"Running Down a Dream"

(1)

2000 W. County Rd. 54

Tiffin, OH

X739

ON ALL X700 SIGNATURE SERIES

$

700 OFF

2

0% for 60 Months

1

AND

GET THE JOB DONE FOR LESS.

ONLY ON THE Z645 EZTRAK™ MOWER $

600 _OFF

$

150 _OFF

D160 Z645

*Offer valid from August 1, 2013, until October 25, 2013. Subject to approved installment credit with John Deere Financial; some restrictions apply, so see your dealer for completed details and other financing options. Available at participating dealers. 2Offer valid from August 1, 2013, until October 25, 2013. Get $700 off the X700 Signature Series, $600 off only on the Z645 Mower model and $150 off the D160 model. Prices are suggested retail prices only and are subject to change without notice at any time. Dealer may sell for less. Taxes, setup, delivery, freight and preparation charges not included. Attachments and implementssold separately. Shown with the optional equipment not included in the price. Prices and models may vary by dealer. *The engine horsepower and torque information are provided by the engine manufacturer to be used for comparison purposes only. Actual operating horsepower and torque will be less. Refer to the engine manufacturer’s website for additional information. **Hour limitations apply and vary by model. See the LIMITED WARRANTY FOR NEW JOHN DEERE COMMERCIAL AND CONSUMER EQUIPMENT at JohnDeere.com for details. John Deere’s green and yellow color scheme, the leaping deer symbol and JOHN DEERE

GOOD LUCK ALL AREA TEAMS!

Micah Hyde has

come a long way

since his beginnings

in Fostoria > INSIDE

REVIEW TIMES

since his beginnings

in Fostoria > INSIDE

Micah Hyde has

come a long way

since his beginnings

in Fostoria > INSIDE

Micah Hyde has

come a long way

since his beginnings

in Fostoria > INSIDE

Micah Hyde has

come a long way

since his beginnings

in Fostoria

> INSIDE

(2)

FOSTORIA REVIEW TIMES, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2013

COVER STORY

T2

By SCOTT COTTOS

SPORTS EDITOR

Micah Hyde was sitting and watching NFL preseason action on the evening of Aug. 8 when a thought popped into his head: In about 24 hours, he would be one of those guys on the TV screen.

“It was a weird feeling,” he said in a telephone interview. “You play all your life toward this.”

Indeed, Hyde — the skinny youngster who set 17 Fostoria High School records and went on to become sinewy strong and the Big Ten defensive back of the year as a senior at Iowa — was close to playing his first game as a cornerback for the Green Bay Packers.

Yes, those Packers. The Packers of Bart Starr, Ray Nitschke, Paul Hornung, Jim Taylor, Brett Favre, et al. The Packers who

so frequently chilled their opponents on what became widely known as the “Frozen Tundra of Lambeau Field.” The Packers for whom the word “dynasty” first crept its way into sports vernacular in reference to the 1960s teams coached by Vince Lombardi.

Other than in the quality of his own play, there is no “next level” for Hyde. He made it to football’s version of “The Show.”

“It’s just so unreal to me right now,” he said in an interview in Fostoria prior to

heading to training camp in July. “I’ve been there, working with the vets and this and that, and practicing. But I still wake up and I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m truly blessed just by the fact that I’m a Packer.’ I go back to draft day and it was a great feeling and I still have that every day when I wake up and just think about it.”

Draft day was April 27, and the Pack-ers selected Hyde in the fifth round, 159th

overall. It wasn’t long before he was involved in a rookie mini-camp and organized team activities.

A couple of the game’s most notable stars, quarterback Aaron Rodgers and linebacker Clay Mat-thews III, play in Green Bay. Hyde said he had his moment of being star-struck, but he knew that had to be put away quickly.

“I’ve been around some pretty good ath-letes in my life and gotten to see them play and even talked to them and stuff like that, so I was kind of used to it,” he said. “I definitely wasn’t standing there saying, ‘Oh, my God, that’s Aaron Rodgers.’ At the same time, to this day, I’m still, ‘Oh, my God, I’m a Packer.’ You’re kind of like, ‘Wow, I’m actually in the same locker room as these guys I’ve

Micah Hyde has come a long way

since his beginnings in Fostoria

“... I still wake up and

I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m truly

blessed just by the fact

that I’m a Packer.’ I go

back to draft day and it

was a great feeling and I

still have that every day

when I wake up and just

think about it.”

MICAH HYDE, GREEN BAY PACKERS

MORRY GASH / The Associated Press

MICAH HYDE of the Packers rides a bike to practice in training camp last month.

(3)

COVER STORY

T3

INSIDE

St. Wendelin

T4-6

Fostoria

T7-9

Arcadia

T10-11

Elmwood

T12-13

Findlay

T14-15

Hopewell-Loudon T16-17

2013 Seniors

T18-19

Lakota

T20-21

Tiffin Calvert T22-23

Tiffin Columbian T24-25

Van Buren

T26-27

Vanlue

T28-29

Area Schedule T31-32

SPORTS EDITOR Scott Cottos STAFF WRITERS Michael Burwell Shannon Dove Tiffany George Dave Hanneman Matt Nye Ted Radick John Reitman Andrew Williams CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Matt Becker / Green Bay Packers Brian Bohnert Shannon Dove Iowa Athletic Communications Matthias Leguire Patrick Riley Randy Roberts Kent Tarbox Andrew Williams COVER PHOTOGRAPHY Morry Gash / Associated Press COVER DESIGN Jason Smith

watched on TV.’ It’s a great feeling. But after five minutes of being in the locker room, it was like, ‘I’m used to it.’

“It’s strictly business. And the thing is, in practice ... it didn’t matter who you were, you were going in with the ones (first-stringers) ... you were going against the No. 1 receiver, against Aaron Rodgers. (Defensive backs coach Joe Whitt) threw every-body in there (in OTAs); it was a mish-mash. I think that helped me out, too, in just getting used to it — just practicing with them.”

Tom Grine, who coached Hyde at FHS and is now the school’s principal, said he likes the mental approach the 22-year-old has taken into his NFL opportunity.

“I think he’s aware of the fact that there are no guarantees, and that’s a good thing for him,” Grine, who played at Iowa in the 1970s, said. “The thing about him is he’s grounded and focused — ‘Hey, I’ve got a chance here. I think I can make it.’

“He’s always had that tremendous self-confidence, which I don’t think you can understate. When you get to that level, or even the Division I (col-lege) level, if you don’t believe in your-self, if you start doubting youryour-self, it’s going to be a long trip home. You’ve got to believe in yourself. You can’t depend on the coaches to give you that confidence, or your teammates. It’s got to be from within. You know: ‘Hey, I belong here. I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to make this team.’ I think that’s a huge advantage for Micah. He’s so even-keeled. He doesn’t get too high; he doesn’t get too low.”

Indeed, Hyde, whose friendly demeanor does not allow him to come off as cocky, carries the attitude that “at the end of the day, it’s just football and I’ve been doing it my whole life,” he said.

“I know I’m a young guy and I have a lot to learn, but at the end of the day, (other players) are really good, but they’re not gods out there or anything, so I definitely feel I can compete with them.”

Hyde is the third FHS graduate to reach the NFL in the last 14 years. Safety Damon Moore, a fourth-round selection of Philadelphia out of Ohio State in the 1999 draft, played three years with the Eagles and one with the Chicago Bears. Another safety, Rich-ard Newsome, who played collegiately at Michigan State, was a member of the New Orleans Saints in 2001 after making the team as an undrafted free agent.

Hyde’s mother, Pam Moore, who is married to Damon Moore’s older brother Clayton, is happy that her child has a chance to do something to which he’s long aspired.

“Of course it’s exciting, but I know that ultimately he’s got to make the team,” she said.

The first NFL cutdown date was Tuesday. The final one will be Sat-urday. The Packers will open their season Sept. 8 on the road against the NFC champion San Francisco 49ers, to whom Green Bay lost in the playoffs last season.

“I guess I just take it day by day,” Pam Moore said. “People ask me the same question all the time, but I feel like he is so fortunate to have this happening in his life. Of course, he’s living his dream right now. But even if he didn’t make the team or what-ever, what a great start in life. I look at that. He’s doing something that so many young boys dream of doing and getting a good start. I guess the main focus for me is I want my child to be happy and healthy. I just want him to have a successful life, regardless of whether it’s this or that or whatever it is. It’s exciting, but at the same time I think I’m pretty clearheaded about it, and if the time comes that he makes the team and he’s able to play, I’ll be thrilled for him.”

While Hyde was a standout high school performer in football, base-ball and basketbase-ball, his first love was soccer. His travel-team sidekick in that sport at a young age was Aaron Craft, who moved from Fostoria to Findlay as a sixth-grader and has since become a standout point guard for Ohio State’s basketball team. Hyde first latched onto football as a seventh-grader.

“We always had these real good travel teams,” Hyde said. “It wasn’t like going into seventh-grade football I didn’t know anything about football. But I always enjoyed soccer. I loved it, but they didn’t have a school team and obviously football’s a big sport here and I definitely wanted to play football, too.

“I grew up here and knew about the state championship teams and I grew up with Theo (Grine), so coach Grine (Theo’s uncle) was always around. I knew I wanted to play for him. I think I’d have definitely played football, but if soccer was in the spring maybe I wouldn’t have played baseball or something like that.”

Organized sports weren’t all that Hyde played as a youngster. As Grine has often lamented, children of recent times seem less likely to play infor-mal sports outside in their free time — thereby developing physical skills — as they are to sit down with video games.

That wasn’t Hyde’s way, though. He was more old school.

“I can’t tell you how crazy it was, the stuff we used to do,” he said. “We used to just go find a field and put shoes out as end zones. It was Hydes, Munozes, Crafts, Dieblers, Cousins, Grines. ... It literally had to be dark, for us not to see the football, to stop

Dream

Continued from page T2

See DREAM, Page T30

(Top) Photo provided; (middle) File photo; (bottom) Photo by Iowa Athletic Communications

(TOP) MICAH HYDE loved playing soccer as a youngster in Fostoria before becoming involved in football in junior high school. (Middle) As a member of the Fostoria High School Redmen, Hyde earned All-Ohio recognition. (Bottom) Though he wasn’t highly recruited by major colleges, Hyde starred at Iowa and was recognized as the Big Ten defensive back of the year as a senior.

(4)

By SCOTT COTTOS

SPORTS EDITOR

Though the roster size remains modest, it may be something to build on for St. Wendelin.

After a few years of their players numbering in the low teens and inju-ries prompting the cancellations of a few games, the Mohawks enter the 2013 season — the school’s 90th — with a roster of 21.

The key to the influx is a freshman class of 12 that will blend in with six seniors, two juniors and a sophomore.

Certainly, it will be a baptism of fire for the youngsters, but second-year coach Jim Bodart likes the guidance they’re getting from the experienced upperclassmen, along with the pros-pects for this season and the direction the program may be taking.

“Hopefully, we’re in a turnaround,” Bodart said. “That’s what we’re trying to pursue. We’ve got a lot of learning to do, but I think we’ll have the oppor-tunity to put some W’s after the names on the schedule.”

St. Wendelin is entering its second full season as a member of the Michi-gan-based Christian Athletic League of America, which mainly includes

teams composed of youngsters who are homeschooled or who attend schools that do not offer football. Their rosters sizes are comparable to that of the Mohawks.

“They are very well-disciplined teams,” Bodart said. “You can tell that the coaching staffs take the time to teach them fundamentals. You don’t see a lot of fancy offense from them, and I don’t mean that in a derogatory manner. That’s actually complimen-tary in my eyes because I think some-times as coaches we get too caught up in the X’s and O’s and not as much in

the ‘let’s go play a game.’”

The Mohawks posted a 2-5 record last season, with their wins coming in the last two games of the season. Those two contests saw St. Wende-lin, which had seen its 14-man roster whittled by injuries, claim victories in eight-player games permitted by the CALA.

This year’s numbers wouldn’t appear to put eight-man games in the outlook, and Bodart looks for his club to be competitive in conventional

ST. WENDELIN

T4

GOOD LUCK TO

ALL AREA TEAMS

FRUTH &

COMPANY, PLL

Certified Public Accountants

601 Parkway Drive

Suite A

Fostoria, Ohio 44830

419-435-8541

419-435-2161

Good Luck

To All Area

Teams

www.edwardjones.com Member SIPCMember CIP

John W. Irwin Financial Advisor 322 N. Main St. Fostoria, OH 44830 419-435-0463 Rick Ernest Financial Advisor 513 Plaza Dr. Fostoria, OH 44830 419-435-1017

GOOD LUCK AREA TEAMS

WE’RE WITH YOU ALL THE WAY

FOSTORIA

EYECARE, INC.

799 N. Vine St. Fostoria, Ohio 419-435-3323 F.W. Skulina, O.D. B.J. Paulus, O.D.

Good Luck

Area Teams

COACH: Jim Bodart, 2nd year (2-5)

LAST YEAR: 2-5

LAST LEAGUE TITLE: 1991 OFFENSIVE SCHEME: Pistol wing

DEFENSIVE SCHEME: 4-4 STRENGTHS: Bodart speaks quite highly of a six-man senior class that has persevered through tough times and is proving helpful to a 12-player group of fresh-man that will provide depth that hasn’t been present in recent years. Experi-ence should help in the transi-tion from a big-play offense to one based on ball control.

WEAKNESSES: With fresh-men composing 57 percent of the 21-man roster, they’ll have to grow up quickly and learn on the fly in order to give at least an occasional rest to upperclassmen who will be relied upon heavily in all phases of the game. At least nine players may rarely come off the field.

DEPTH CHART

GRIDIRON GURU QUICK FACTS KEY TO THE SEASON

2012 LEADERS

Whetsel Williams

Bodart

PASSING ATT COMP YDS TD INT Miller 94 45 762 6 6 RUSHING ATT YDS TD

Reinhart 53 262 2 Williams 48 155 0 RECEIVING REC YARDS AVG. TD Shontz 25 571 22.8 5 Hipsher 12 246 20.5 4

O FFE N S E

According to guard Trent Whetsel: “I think we’ll do a little more running this year and try to power through and just kind of basi-cally put the ball down their throats. We all have heart and we’re all here to win and, of course, to win you have to have touchdowns.”

D E FE N S E

According to linebacker Cole Williams: “It all depends on the players’ intensity and I hope that each of our players plays with a big heart. We all want to win, so hope-fully we’re all aggressive.”

Bodart hopes things are on the move in terms of numbers with a freshman class of 12 bolster-ing this year’s roster to 21. The numbers will help St. Wendelin practice more effectively, which should translate well in terms of execution. While Bodart is pleased with the leadership provided by his seniors, some will have to step up in production to compensate for the graduation losses of skill play-ers such as Zach Miller and Austin Reinhart.

Pos. Yr. Ht. Wt. Pos. Yr. Ht. Wt.

O F F E N S I V E U N I T

D E F E N S I V E U N I T QB Brad Buhrow Sr.. 5-6 131 FB Brady Rutter Sr. 5-10 145 WB Cole Williams Sr. 5-5 130 WB Joel Lopez Fr. 5-8 145 SE Justin Walter Fr. 5-10 150 TE Donovan Scudder Jr. 5-11 168 OT Caleb Colburn Sr. 5-6 179 OT A.J. Turner Sr. 5-10 190 OG Trent Whetsel Sr. 5-10 156 OG Devin Frankart Fr. 5-10 195 C Rob Park Jr. 6-1 198 QB Cyle Smith Fr. 5-10 145 RB Nick Kelbley Fr. 5-5 130 SE Jessica Holman Fr. 5-4 125 OL Brody Whetsel Fr. 5-10 135 OL Logan Colburn Fr. 5-2 198 OL Luke Volkmer Fr. 5-6 125 OL Isiah Cassidy Fr. 5-9 145 OL Andrew Schetter Fr. 6-7 250 OL Justin Meyers Fr. 5-11 225 OL Spencer Hipsher Fr. 6-0 155

Mohawks have

solid mix of

vets, rookies

SHANNON DOVE / the Review Times

SPOTTER JUSTIN MEYERS stands by for Isiah Cassidy as he lifts during the first week of practice for St. Wendelin.

DT Devin Frankart Fr. 5-10 195 DT Rob Park Fr. 6-1 198 DG A.J. Turner Sr. 5-10 190 DG Caleb Colburn Sr. 5-6 179 LB Brad Buhrow Sr. 5-6 131 LB Trent Whetsel Sr. 5-10 156 LB Cole Williams Sr. 5-5 130 LB Donovan Scudder So. 5-11 168 CB Joel Lopez Fr. 5-8 145 CB Brady Rutter Sr. 5-10 145 S Justin Walter So. 5-10 150

DL Andrew Schetter Fr. 6-7 250 DL Justin Meyers Fr. 5-11 225 DL Logan Colburn Fr. 5-2 198 DL Spencer Hipsher Fr. 6-0 155 LB Isiah Cassidy Fr. 5-9 145 LB Brody Whetsel Fr. 5-10 135 DB Cyle Smith Fr. 5-10 145 DB Jessica Holman Fr. 5-4 125 DB Nick Kelbley Fr. 5-5 130 DB Luke Volkmer Fr. 5-6 125

(5)

ST. WENDELIN

T5

Best of Luck

On A Safe and

Winning Season

To All Area Teams

200 N. Town St., Fostoria 419-435-8182

• Go Mohawks

• Go Redmen

Good Luck

This Season

WE DO

SPORTS PHYSICALS

2012 2-5 2011 6-3 2010 3-3 2009 0-10 2008 4-6 2007 2-8 2006 2-8 2005 0-10 2004 0-10 2003 2-6

2012 RESULTS RECORD BOOK 2013 SCHEDULE

Cyle Smith (2), Joel Lopez (7), Brady Rutter (22), Nick Kelbley (25), Justin Walter (34), Donovan Scudder (44), Brad Buhrow (45), Isiah Cassidy (48), Devin Frankart (52), Trent Whetsel (53), Caleb Colburn (55), Luke Volkmer (56), A.J. Turner (60), Logan Colburn (68), Rob Park (75), Brody Whetsel (76), Justin Meyers (77), Spencer Hipsher (78), Cole Williams (80), Jessica Holman (81), Andrew Schetter (99). Head coach: Jim Bodart. Assistant coaches: Jerry Rumschlag, Bill Whetsel, Adam Flugga, Eric Perkins.

Date Opponent Home/Away

St. Wendelin

Troy Defenders (Mich.) 7-50 Southington Chalker 28-46 Downriver Wolfpack (Mich.) 26-53 Genesee County (Mich.) 15-37 Downriver Wolfpack (Mich.) 14-55

Battle Creek Apocalypse (Mich.) 38-14 Tri-County King’s Crusaders (Ind.) 52-0

MOHAWKS

August 31 Hardin Northern H Sept. 7 Livingston County Knights A*

14 Downriver Wolfpack H* 21 Washtenaw Saints H* 28 Battle Creek Apocalypse A* Oct. 5 Westside Christian Academy H* 12 Troy Defenders A* 19 Arcadia H 26 WMCAA Patriots A* Nov. 1 Cory-Rawson A * — Christian Athletic League of America

(6)

ST. WENDELIN

T6

FOSTORIA

ROTARY CLUB

Fostoria Rotary Club is proud to recognize the outstanding

students from Fostoria Community & St. Wendelin High Schools

through the Rotary’s

STUDENT OF THE

MONTH

program.

If interested in becoming a Rotary Club member contact Kathy Stearns

@ [email protected]

contests at the same time that the younger players gain experience and all players get a chance to rest.

“It does make for good competi-tion,” Bodart said of the CALA. “I think this season, we’re young but we’ve got much better numbers and I think that’s going to give us some opportunities in games that maybe we didn’t have last year. The kids were in great shape, but any time you ask a kid to perform for four quarters in the games of football, both sides of the ball, kickoffs, punt returns and everything, you’re asking a lot.

“I think in those last few games, where we had the opportunity to play 8-on-8 with the CALA allowing us to do that, that gave us equal numbers where we had a few kids on the side-lines and we could sub — a coach them up on the sideline and send them back in kind of thing.”

While Bodart expects the entire roster to be involved on game nights, certain players will still be counted on in every regard, injuries remain a part of the sport and the coach wants everyone to be ready to do whatever is necessary.

“As we went through camp and that first week of double-session con-ditioning, about Thursday everybody was getting tired of conditioning,” Bodart said. “Everybody does get tired of conditioning. I took a minute away from our running and condi-tioning and pulled them into a quick huddle and I started by asking one by one, ‘How many plays were you off the field last year?’ A lot of times you will hear kids at other schools talk about playing all but 10 plays. That’s a lot of plays for high school kids. You run through that list of six seniors and you can probably count on two hands the number of plays they were off the field last year.

“The big thing for me was to give these freshmen a wakeup call that we do all of this because on game night you may play the whole game. There’s no two-platoon, there’s no offensive group and defensive group. This year, it should change a little bit, obviously. We should get some opportunities to get some kids off the field. But actu-ally, nine kids are going to carry the brunt of this team and we’re going to have to mix in some freshmen to make this whole thing happen.”

The improved numbers will helped the Mohawks in practice as the season goes along. Unlike in recent years, 11-on-11 sessions essen-tially are possible.

“That’s going to make the prac-tices much more productive,” Bodart said. “Last year with the numbers we had, we practiced what I call half-line. We’d go center on over on one side of the ball then you’d flip and you’d do the other half center on

over. Granted, you get a lot of good reps that way. It’s a quicker process. You’re not dealing with the back side of the line. But in turn, you lose that back side of the line, downfield-blocking practice, things like that. It becomes a lot more difficult to get in. This year, we’re going to be able to get some nice looks at kids and what they’re doing on the back side of the play.”

Bodart said he and his staff have received plenty of help in team man-agement from the six seniors.

“Every single one of them deserves the title of team captain,” he said. “They all lead in their own different way, but they all take charge.”

Bodart wants his freshman class, almost all of whom attended the lower grades at St. Wendelin, to absorb what they learn from the upperclassmen and carry it forward toward building strength for the pro-gram.

“It’s a good group of kids,” he said of the freshmen. “They’re very close-knit. I think you get that here at St. Wendelin, even more than at most schools. You get a pretty tight bond of kids just because the classes are so small.”

Lost to graduation are big-armed quarterback Zach Miller and speedy running back Austin Reinhart, who has gone on to play at John Carroll University.

Bodart expects this year’s club to be steady if unspectacular.

“We’re a pretty fundamentally sound group,” he said. “I don’t think we’re going to have the passing attack we had last year, with the ability to throw the big ball. But I think it’s really going to set up to be a sound, ball-control type of team.

“They’re persistent. They’re the type of kids who are going to go to work — very blue collar. We’re going to be pounding the ball at people. I think we have the ability to be more physical than we have been in the past. And with the little bit of depth we’re developing here and getting some rest for some of these kids, I think it’s going to give us the oppor-tunity to really have a ball-control type of offense. With the type of kids we’ve got and the discipline they demonstrate, we’ll be able to play sound defense and control the ball on offense.”

Taking over at quarterback will be senior Brad Buhrow, though fresh-man Cyle Smith could enter the con-versation when he’s fully recovered from an injury.

“We may make some changes there as we go forward, but (Buhrow) is a great athlete and I trust him, and those are two things you need at quarterback, in my opinion,” Bodart said.

Senior fullback Brady Rutter will get a number of carries after impress-ing Bodart in 2012 in his return to football after not having played since his junior-high years. Senior Cole

Williams and freshman Joel Lopez look to be the wingbacks with junior Donovan Scudder at tight end and sophomore Justin Walter at split end.

Junior Rob Park will center an offensive line that will also include seniors Caleb Colburn and A.J. Turner at the tackles and senior Trent Whetsel and freshman Devin Frankart, a transfer from New Riegel, at the guards.

The Mohawks will line up Fran-kart and Park at the defensive tack-les and Colburn and Turner at the defensive guards in their 4-4 align-ment. Buhrow, Whetsel, Williams and Scudder will be the linebackers. Rutter and Lopez will be the corner-backs and Walter will be the safety.

Bodart said he won’t project a won-lost record against competi-tion that, in addicompeti-tion to the CALA schools, will include Arcadia, Cory-Rawson and Hardin Northern from the Blanchard Valley Conference. But he expects the senior class to lead an effort in which the Mohawks put their best foot forward.

“I talk a lot about the tradition of St. Wendelin football,” Bodart said. “This is the 90th season of St. Wen-delin football; we say, ‘Continue the tradition, keep it moving forward.’ This is a great program to be a part of. Those (seniors) are a great exam-ple of that. There have been some pretty lean years around here.

“I think it’s great that we’ve got

this young freshman class for these seniors. It’s a great group of kids for us to say, ‘All right, I’ve got these 12 kids who are going to be here for the next four years and they’re going

to learn great things from a senior class who will show them the way to become a St. Wendelin Mohawk football player.”

Mohawks

ST. WENDELIN SENIOR Caleb Colburn does curls in the school weight room during the summer in preparation for the coming season.

(7)

COACH: Jim Kelly, 2nd year (0-10)

LAST YEAR: 0-10 overall, 0-7 Northern Buckeye Conference

LAST TITLE: 2008 in North-ern Ohio League

OFFENSIVE SCHEME: I-for-mation

DEFENSIVE SCHEME: 50 STRENGTHS: Kelly said the team had a great offseason

with increased numbers in the weight room and players starting to see the value of strength when it comes to the physical brand of football he expects from his players. A large group of fresh-men shows that numbers are improving.

WEAKNESSES: While the Redmen have made strides since finishing 0-10 last season, Kelly said they are still not where they need to be in terms of physical and mental toughness. A small senior class will force unproven players to step into key positions right away and perform well if the team hopes to improve on last year’s winless campaign.

FOSTORIA

T7

GOOD LUCK

AREA

TEAMS!!

1200 McDougal St. Fostoria, OH 44830 PH: 419-435-7033 www.whitta.com

GO REDMEN!

GO MOHAWKS!

Sewer Cleaning Service

A National Service available locally

*Residential *Commercial *Industrial

Tim Munger

GOOD LUCK TO ALL

AREA TEAMS!

Caring He rts

Build A Community

United Way of Fostoria

PO Box 186

Fostoria, OH 44830

419-435-4484

website:

unitedwayoff ostoria.org

Good Luck on a

Winning Season!

622 Parkway Drive • Fostoria

2311 Hayes Ave. • Fremont

419-435-3482 419-334-8121

eyecentersofnwo.com

By ANDREW WILLIAMS

SPORTS WRITER

Fostoria High School coach Jim Kelly is all about the process.

As the Redmen near the start of the 2013 campaign, he is focusing on what he and his staff need to do to restore the program to its winning ways.

After posting an 0-10 mark last season in his first year with the team, Kelly admitted that at times it was a struggle to get maximum effort from his players. He said the offseason has brought an increase in weight room attendance and the players are start-ing to see the value of their investment in the program.

“Week 10 last year, we talked about we have to become mentally and physically tough — back to the days of how it used to be here,” he said. “And it’s easy to say those things, but it takes time to do it. We still have a ways to go. That’s the approach we’ve taken and just getting guys to under-stand they’ve got to buy in and when they’re here, they’re investing time. When you invest something, it means more to you. That’s where we’re at and we’re taking steps, definitely in the right direction.”

Kelly has history working both for and against him. The FHS foot-ball program is steeped in tradition, which brings certain expectations every year, even though it has fallen on hard times in recent years.

The Redmen are 8-32 over their last four seasons since going 10-2 and advancing to the second round of the state playoffs in 2008 under the lead-ership of All-Ohio senior Micah Hyde, who is now a defensive back for the Green Bay Packers.

Winning takes care of many things and Kelly realizes that. He also under-stands that before his team can walk, it will first have to crawl.

“The first thing is winning breeds success,” he said. “We know we need to win. That takes time, but we are making some strides there. Our goal is to be competitive. Our goal is to be physically tough with anybody we play and that takes time, but we’re getting

DEPTH CHART

2012 LEADERS

Lincoln Navarro

Kelly

PASSING ATT COMP YDS TD INT Cousin 95 29 304 1 7 RUSHING ATT YARDS AVG. TD Crowe 59 308 5.2 1 Fuller 102 151 1.5 1 RECEIVING REC. YARDS AVG. TD Mauricio 14 246 17.6 1

OFFENSE

According to tackle Deante Lincoln: “We have to execute and keep our heads up. ... You’re going to see a lot more running. Our offensive line, it’s going to look pretty good this year. We’re not going to have the quarterback hit that many times.”

DEFENSE

According to linebacker Alex Navarro: “Overall, our defense is getting better each day and every day. This year our linebackers and our defense...they’re more disci-plined. They’re getting to the ball. If we have a mistake on defense, everyone keeps their heads up.”

Improvement will be key for the Redmen in Kelly’s second year at the helm. While he admits the team is ahead of where it was last year, it is going to take time to restore the program to its former winning ways. A tough start to the season with 2012 regional runner-up Ottawa-Glandorf at home, followed by three straight road games, will show Kelly just how physically and mentally tough his team actually is.

D E F E N S I V E U N I T QB Dom Fuller Jr. 6-0 155 FB Alex Navarro Jr. 5-11 220 RB Maurice Haskins Jr. 5-6 190 TE Eric Struble Jr. 5-11 215 WR Juan Mendez Jr. 6-0 155 WR Deandre Cannon Jr. 5-11 150 LT Micah Randall Sr. 6-1 240 RT Gabe Thompson So. 5-6 200 LG Caleb Peace Sr. 5-8 180 RG Gage Scott Fr. 5-7 195 C Brystan Baeder So. 5-10 205 K Kaleb Danko Sr. 6-1 175 QB Jayden Stanton Fr. 5-9 140 FB J.J. Fuller So. 5-8 170 RB Ryan Phillips Fr. 5-8 160 TE Malik Slaughter Jr. 6-1 215 WR C.J. Twinning So. 5-9 145 OL Deante Lincoln Sr. 6-0 255 OT Deandre Bunley Sr. 5-11 255 OG Gabe Thompson So. 5-6 200 K Rayshawn Yarn Jr. 5-9 160

Kelly expects

physicality

from Redmen

KEEGAN GREEN turns after catching a pass during warmups for a 7-on-7 against Lakota July 24.

DE Keegan Green Sr. 5-7 165 DE Jordan Mathius So. 6-0 245 DT Deante Lincoln Sr. 6-0 255 DT Gabe Thompson So. 5-6 200 N Deandre Bunley Sr. 5-11 255 OLB Rolando Silva So. 6-1 170 MLB J.J. Fuller So. 5-8 170 CB Jayden Stanton Fr. 5-9 140 CB Deandre Cannon Jr. 5-11 150 FS Dom Fuller Jr. 6-0 155 SS Juan Mendez Jr. 6-0 155 P Kaleb Danko Sr. 6-1 175 N Gage Scott Fr. 5-7 195 OLB Kaleb Danko Sr. 6-1 175 MLB Alex Navarro Jr. 5-11 220 CB C.J. Twinning So. 5-9 145 FS Jayden Stanton Fr. 5-9 140 SS Maurice Haskins Jr. 5-6 190 P Rayshawn Yarn Jr. 5-9 160

(8)

FOSTORIA

T8

2012 0-10 2011 5-5 2010 0-10 2009 3-7 2008 10-2 2007 8-3 2006 5-5 2005 6-4 2004 4-6 2003 3-7

Rayshawn Yarn (2), C.J. Twining (3), Deandre Cannon (6), Jalen Williams (9), Skyler Cramer (10), Jayden Stanton (12), Allen Heacock (15), Dom Fuller (16), Keegan Green (20), J.J. Fuller (21), Maurice Haskins (22), Donovan Vogel (25), Tony Velasquez (26), Xavier Galvan (30), Juan Mendez (31), Tysen Latta (32), Rolando Silva (35), Zack Jimmison (36), Chad Spangler (40), Ryan Phillips (43), Alex Navarro (44), Kaleb Danko (48), Deante Lincoln (50), Isaiah Brough (52), Marcos Esquivel (53), Deandre Bunley (55), Jordan Mathias (57), Kyle Kreh (58), Eric Struble (60), Gage Scott (62), Bobby Melton (63), Darien Tey (64), Caleb Peace (65), Brystan Baeder (66), Gabe Thompson (72), Micah Randall (73), Jarrett Lorenzen (75), Tyler Myers (80), Dae’Meier Johnson (81), Carl Wilson (83), Jimmie Cooper (87), Malik Slaughter (89), Trent Dukes (93), Michael Barchus (96). Head coach: Jim Kelly. Assistant coaches: Ray Tittle, Jeremy Robbins, Sam Meek, Dante Johnson, Paul Shoemaker, Julian Magallanes, Bryan Bernal, Shane Parsons, Jon Ottney, Doug Shaver.

Fostoria

Ottawa-Glandorf 7-62 Bowling Green 0-31 Tiffin Columbian 0-47 Genoa 7-58 Otsego 7-22 Woodmore 33-60 Eastwood 6-61 Lake 13-66 Elmwood 6-14 Rossford 0-43

REDMEN

August 30 Ottawa-Glandorf H Sept. 6 Bowling Green A

13 Sandusky Perkins A 20 Elmwood A* 27 Rossford H* Oct. 4 Genoa A* 11 Otsego H* 18 Woodmore A* 25 Eastwood H* Nov. 1 Lake H* * — Northern Buckeye Conference

Wishing All

Area Teams

a Safe and

Winning

Season!

Fostoria Foot & Ankle

Dr. Bettenhausen

419-435-2107 912 N. Vine St.

“A healthy foot is a happy foot!”

GOOD

LUCK

Area Teams!!

from your friends

at:

VFW

Post #421

112 W. Tiffin St.

Fostoria

419-435-2282

(9)

FOSTORIA

T9

stands that before his team can walk, it will first have to crawl.

“The first thing is winning breeds success,” he said. “We know we need to win. That takes time, but we are making some strides there. Our goal is to be competitive. Our goal is to be physically tough with anybody we play and that takes time, but we’re getting there.”

So far this season, Kelly has seen a difference in his team. The time spent in the weight room has helped some take ownership in the program and made them want to work harder to make the group successful.

“I think there is the accountabil-ity (this year),” Kelly said. “You have to be in the weight room because

you have to train to prevent injuries and to get stronger and to get faster. The commitment part and just being accountable of being there is probably the biggest thing. I think because of the accountability, we’re more disci-plined, too.”

Offensively, FHS will have a dif-ferent look than it has had in recent years. After averaging just 7.9 points per game in 2012 and being shut out three times, the Redmen will transi-tion from a pass-heavy, spread scheme into a base I-formation team and be much more run-dominant.

Kelly, who ran the I-formation during his time as head coach at Lakota prior to taking the reins at FHS, said the decision to switch was due to a change in personnel and to align the scheme with his personal philosophy as a coach.

“We’re going to be an I team,” he said. “We kind of finished the year

with that last year. Again, it’s physical football. For us, we feel like we’ve got guys that we can run the ball with and throw the ball out of that. That’s who we are; that’s Fostoria football.

“The theme for us is physical. We’ve got to learn how to be physi-cal. Some weeks we may not be where I want us to be, but we’re going to get there and over time that’s where we have to be.”

Senior Deante Lincoln welcomes the change on the offensive side of the ball. The 6-foot, 255-pound tackle said the run game was almost non-existent last year and the team had to hang its hat on passing, which put more pressure on the offensive line in pass protection.

“We’re mainly going to run,” Lin-coln said. “Our team’s a lot better from last year. We’re more disciplined.

“Our offensive line, it’s going to look pretty good this year. We’re more disciplined. We’re not going to have the quarterback hit that many times. You’re going to see a lot more running.”

Juniors dominate the skill posi-tions on the offensive side of the ball. Dom Fuller will be under center for the Redmen in his first year as the full-time starter. Alex Navarro and Maurice Haskins will start in the backfield, with Juan Mendez and Deandre Cannon getting the nod at the wide receivers and Eric Struble anchoring the tight end spot.

FHS will be young up front, with freshman Gage Scott starting at right guard and sophomores Brystan Baeder and Gabe Thompson starting at center and right tackle, respec-tively. The left side will be handled by seniors Micah Randall at tackle and Caleb Peace at guard.

Defensively, the Redmen are going to stay in the 50 front they utilized last season. Despite giving up 46.4 points per game and allowing 60 or more four times, Kelly said the 50 is in line with the type of football team he wants to have: physical.

“We actually run the old Fostoria 50,” he said. “One of the things that’s great is everybody around here, all my junior high coaches, my varsity coaches, they all love it. Especially the kids because it’s Fostoria. It’s an attacking defense that gets after people and that’s what we’re going to develop to be.”

A major change in the defense this year has been a transformation in attitude from what it was last season, according to Navarro. Navarro, a 5-11, 220-pound linebacker, said the defense has been more of a unit and is working better together to keep each other up and not allow negativity to break them down.

“Defensively we’re doing better,” Navarro said. “This year, everyone’s focused. They’re giving their all. We help each other if we have a mistake. If we have a mistake on defense, every-one keeps their heads up.

“Overall, our defense is getting

better each day and every day. We have some freshmen, some sopho-mores. We’re a young team defensively and offensively, but other than that our players are working hard. They’re not showing any weaknesses. Even the freshmen, they’re stepping up a lot. We’re trying to build this program back up.”

S e n i o r s will be asked to lead along the defensive front with Lin-coln at tackle, K e e g a n Green at end and Deandre B u n l e y at nose guard. T h o m p s o n w i l l s t a r t opposite Lin-coln as the other tackle and fel low s o p h o m o r e Jordan Math-ias will start at the other end spot.

Sophomores J.J. Fuller and Rolando Silva will anchor the middle of the defense as the linebackers. Cannon and freshman Jayden Stanton will be the cornerbacks, while Fuller and Mendez shore up the back end of the unit as the safeties.

In addition to physicality offen-sively and defenoffen-sively, Kelly and his staff are coaching effort more than ever. He said that because of the investment so many of the players have made, it makes it harder for them to quit and harder to give less than their best effort.

In order for the Redmen to continu-ally improve on a consistent basis, he said the players have to be willing to sacrifice for the good of the team.

“Effort,” he said of what held FHS back at times last season. “And the second answer’s effort and the third answer’s effort. Our effort was not where it needed to be.

“I think it comes down to this: If you put, again, time into this thing,

then when it gets tough in games you still fight and you still give effort. We cannot quit. It’s physically and men-tally tough, no quit, and that’s the kind of teams we’re going to have here. No matter how long it takes, we’re going to get it the way we need it.”

O v e r -all, Kelly is pleased with the progress his team has made since the end of the 2012 season. However, he is by no means satisfied. He knows it will take wins to restore the pride of Fos-toria Redmen football. Until his team is ready to handle the responsibility of carrying on that tradition, he expects to see some simple things from them.

“They have to believe in each other,” he said. “I expect my team to play physical, to play hard, to give great effort no matter what is thrown at them during the game. I expect them not to get down. I expect people to be proud of our effort, going out and just being physical.

“We’ve got to move forward in the beliefs we have, which are getting mentally and physically tough and just stay at it day after day. Be patient, but be firm about, ‘Hey this is where we’re going and this is where we’re headed no matter how long it takes. We’re going to get there.’ It takes time, but that’s what we’ll do.”

FOSTORIA HIGH SCHOOL assistant coach Jon Ottney speaks to Rayshawn Yarn as they walk off the field during summer 7-on-7 play against Lakota.

“They have to believe in each

other. I expect my team to

play physical, to play hard, to

give great effort no matter

what is thrown at them during

the game. I expect them not to

get down. I expect people to be

proud of our effort, going out

and just being physical.”

HEAD COACH JIM KELLY

Redmen

Complete Major & Minor Automotive Repair Towing Available

419-435-3548

354 W. South St. Fostoria Est. 1937

COUPON

$

19

95 _{OIL CHANGE}

Excludes synthetics. Up to 6 qts. Coupon expires 9/30/13

(10)

By TIFFANY GEORGE

SPORTS WRITER

ARCADIA — Nearly every foot-ball team has to overcome adversity of some kind at some point in a season.

One would think Arcadia’s luck would run a little better in 2013 after the amount of adversity it faced last season, but injuries suffered by two key players in the team’s first scrim-mage let it know that wouldn’t be the case.

The Redskins faced adversity in many ways last season, from losing 16 seniors from the previous year’s team that qualified for the Division VI playoffs to getting a new head coach only 1½ months before the season started. Still, they rallied to learn a new system and finished with a 4-6 overall record, including 3-6 in the Blanchard Valley Conference.

Second-year coach Pat Gehrisch wanted his players to be confident last year despite their obvious obstacles, and he was backed up in that venture by senior quarterback Casey Mock.

Losing a standout such as Mock was going to be an obstacle for Arca-dia as it was, but the story took on a new twist when sophomore Chad

Baker, the leading candidate to suc-ceed Mock as Arcadia’s triggerman, suffered a broken leg and senior Sawyer Kieffer, the team’s top return-ing receiver, went down with a knee injury. Kieffer should eventually be back in action.

Even had Baker stepped right in as quarterback, Gerisch wanted to see a change in the Redskins’ offense.

Gehrisch plans to stick with the spread offense, but he aims to have a more balanced attack.

“Last year we found ourselves

throwing the ball out of necessity a lot,” Gehrisch said. “We want to run the ball more, but we’ll try to run the ball out of the spread.”

Kieffer would have been next in line to play quarterback after Baker, but the Redskins will likely now turn to freshman Austin Bohn or junior Dillon Conine, a late arrival to the team in the summer. Kieffer could still see action under center.

Kieffer was Arcadia’s No. 2 receiver

ARCADIA

T10

CHARGE ON TO VICTORY

“GOOD LUCK

AREA TEAMS”

FROM OUR

TEAM AT

Rte. 23 • Fostoria

1-800-726-5321 • 419-435-9211

1500 Manor Hill Rd. • Findlay • (419) 422-1500 • www.huffordfh.com

Family to Family Care

HONORING

Family Memoriesy

Anthony Hufford

Owner/Director

Wishing The Best of Luck To All Area Teams!

The Area’s Finest, Most Affordable Funeral Home!!

Family To Family Care Service

Findlay • Arcadia • Van Buren

• Arlington • Vanlue

& Much More

COACH: Pat Gehrisch, 2nd year (4-6)

LAST YEAR: 4-6 overall, 3-6 Blanchard Valley Conference LAST BVC TITLE: None OFFENSIVE SCHEME: I-spread

DEFENSIVE SCHEME: 4-2-5 STRENGTHS: Many of last

year’s players had little to no varsity experi-ence, so having a year of play-ing time under their belts will be helpful. Several key players from last season should be team leaders. WEAKNESSES: Players must be found for key positions due to injuries sustained in the pre-season.

DEPTH CHART

2012 LEADERS

Kieffer Vera

Gehrisch

PASSING ATT COMP YDS TD INT Mock 274 121 1,562 14 5 RUSHING ATT YARDS AVG. TD Mock 78 420 5.4 5 RECEIVING REC. YARDS AVG. TD Bauer 38 513 13.5 5 Kieffer 27 454 16.8 4 Moyer 31 378 12.2 3

OFFENSE

According to wide receiver Sawyer Kieffer: “We obviously lost (quarterback) Casey (Mock), so that will be hard to replace. But we need to get the ball to the skill positions and make plays this year.”

DEFENSE

According to lineman Bobby Vera: “Defensively, we’re not as big as we were last year, but we’re just as quick and we need to play physical.”

Team leader and standout quar-terback Casey Mock graduated, and the Redskins are hoping to better balance this year’s attack with a more effective ground game. If the Redskins are to improve on last year’s four wins, they’ll have to make headway in the always rugged Blanchard Valley Confer-ence.

D E F E N S I V E U N I T

QB Austin Bohn Jr. 5-10 155 FB Shae Watkins So. 6-3 195 RB Garrett Cooper Jr. 5-11 175 WR Garrett Enders So. 5-10 145 WR Tristan Love So. 5-10 145 WR Alex Pessell Fr. 6-2 155 OT Jacob Thompson Jr. 5-9 200 OT Jacob Keefe So. 6-1 240 OG Bobby Vera Sr. 6-0 235 OG Hayden Ramsey Jr. 5-11 225 C Cody Hill Sr. 5-11 200

Redskins face

another dose

of adversity

PATRICK RILEY / for the Review Times

ARCADIA RUNNING BACK Chase Gonzales carries the ball while David Sanchez and Landon Carnicom defend and Jacob Keefe runs toward the play during a preseason practice.

DT Bobby Vera Sr. 6-0 235 DT A.J. Knepper So. 6-1 220 DE Jacob Keefe So. 6-1 240 DE Jacob Thompson Jr. 5-9 200 OLB Garrett Cooper Jr. 5-11 175 OLB Trevor Bowman Sr. 5-7 145 ILB Hayden Ramsey Jr. 5-11 225 ILB Shae Watkins So. 6-3 195 CB Garrett Enders So. 5-10 145 CB Austin Bohn Jr. 5-10 155 S Tristan Love So. 5-10 145

(11)

ARCADIA

T11

GOOD

LUCK

ARCADIA

REDSKINS!!

www.FarthingRealEstateAndAuctioneers.com

Specialists in precision machining 202 South St. Arcadia Phone: 419 894-6426 Fax: 419 894-6920

GOOD LUCK

REDSKINS!

Deep Cryogenic Treatment

CNC Grinding EDM

ESTABLISHED 1967

GOOD LUCK

FOSTORIA

TEAMS!!

Open Fri & Sat ‘till 1am 119 W. Center St.

419-435-1807

Good Luck

To All Area

Teams!

425 East Lincoln St., Findlay 419-422-2353 Findlay • Defiance Bellefontaine • Lima www.macdonaldsupply.com 2012 4-6 2011 7-4 2010 4-6 2009 2-8 2008 1-9 2007 6-4 2006 2-8 2005 3-7 2004 1-9 2003 3-7

Landon Carnicom (1), Garrett Enders (2), Tristan Lucas (3), Brayden Moon (4), Logan Boyd (5), Cole Cramer (6), Tristan Love (7), Sawyer Kieffer (8), Trey Bermudez (9), Chad Baker (10), Austin Bohn (11), Terrance Cheeks (14), Chase Gonzales (15), Julian Kocak (20), Kody Rebarchek (21), Garrett Cooper (22), A.J. Lentz (25), Trevor Bowman (31), Shae Watkins (32), Alex Pessell (33), Vlad Sedler (35), Jorden Johnson (50), Jacob Moyer (51), Hayden Ramsey (52), Ethan Boes (54), Austin Jones (55), David Sanchez (56), Sean Kelly (62), Bobby Vera (64), Chase Garcia (68), Cody Hill (71), Jacob Keefe (74), Jacob Thompson (75), A.J. Knepper (77), Trevor Lucius (85). Head coach: Pat Gehrisch.

Arcadia

Lakota 41-20 Vanlue 40-12 Arlington 14-17 Cory-Rawson 21-12 Van Buren 0-35 Liberty-Benton 13-64 Leipsic 0-34 McComb 0-64 Hardin Northern 38-14 Pandora-Gilboa 21-28

REDSKINS

August 30 Lakota A Sept. 6 Arlington A* 13 Cory-Rawson A* 20 Van Buren H* 27 Liberty-Benton A* Oct. 4 Leipsic A* 11 McComb H* 18 Hardin Northern A* 25 Pandora-Gilboa H* Nov. 1 Vanlue H* * — Blanchard Valley Conference

(12)

ELMWOOD

T12

PRAIRIE DEPOT INSURANCE 418 Main Street Risingsun 419-457-2432 www.prairiedepot.com

GOOD

LUCK

LAKOTA

RAIDERS!

Good Luck Elmwood Football!!

N.A.T. Transportation, Inc.

www.nattransport.com

Liquid & Solid Waste Removal

11101 Pemberville Road, Bradner, Ohio 43406 (419) 288-3143 or (800) 332-2783

Serving all of Wood County

Northwestern

Water & Sewer

District

would like to

wish all of our

local athletes

a great grid-iron

season this year!

www.nwwsd.org

“A Family Business

You Can Trust”

DOUGLAS, CHARLES &

BARBARA BARNDT

FUNERAL DIRECTORS

Telephone:

419-288-2857

GOOD LUCK

ROYALS

By MICHAEL BURWELL STAFF WRITER

BLOOMDALE — For Elmwood football head coach Brian Cooper, it’s all about having confidence heading into the 2013 season.

After finishing 4-6 and 2-5 in the Northern Buckeye Conference last season, Cooper hopes to change the Royals’ mentality of “we’re supposed to lose anyway” that has plagued the team in recent years.

“We’ve always had the kids in the right positions, I believe, but it’s always been a ‘here we go again’ mentality, so that’s where I would say our biggest concern is right now. What’s going to happen if a team scores on us first? What’s going to happen if we make a mistake first?” said Cooper, who is entering his second season at Elmwood.

The Royals have several players returning from last season who can help change that mindset and instill confidence in a team that hasn’t had a winning record since 2008.

Senior wide receiver Aaron Arnold (6-foot-5, 200 pounds) brings size and experience to a young offense.

“He’s always had the ability, but I’ve seen a confidence in him kind of

grow and really take charge of ‘hey, if the ball’s within five feet of me, I’m going to be the only one to come up with it,’” Cooper said.

Arnold compiled 177 receiving yards on eight receptions last year, along with three touchdowns. As a sophomore, he was second on the team in rushing and receiving yards with 355 and 235, respectively.

During the summer, Arnold com-peted in the National Football League

High School Player Development 7-on-7 tournament for the Cleveland Browns. He advanced through regional qualify-ing in Defiance and Cleveland before making the final roster, which competed against teams from around the country.

“I think that helped him realize that I’m not just small-town Elmwood anymore,” Cooper said. “‘I can still do some things’ and, hopefully, I can kind

COACH: Brian Cooper (2nd year, 4-6).

LAST YEAR: 4-6 overall, 2-5 Nortern Buckeye Conference. LAST LEAGUE TITLE: 2006. OFFENSIVE SCHEME: Pistol. DEFENSIVE SCHEME: 4 Front.

STRENGTHS: Aaron Arnold. The 6-5, 200-pound receiver will be a big part of Elmwood’s scoring attack this season. With his size and experi-ence, Elmwood will have a go-to receiver to help their sophomore quarterback. Big players along the offensive and defensive line return as well.

WEAKNESSES: The offensive backfield is young. Sophomore Nick Gillett will be the field general, and he’ll have two junior running backs with limited experience helping him out. The change to a 4-front defense from a 3-5 last season might cause concern early as well.

DEPTH CHART

2012 LEADERS

Arnold Haines

Cooper

PASSING ATT COMP YDS TD INT Foster 136 78 1,241 10 8 RUSHING ATT YARDS AVG. TD Smith 152 681 4.5 9 Mobus 42 372 8.9 7 RECEIVING REC YARDS AVG. TD Mobus 29 541 18.7 Williams 14 199 14.2 2

OFFENSE

According to wide receiver Aaron Arnold: “This year, I think we have a stronger running game. We’ve got probably two of the better running backs in the league. We have a lot of speedy guys on the outside that can get the ball and make things happen.”

DEFENSE

According to defensive nose tackle Sawyer Haines: “Condi-tioning is going to be a big deal since we’re playing both sides of the ball. But it’s really important that we get penetration.”

If the Royals can utilize their weapons on offense and protect their young backfield, they can become a force in the Northern Buckeye Conference. The offen-sive and defenoffen-sive lines should be Elmwood’s bread and butter, but fatigue could become a factor late in games due to the number of play-ers going both ways. A strong non-conference start could boost the Royals’ confidence heading into conference play.

D E F E N S I V E U N I T

QB Nick Gillett So. 5-8 155 FB Austin Isaacs Jr. 5-7 185 HB Austin Jasso Jr. 5-10 170 WR Aaron Arnold Sr. 6-5 200 WR Sebastian Baxter Sr. 5-10 170 OT Justin Krouse Sr. 6-3 290 OT Zach Baker Jr. 5-7 255 OG Jacob Firsdon Sr. 6-2 200 OG Nolan Kerr Sr. 6-0 190 C Devin Uzelac Jr. 6-0 220 TE Sawyer Haines Sr. 6-4 245 PK Sebastian Baxter Sr. 5-10 170 RB Jordan Andrich Jr. 5-9 150 WR Josh Lorenzen So. 5-5 160 WR Philip Buckingham So. 5-8 160 WR Kieran Adamski So. 5-7 140 WR Brandon Palmer Jr. 6-0 185 OT Rob Bentley So. 6-1 240 OT Aaron West Sr. 6-0 265 OG Brett Jones So. 6-1 190 TE Noah Smith So. 6-0 180

DE Jacob Firsdon Sr. 6-2 200 DE Nolan Kerr Sr. 6-0 190 DT Justin Krouse Sr. 6-3 290 NT Sawyer Haines Sr. 6-4 245 OLB Dylan Benschoter Jr. 5-9 140 MLB Noah Smith So. 6-0 180 OLB Thomas Wagler Jr. 6-0 205 CB Sebastian Baxter Sr. 5-10 170 S Dylan Hall So. 5-10 145 FS Aaron Arnold Sr. 6-5 200 CB Brik Dauterman Sr. 5-8 140 P Dylan Hall So. 5-10 145

DE Jordan Sweet Sr. 6-3 175 DT Aaron West Sr. 6-0 265 DT Nick Wiseman So. 5-10 210 OLB Philip Buckingham So. 5-8 160 ILB Brandon Palmer Jr. 6-0 185 OLB Brett Jones So. 6-1 190 CB Jordan Andrich Jr. 5-9 150 S Ryan Aufdencamp Jr. 6-1 165 CB Josh Lorenzen So. 5-5 160 CB Kieran Adamski So. 5-7 140 CB Keyon Camden Jr. 6-0 150

Royals build

confidence

under Cooper

KENT TARBOX / for the Review Times

ELMWOOD ROYALS of the future run through drills at a middle-school camp earlier this summer.

(13)

ELMWOOD

T13

REVIEWTIMES.COM

Purchase photos, coffee mugs, key chains and more

with pictures taken by newspaper photographers.

PHOTO

STORE

THECOURIER.COM

2012 4-6 2011 4-6 2010 5-5 2009 3-7 2008 6-4 2007 7-3 2006 8-2 2005 7-4 2004 6-4 2003 8-4

Jordan Andrich (3), Aaron Arnold (5), Josh Lorenzen (6), Philip Buckingham (7), Sebastian Baxter (11), Kieran Adamski (13), Nick Gillett (15), Jordan Sweet (18), Dylan Hall (20), Brik Dauterman (21), Brandon Palmer (22), Ryan Aufdencamp (28), Dylan Benschoter (30), Keyon Camden (33), Austin Isaacs (34), Noah Smith (35), Austin Jasso (48), Thomas Wagler (50), Keith Keeton (51), Devin Uzelac (53), Jacob Firsdon (54), Brett Jones (55), Nolan Kerr (66), Zach Baker (72), Aaron West (75), Rob Bentley (77), Justin Krouse (78), Sawyer Haines (82), Nick Wiseman.

Elmwood

Gibsonburg 32-0 Hopewell-Loudon 20-36 North Baltimore 41-0 Woodmore 29-21 Eastwood 22-68 Lake 40-54 Genoa 6-53 Rossford 13-28 Fostoria 14-6 Otsego 8-45

ROYALS

August 30 Gibsonburg H September 6 Hopewell-Loudon A 13 North Baltimore H 20 Fostoria* H 27 Otsego* A October 4 Woodmore* A 11 Eastwood* H 18 Lake* H 25 Genoa* A November 1 Rossford* A All games 7 p.m.

(14)

FINDLAY

T14

Sports Injury Clinic

Every Saturday, 8:00-9:00 a.m.

August 31 - November 2

Rehab & Sports Medicine Center

1721 Medical Blvd., Suite B, Findlay

Located off Western Ave., along Lake Cascades.

Athletes will receive an evaluation by BVH Sports Medicine physician, Dr. Michael Stump. In addition to being sports medicine certified, Dr. Stump is also the only area physician trained in computerized concussion testing. Athletes under 18 must be accompanied by a parent/guardian.

Come in for an Evaluation!

Improve speed, agility, quickness and general athleticism by learning correct movement techniques, body position and balance for performing acceleration, deceleration and athletic movement. Drills and activ-ities performed during the workout sessions include flexibility, footwork, plyometrics and agility running.

Call or email Kevin Lewis

419.425.3199 • [email protected]

Services for building speed

or speeding your recovery!

419.425.3199

bvhealthsystem.org

COACH: Mark Ritzler (8th year, 40-31)

LAST YEAR: 8-2 overall, 5-2 Three Rivers Athletic Conference LAST TRAC TITLE: 2011 OFFENSIVE SCHEME: Spread DEFENSIVE SCHEME: 3-4 STRENGTHS: Overall team depth; competitive nature;

defen-sive quickness. There are 17 seniors, 28 juniors and 30 sophomores on the varsity roster, and there seems to be an internal understanding that for the Trojans to be successful it will take all 75 of those players to make it happen.

WEAKNESSES: Friday night experience; brutal schedule. A number of current players let-tered last season, but only three were regulars game in and game out. Findlay will open against three solid, competitive pro-grams. League play will be even tougher, with Toledo Whitmer, Division I state runner-up last fall, and Division II state cham-pion Toledo Central Catholic looking as loaded as ever.

DEPTH CHART

2012 LEADERS

Kairys Strzesynski

Ritzler

PASSING ATT COMP YDS TDS INT Cosiano 145 89 1,656 20 7 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TDS Settlemire 171 1,934 11.3 33 Cosiano 56 291 5.2 6 Niswander 11 100 9.1 1 Muehl 14 148 10.6 2 RECEIVING REC YARDS AVG TDS Orwick 33 677 20.5 6 Davidson 19 392 20.6 6 Niswander 14 206 14.7 2

OFFENSE

According to receiver Nick Kairys: “How well we do will be determined by how we play together as a team. Everybody points to the guys we lost (gradu-ated). But the program has a good tradition.”

DEFENSE

According to nose guard Andy Strzesynski: “We have to be aggressive, use our quickness and swarm to the ball. We don’t have any superstars on this team. It’s going to take a team effort.”

Findlay can’t just reload, not after losing the arsenal of offen-sive skill and talent the Trojans displayed last season. But Ritzler and his staff don’t use the word “rebuild” either. The schedule got tougher and a Findlay team short on varsity experience will have to grow up fast under the Friday night lights. But there’s a lot of compe-tition for playing time, and that overall depth could translate into a competitive if not overpowering team on the field.

D E F E N S I V E U N I T QB Brandon Muehl Jr. 6-4 194 RB Austin Gutting Sr. 6-3 253 WR Nick Kairys Sr. 5-11 178 WR Joe Hammond Jr. 5-10 164 WR Tyler Sullivan Sr. 5-11 159 WR Grant Niswander Jr. 6-0 163 LT Noah Routson So. 6-4 265 LG Sam Iliff Jr. 6-3 245 C Anthony Gallagher Sr. 5-6 228 RG Andy Strzesynski Sr. 6-0 256 RT Eric Beard Sr. 6-1 202 K Grant McKinniss So. 6-0 180

QB Jordan Dean Sr. 5-11 197 RB Jordan Jones So. 5-9 165 WR Zach Haynes Sr. 6-2 167 WR Sam Siampaus Jr. 5-11 175 WR Sam McGhee Jr. 5-11 162 WR Nick Kiffmeyer Jr. 5-11 180 LT Austin Woessner Jr. 5-11 280 LG Will Bivens Jr. 6-0 312 C Luke Cosiano So. 5-10 194 RG Brendon Hoelscher Sr. 5-9 237 RT Marcus Lawson Jr. 5-11 233 K Chandler Stillings So. 6-2 173

NG Andy Strzesynski Sr. 6-0 256 DT Devon Stewart Sr. 6-2 251 DT Marcus Molina Sr. 5-9 235 INLB Mitch Perry Sr. 5-10 170 INLB Desmond Lino Jr. 6-1 207 INLB Tim Brooker Jr. 6-2 200 OSLB Zach Young Sr. 5-9 173 OSLB Doryin Thames Jr. 5-10 170 CB Zach Haynes Sr. 6-2 167 CB Emmanual Mogolu So. 5-9 152 FS Nick Kiffmeyer Jr. 5-11 180 SS Nick Kairys Sr. 5-11 178

P Grant McKinniss So. 6-0 180 NG Mike Jones Jr. 5-8 226 DT Austin Gutting Sr. 6-3 253 DT Kody Calkins Jr. 6-2 196 INLB Isaiah Romero Sr. 6-0 172 OSLB Alec Bonnoront Jr. 5-11 154 OSLB Chase Hoerig Jr. 5-11 153 CB Sam McGhee Jr. 5-11 162 CB Grant Niswander Jr. 6-0 163 SS Austin Cameron Jr. 5-8 156 FS Richie Escobar Jr. 5-10 143 P Joe Hammond Jr. 5-10 164 By DAVE HANNEMAN

FOR THE REVIEW TIMES

FINDLAY — The names and faces change as players come and go through the ranks of Findlay High’s football program.

But as far as Mark Ritzler is cerned, some things are forever con-stant.

“A lot of things change from year to year, but our goals remain the same,” Ritzler said.

“Our job is to go out there and try to do the best job we can, compete as well as we can and try to win football games. It’s Friday night football, so there really are no moral victories.”

If ever there was a season when Ritzler might be tempted to temper expectations, this would be it.

Graduation hit the team hard, costing the Trojans 19 of 22 starters and 27 total players from a skilled and talented class that went 10-1, won a Three Rivers Athletic Confer-ence championship and qualified for the Division I playoffs in 2011, then became the first team in school his-tory to average more than 50 points a game during last year’s 8-2 season.

Six of those players earned

All-Ohio honors. Headlining that group was record-setting running back Vance Settlemire, who set single-sea-son (1,934 yards, 33 TDs) and career (3,260, 53 TDs) marks for yards rush-ing and touchdowns.

Settlemire and triple threat Joseph Davidson, who intercepted six passes and had 32 tackles on defense, caught 19 passes for 392 yards and six TDs, and earned a scholarship from Bowl-ing Green State University for his punting ability (37.2 avg.), were sec-ond-team all-state selections.

University of Toledo recruit Austin Niswander (30 tackles, 206 yards receiving, 100 rushing), Notre

Dame baseball signee Jimmy Orwick (33 catches, 677 yards, 6 TDs) and four-year linebacker Devin Dennard, the Trojans’ leader in career tackles, were third-team All-State, and offen-sive lineman Bryce Burnside earned special mention All-Ohio.

Ritzler, though, is not one to lower the bar.

“We talked to the kids in January, and one thing we said was we are not going to use the word ‘rebuild,’” Rit-zler said.

“We’re not going in thinking, ‘Let’s

Standards

stay same

for Trojans

RANDY ROBERTS / the Review Times

MEMBERS OF THE FINDLAY High football team enjoy a little levity while waiting their turn at the squad’s picture day.