CLINTON, Tenn. (WATE) – The Clinton Dragons feel they have the pieces needed to complete the puzzle this season. That biggest piece is experience.

Head Coach Darell Keith enters his fourth season at the helm, which means the seniors have been with him from the start. The Dragons finished 2-8 his first year, but have 11 wins combined over his next two seasons. Coach Keith has seen the progression in not just wins, but how the team practices and prepares.

“It’s more like business-like. It’s almost corporate at Clinton right now,” said Coach Keith. “I was criticized for years for starting about 16 freshmen so now those guys are now seniors. They’ve been through the wars, they’ve been through the ups and downs, the letdowns and the buildups. So now I have to trust they’re ready and I think they are.”

Another addition to the puzzle is cornerback Jayson Graham who joins the Clinton roster this year. Graham’s dad is former Vol and NFL running back Jay Graham. While his dad heads Concord Christian’s football program, Jayson says it was a no-brainer to become a Dragon.

“There’s a bunch of hungry kids that want to prove a point that really haven’t had that opportunity,” said Graham. “This is an opportunity that Clinton has never really experienced. A long time ago they had some good teams, but now that we have that opportunity, we have to take advantage of it and I feel like everything’s just fallen into place and we have all the pieces that we need.”

The Dragons kick off the season against Cleveland on Aug. 18 at 7:30 p.m.