Dyersburg High Trojans Team Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>PICTURED: Partial Dyersburg Roster of 2023-2024</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"Our district is always filled with a lot of parity," said Dyersburg Head Coach Blaine Mahaffey via phone late in October. "It is well-coached. This year we are probably looking at...Obion has the most back. Obion is going to be good. Crockett County returns a ton of kids. They probably return the most as far as total number of players. South Gibson returns a few. They started some sophomores last year. We probably lost the largest chunk, the most seniors. Dyer County is also returning probably the best player. The Gauldin kid. It is going to be really good again."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">District 13-3A Teams</span></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Crockett County<br>Dyer County<br>Dyersburg<br>Obion County Central<br>South Gibson</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District 13 does not open until just before MLK Day! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It is usually about middle of January before we start," said Coach Mahaffey. "You get a lot of games in and everybody in the league has seen you several times."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Trojans</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dyersburg's game centers around their center: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2274856' first='Breyden' last='Turnage']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Breyden is going to play college baseball, but everyone in town knows he could play college basketball at a high level. Heck, Belmont University basketball sent a coach to NW Tennessee to evaluate him in-person a year ago. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"He is playing football this year [too]," revealed Coach Mahaffey. "He has not played in high school. Playing football. Having a lot of success. Already has three offers. He is going to Mississippi State this weekend, I think. And then Ole Miss the next week."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A D1 baseball recruit was evaluated by a D1 basketball coach last year. This month he is touring D1 SEC football program campuses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yeah. He is that guy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Breyden is now up to 265-270 pounds. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If your high school had a guy that size, then they would run their offense through him too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Then comes Jefferey Cobb, the 2023-2024 Blue Collar Award recipient. Cobb also won DHS basketball Stat Stuffer Award. An elite defender, Cobb will take on a completely new role in 2024-2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"We have a few seniors," expanded Coach Mahaffey. "Program kids. They have been there. They have sacrificed. I am hoping these guys have a good year. <strong>AJ Higgins</strong>. He plays football. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2675259' first='Marcus' last='Whorton']</strong> is a kid that was hurt last year. Hoping he gets back in form a little bit. And of course, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2337679' first='Jeffery' last='Cobb']</strong>. <strong>Will Short</strong>, <strong>Travon Smiles</strong>, <strong>Justin Sawyer</strong>. Those are great program kids.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2274878' first='Jace' last='Ward']</strong> is back. We ranked him back in November of 2023, before his freshmen year! Ward is short, crafty, and skilled.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Next Wave</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Young Trojans with a chance to play eventually are <strong>Demond Dillard</strong> and <strong>Terrell Ragland</strong>. They are also Class of 2027 hoopers. Both Dillard and Ragland play football too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->