Newton High School came within one game of capturing a Class 3A Division II crown in 2014, and the Eagles started the 2015 season with a bang. With head coach W.T. Johnston watching from the sidelines but not coaching because of a continued battle with illness, Newton knocked off Tatum at home to start the season thanks to the running back duo of Jaron Hanks and Gabe Foster.
The duo combined for over 300 yards rushing and accounted for all five Newton touchdowns in the 37-28 victory. Foster scored Newton’s first score of the season on a 91-yard kickoff return. Hanks gave Newton its first offensive touchdown on the season when he broke a 70-yard run for a touchdown on third-and-10.
“We’re lucky to have both of those guys on the team,” acting head coach Bryan Barbay said. “Foster is a go-daddy for us. He plays nearly every snap on defense and is on all the special teams. What makes Hanks so special for us is he just plays offense, so we can ride him some while Foster gets a break here and there when we have the ball. The two on the field at the same time makes us a very good football team.”
For his part, Barbay has taken to his new role at a new school in honorable fashion. The former athletic director and head coach at Coldspring-Oakhurst was hired about a month ago when Newton learned that Johnston was unable to be a consistent part of the football team this fall. He handled his first when as acting head coach with grace and an appreciation of the situation.
“I’m not here to replace coach Johnston. He is still the man at this program and when he is around he is still the coach. That is just how it is and I’m perfectly fine with that. He is a great man and a great coach and we’re all rooting for him,” Barbay said. “I knew it would be a different situation when I took this job, but the kids and the community are great. This is a resilient bunch and they’ve become that by watching the standard coach Johnston has put in front of them. They’re used to adversity and they’ve had a role model who has shown them that you fight through problems and don’t fold.”
With that kind of mindset, a defense led by linebacker Tanner Holmes and an offense with playmakers like Hanks and Foster, Newton has a chance to win a state title in 2015.
