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6 St. Martin Players to watch

Photo Credit: Bobby McDuffie

6 ST. MARTIN PLAYERS TO WATCH

As St. Martin looks to snap a 13 year absence from the state football playoffs, head coach Eddie Wayne Whitehead will rely on what he refers to as a "pretty special" group of seniors to lead the way. But those veterans will also need some help from some younger players if the Yellow Jackets are to make this an historical season on the gridiron. Here are five (or six) St. Martin players to watch this season: Wayne Overman: The 6-foot, 215-pound senior quarterback is unquestionably the leader of the St. Martin offense this season, after splitting time with Tyler Polk in that role last season. Overman, who has scholarship offers so far from Army, Navy, Air Force, Southeastern Louisiana and the Citadel, accounted for almost 2,900 yards and 33 touchdowns as a junior last year. "It all centers around him," Whitehead said, of his senior signal-caller. "I think he can expand on what he's done the past two years. He has all the tools to be even better than he's been, and he's already been pretty good." Through the air, Overman threw for 1,752 yards and 17 touchdowns completing almost 65 percent of his passes last year. On the ground, he cracked the magical 1,000 yard mark with 167 carries for 1,148 yards and 16 touchdowns. Kalem Reddix: While Overman will have several targets to throw to, Reddix may the the first choice many times. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior wide receiver hauled in 44 passes passes for 815 yards and 11 touchdowns last year as a junior. He has scholarship offers from the likes of Southern Mississippi, Tulane, Louisiana-Lafayette, Troy, Middle Tennessee and Troy, as well as others. "He's quick off the ball and has great hands and he's powerful with great leaping ability as well," Whitehead added. "We're expecting big things out of him this year." Ham McGee: Despite being just a sophomore, the 5-foot-10, 190-pound former fullback will be asked to fill the void Polk left in the St. Martin rushing attack. McGee, who will be the Yellow Jackets tailback this season, saw quite a bit of time on the field as a freshman as he averaged nine yards per carry and scored three touchdowns carrying the ball. "Someone is going to have to step up in the running game, and we feel like Ham has what it takes to fill that role for us," Whitehead said. McGee also had a touchdown catch as well last season, and could be an effective part of the St. Martin passing attack coming out of the backfield. Peyton Piglia and Donte' Starks: This pair of linebackers returns to starting roles for the SMHS defense this season, and the duo is expected to once again be among the top defenders for the Yellow Jackets. Piglia is a 5-foot-175 pound senior that is St. Martin's leading returning tackler this season after making 88 total stops as a junior last season. He also caused two fumbles and recovered a pair of fumbles as well. Starks is a 6-foot-2, 210-pound sophomore that is the second leading returning tackler for the Yellow Jackets after recording 73 total tackles as just a freshman in 2015. He has game-changing potential on the defensive side of the ball, as 15 of those stops last year were tackles for loss and he recorded a team high six sacks as well. "We will count on both of those guys heavily on defense this season," Whitehead added. "They both have a lot of experience coming back from last season and we will look to them to improve on that and provide some key leadership as well." Starks is already receiving scholarship offers from several schools. Kelvin Chestang: The 6-foot, 255-pound senior will be one of the top interior linemen for the Yellow Jackets on both sides of the ball. He will be one of just a few St. Martin players that will be a two way starter, as he will play tackle on offense and defensive end as well. He is the third leading returning tackler for SMHS defensively, after making 54 total stops last season. Included in that number was two tackles for loss, and he also recorded a pair of sacks and recovered two fumbles as well. Chestang is one of just two starters that returns on the offensive line for the Yellow Jackets. "He runs the show on both sides of the line of scrimmage for us," Whitehead concluded. "He's seen a lot of snaps up front for us, and we will count on his presence up there this season."

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