ELKVIEW, W.Va. (WCHS) — The novelty of Herbert Hoover’s new school and soccer facility has not yet faded.

“We’re happy to have a nice place,” head coach Joey Fields told Eyewitness News.

Hoover was eliminated in the second round of the Class AA playoffs last year by eventual runner-up North Marion.

“We’re happy with our roster this year, but obviously we’ve lost 14 or more seniors since I’ve been here. Then you lose your entire offensive line,” Fields said. “You’ve got some young players trying to get some experience, and we’re going to have to find them very early in the season.”

Dane Hatfield returns to the Huskies as quarterback.

“He’s been here for four years now. Four years feels like 14 years, but that’s a good thing for the Huskies,” Fields said. “He’s going in the right direction on the field and off the field and we can develop offensively at a skill position because that obviously starts at quarterback.

Hatfield will have an arsenal of weapons at his disposal on offense.

“Blake Fisher is returning to the backfield for us. He’s going to carry the ball from behind the line and from outside. We need to get our best players in the space,” Fields explained. “Brayden Bailey, Talon Harrison, same for us. We like a lot of other young players competing for jobs. We feel very comfortable putting them there. We like our team and they work hard. I think we have the right guys on the team. We had a great August and they continue to improve every day. That’s all you can ask for as a coach.”

Hoover opens with Independence, one of two home games on Thursday.

“We’re excited to have him here at Husky Stadium on Thursday night,” Fields said. “It’s exciting for our program, our fans and our student-athletes. We’re getting ready and trying to deliver the best product we can have here a week from now. Then we have another game against Wayne on Thursday.”

The Huskies’ matchup against the Pioneers will be streamed live along with nine other high school football games as part of the Par Mar Friday Night Rivals.