Carter begins task of turning around Lions’ football fortunes

Published 10:34 pm Wednesday, July 23, 2025

By John Henson
Sports Writer

Coming off a 1-9 season, the Pineville Mountain Lions are looking for a quick turnaround this fall under first-year coach Arthur Carter, who coached the past three years at Marion County.
The Mountain Lions suffered some big graduation losses, including standout running back-linebacker Kaiden Robbins, who led the team in rushing yardage, receptions and tackles last season.
Senior running back Landon Robbins, who rushed for 474 yards and scored a team-high six touchdowns, will be a leader on offense. Tate Slone, a junior, moves up as the starting quarterback after playing a reserve role last year. Junior tight end Collin Bays is a first-year player who is off to a great start in the summer with eight catches in a passing scrimmage at Harlan County.
Robbins was also second on the team in tackles last year with 50 and will lead the Pineville defense. Tristen Johnson, Ben Matthews and Jaxon Helton are also back for their senior seasons after ranking among the team leaders on defense last year. David Bargo, a junior cornerback, has also been impressive in summer camp.

Pineville 2025 schedule

Aug. 22 Phelps
Aug, 30 at Betsy Layne
Sept, 5 at Paris
Sept. 12 at Twin Springs, Va.
Sept. 19 Morgan County
Sept. 26 Harlan
Oct. 3 at Williamsburg
Oct. 10 Middlesboro
Oct. 24 at Lynn Camp
Oct. 31 at Jackson County