 - this team will be tough with very few holes in the lineup. Keep an eye on freshman 106 Kortez Samuels … he could play an important role in how high the Vikings climb this season as well.
“We are excited for this upcoming season and the opportunity to compete in the new 5A classification. We return a state champion and 3 other placers while filling in the rest of our line up with some extremely tough competitors. We are looking forward to competing for a state title with this group and showing off all the hard work from this past off-season.”
NOTE: All mentions of placers and qualifiers in the body are based on the 2021-22 season. If a wrestler placed higher or lower in a previous year it is not captured above.