Team of the Week: Laney wins big in conference play, but still sees room for growth
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The Laney Buccaneers are the WWAY-TV3 Team of the Week for Week 5 of the high school football season after a big win over conference foe West Brunswick, 54-14.
Senior running back Jeremiah Brown ran for 184 yards and a touchdown. Junior running back Jordin Cauble added two more touchdowns on the ground.
The Buccaneers are 2-3 (1-0) through their first five games.
Laney looked sharp from the opening whistle. Senior wide receiver Kilby Theiss-Dixon scored the first touchdown of the game for the Buccaneers.
“Usually I’m thinking about the defender’s leverage. On that play, I had a safety coming at me, so I’m using his leverage against him. And then when I cut back, they’re going one way, so I want to go the other way and use their momentum against them,” said Theiss-Dixon.
The Buccaneers are led by first-year head coach Coraey Houser. Houser took the reins at Laney as a well-known figure in the Wilmington football community. He attended and played football at Hoggard High School before attending ECU. After his time in Greenville, Houser coached at both Hoggard and New Hanover high school.
Houser may be on the younger side, but he brings an old-school approach to his practices. He spoke at practice today about a notebook he carries around to keep track of turnovers and penalties.
“I write down every single mistake. Every single turnover, penalty, whatever it is. Then, we’ll address it in practice so we can limit those same mistakes moving forward.”
When asked about the tough practices, Theiss-Dixon acknowledged the need for accountability, even when it’s hard sometimes.
“Even when you got here today, we were doing our accountabilities. None of us like it, but ultimately it’s what we need to stay accountable and ensure we’re doing the right thing in school and on the field.”
So while you may see Houser with an infectious smile on the sidelines, it’s not always happy in Buc Town.
“Last week, I challenged the boys to come out and find their identity. I really think we found our identity. I always say, I don’t care who we play, as long as we come out and play Laney football, we will be successful.”
Laney is entering the heart of its conference schedule, with back-to-back road games coming up. The Bucs play Ashley on Friday, Sept. 25, before traveling to Topsail on Friday, Oct. 2.
