With veteran cast, Alliance looking to take next step

Featuring a new head coach and several sophomore and freshman starters last year, Alliance started the 2021 football season slowly but gradually improved and closed out the season with a dominating win over its neighboring rival.

With that transitional season over, which included lessons learned by the returners with game-time experience, the Aviators are expected to improve on their 3-7 record.

But experience alone won't get the job done. Two senior returners, whose first names are Carter, understand that games aren't won on paper but through other factors, including attitude.

"We've grown a lot from last year," Alliance senior right offensive tackle Carter Lewis said. "Everyone is buying into the team concept and everyone's attitude [is good] and we've been giving 100 percent effort toward making the program better."

Carter Bugara, a returning starter at both wide receiver and free safety, seconds Lewis' opinion, noting the attitude upswing was evident during the first day of summer preseason practice.

"We've come together as a team," Bugara added. "We've become more coachable and we've developed some good team chemistry."

Both players also admitted they've gotten more familiar to second-year head coach Tim Goodman after playing their sophomore seasons for predecessor Seth Whiting, now head coach at Minster High in western Ohio.

"Coach Goodman makes sure everyone is on the same page," said Bugara. who contributed offensively with 12 catches and defensively with 59 tackles, one tackle for loss and two interceptions. "He urges us to ask questions and is easy to talk to and that makes us feel comfortable, because we want to do what we can to be a better team."

Lewis, whose sophomore brother Jaezen Lewis is pegged to play next to him at right guard, says that familiarity with the second-year head coach and his staff, has been detected during practice sessions.

"Practices are a lot smoother than they were last year," Lewis added.

The smoother practice has allowed the players to get a lot more accomplished on the field in preparation for the season.

"Practice is faster paced and more efficient," Bugara noted. "We've been able to get more reps and we've done more tackling, because we know we have to get better at that."

Between his junior and senior football seasons, Lewis competed in boys track and came out of nowhere to become an elite Division I thrower in the shot put, placing fourth in the state meet with a personal-best throw of 56-8 1/2 on his final attempt, attributing that personal accomplishment to developing confidence and possessing a positive mentality.

Turning to football, he sees a similar mindset with his teammates.

"We have good skill and some good athletes, but the thing I really like is our [positive] mentality," Lewis added. "You need to be in [the right frame of mind] to succeed. I think we've developed that."

The players know what lies ahead of them in the 10-game regular-season schedule, which includes a 50-50 mix of Eastern Buckeye Conference games (with the loss of Canton South to the Principals Athletic Conference) preceded by non-conference contests against returners Lake, Niles McKinley and Bedford and newcomers Norwalk and Canton Central Catholic, a pair of former state playoff champions.

Alliance started the 2021 regular season with a 35-7 loss at Lake. It experienced peaks and valleys as the season progressed. One peak was a 27-21 overtime win over Salem. Two valleys were successive decisive losses to Canton South (40-25) and West Branch (50-27), but the season ended on a positive note following a 48-27 win at Marlington.

"Our [schedule] will be a challenge, but the biggest challenge will be our focus," Lewis said. "We have to be focused on ourselves and we also have to be resilient."

Lewis and Bugara are two of three Carters expected to see significant playing time for the Aviators. The third one is sophomore Carter Fast, a running back and linebacker.

"That's odd, having three guys with the first name Carter," Bugara said. "We have [the same first name], but we also share the same goal, and that is to help us win."

This article originally appeared on The Alliance Review: Alliance Aviators eyeing improvement with team filled with returners