KICK OFF!
Teams face challenges as grid season opens
By Jim Horvath
Sports
Published Aug. 25, 2010

The West Shore Conference football championship went right down to the final games last season, with a number of surprises throwing the whole thing into a three-way tie between Bay, Rocky River and North Ridgeville.

Fairview stayed in the hunt most of the season, and had a big say at the end with its win at home over the Pirates on that final Friday.

And how about Lutheran West over in the Patriot Athletic Conference?

Let’s just say things can only get better for the Longhorns in 2010 after last year’s injury-riddled campaign.

The new season officially gets underway this Friday night, with Rocky River getting things started with a tough road game with Highland. Bay, under first-year head coach Ryan Gorius, is also away at Orange, while Lutheran West heads down the road to Fairview in one of the Westshore’s traditional opening night games.

River, the only area team to qualify for the playoffs last season, comes off a 7-4 overall record and a 5-2 WSC mark. If offense were the only necessary ingredient to a winning season, the Pirates would probably be the hands-down favorite to claim another league title.

Third-year head coach Rick Adams returns a versatile offense led by senior quarterback Robbie Plagens, who threw for over 1,800 yards last season. He’s got plenty of experienced targets to pick from in senior wide receivers Kyle Dunne, Zak Echols and the 6-3 Luke Riemenschneider.

The running game will have a veteran look as well, with senior Ben Hofecker starting at tailback and senior Alec Bouria manning the fullback spot. Junior Andreas Tjotjos will back up Hofecker at tailback. Up front, seniors Srdjan Demonjik at center and Jameson McGovern at tackle will provide experience as well.

That brings us to the Pirates’ defense.

“We’re very inexperienced on that side of the ball,” Adams admitted. “That’s one of the weaknesses we have going into the season. We’ve got a lot of new faces on that side of the ball.

“Last year, we were a plus 14 in the takeaway/giveaway ratio,” Adams said. “We were very good at taking away the ball, and that was a big part of our success. We definitely have to have some guys step up to get the job done for us this season.”

The River defense, however, isn’t totally without a veteran presence. Riemenschneider returns at defensive end, as does fellow senior Mike Jones. Senior Jake Hamilton returns at a linebacker spot, while Dunne and Echols will do double duty as they handle the chores in the defensive backfield. While solid, those are the only five starters returning on defense for the Pirates.

“How well we do this season will depend in part on how fast our defense can come together,” Adams said. “We can go out and score 50 points, but if we give up 51 we’re not going to win very many games.

“Having Robbie at quarterback is a huge plus for us if he has the type of year we feel he can have. And, of course, we have to stay healthy. That’s one of the biggest keys to our season. We’ve been pretty banged up during the double sessions, and we’re hoping to get some people back in the lineup soon,” he added.

At Bay, Gorius is ready to take over from the retired Mike Peregord, who led the Rockets to one of their best seasons ever at 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the WSC. Gorius has been with the program for three years and served as the team’s offensive coordinator, so he’s more than familiar with the players.

“One of the big things is that I got hired back in December,” Gorius said last Saturday. “That gave me the opportunity to have several meetings with the players and establish what we wanted to get accomplished.

“The all-season training and the effort these guys have put in have been outstanding,” Goriuis beamed. “They enjoyed last year’s success, and they want to build on that this year. Our 17 seniors want to write their own script this year and help the team in that building process.”

The Rockets just missed the playoffs, finishing ninth in their region. With 16 lettermen returning, Bay will be looking to get over the hump in 2010.

Senior quarterback Brian Hoke returns to lead the offense, while senior tailback Nathan Baumgard (5-7, 170) returns in the backfield as well. Senior Brian Liechti (6-0, 175) is also back at wide receiver, while fellow seniors Jake Johnston (6-2, 240) and Connor O’Doherty (6-2, 250) return to anchor the offensive line.

The offense will get further help from a number of returning lettermen, including junior tight end Evan Campbell (6-1, 170), senior lineman Jake Petkovic (6-4, 200), junior lineman Nathan Notarberardino (5-11, 200) and senior fullback Kevin Dzienny (6-1, 190).

Defensively, the Rockets bring back senior lineman Tim Hughes (6-0, 170), senior linebacker Matt Shepard (6-1, 185), junior outside linebacker Brian Woos (5-11, 165) and senior cornerback Jack Kevesdy (5-5, 140). Other lettermen stepping into defensive roles this fall are senior linebackers Tanner Liptrap (5-8, 180) and Alex Wilson (5-10, 185).

Another big weapon for the Gorius Gang will be senior place kicker Alec Petro, who was recently ranked as one of the top 25 place kickers in the country.

“We have some depth at the skill positions, but we need to have some players step up on both lines due to graduation,” Gorius said. “As a team, though, we’re very excited for the season to start. The expectations are very high for our team.”

Fairview will begin its final season in the WSC when the Warriors host future PAC opponent Lutheran West in Friday night’s opener. The team made some big strides last year, finishing 5-5 and closing out the season with its big win over River.

But that was last year, according to third-year head coach Dave Latkovic.

“We had a senior-laden team last year,” Latkovic said. “So this year, we are very inexperienced. We do have 66 kids out for football in grades 9 through 12, and that’s 30 percent of the boys in the high school. So the guys are getting interest in football here.

“The work ethic seems to have improved, but we’ll need some senior leadership and toughness to have a good year,” he added.

The Warriors only have two returning starters on offense and three on defense, so a lot of jobs have been up for grabs throughout training camp, Latkovic said. There are three key senior players back who are two-year varsity lettermen: fullback and inside linebacker Nick Williams (5-11, 200), center and defensive lineman Gage Falcone (6-0, 243) and defensive back Brett Willgren (5-7, 150).

Willgren has also been competing for the starting quarterback job with junior David Lansu. With leading rusher Jose Sanchez gone via graduation, senior Bashir Ahmad (5-11, 200) and junior Anthony Santos (5-7, 170) are looking to plug that hole for Latkovic and his staff.

The offensive and defensive lines, along with the receiving corps, took big graduation hits as well, according to Latkovic.

Seniors Ryan Szemplak (6-1, 188) and Andrew Elennis (5-9, 170) are in the mix for both lines, as is fellow senior Brandon Gallovich (6-3, 265), who is recovering from an injury. Juniors John Haney (5-9, 250), Trevor Fox (5-8, 220) and Kevin Joyce (5-9, 210) will look to contribute as well.

Seniors Jacob Belko, Evan Lyons and Sean Dobrzeniecki, a transfer from North Olmsted, will be looking to replenish the receiver position, as will juniors John Doherty and Chris Tashin. Kole Johnston (6-4, 200), a transfer from Texas, will come in to play tight end.

Dobrzeniecki will handle all the punting and place kicking duties for the Warriors, Latkovic said.

At Lutheran West, there’s no place to go but up after a staggering number of injuries totally destroyed the Longhorns’ 2009 season. One good thing about the season, however, was that a lot of young players saw playing time at several positions, according to head coach Dave Geye.

“We have a lot of on-field experience, but we also have a lot of guys playing in new positions,” said Geye, who begins his third season as head coach.

“We have a very athletic backfield on offense, with a lot of players getting some good experience last year due to all the injuries,” Geye said. “Our line, though, needs to gain experience and jell as a unit.

“On defense, we have good size on the line and at linebacker,” he said. “We’re switching over the a 3-4 defense this year, though, so the guys have to learn all the techniques and reads of a new defense.”

The Longhorns have 13 lettermen back, including senior quarterback James Ranc. Running backs Jacob Theobold (senior, 5-10, 160) and Larry Oldenburg (junior, 5-10, 205) return, as do senior Marcus Spelich (6-3, 190), senior Brad Watson (5-8, 145) and senior Russ Armbruster (5-11, 155).

Up front, the Longhorns welcome back junior center Zachary Zupancic (5-10, 200), senior guard John Graw (6-1, 180) and senior tackle Adam Shick (6-3, 215).

On defense, Shick is back up front at an end spot as well as sophomore Josh Smith (6-3, 295). Senior Kurt Guelker (5-11, 190) will man the nose tackle position in West’s new scheme. All four starting linebackers are lettermen in Spelich, Oldenburg, junior Al Schwandt (5-11, 205) and senior Paul Schultz (6-2, 220).

In the backfield, Armbruster returns along with Theobold, Watson and Ranc. Senior Marlon Drake (5-9, 160) will man a cornerback spot for the Longhorns.