Red Division Preview
Written Friday August 23rd at 1:05 PM
ONTV News Story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoMLYqQF3g8
Podcasts
Tyler Kieft
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5H0mhi6z1E
Scott Burnstein and Doug Corless
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKw-ZcIj474&t=82s
Civic Center TV Interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_K1oE4Eq3A
RED:
Preview Show
Will be added once it comes out.
DIVISION RECAP/STORYLINES:
The Red is known as the “Kiss of Death” this season. All five teams are more than capable of making the postseason. Lake Orion won the division and is loaded again despite questions at running back and linebacker. Clarkston lost their quarterback to transfer and has other questions elsewhere. West Bloomfield made the Division One State Semifinals last season. The Lakers have the offense to score with anyone but can the defense hold it’s end. Oxford has a ton of proven experience coming back along with a very difficult schedule. Adams has a group of proven experience coming back as well.
How does Lake Orion replace their running back and linebackers from last season???
Clarkston’s offensive line, quarterback, and defense looks really concerning, can they overcome distractions???
West Bloomfield has the makings of a State title team but quarterback and defensive secondary are really concerning???
Is Adams back to Adams???
Can Oxford make it back to the postseason with a really difficult schedule???
COMBINED SCHEDULES WITH LAST SEASON’S RECORDS WITH THIS SEASON’S SCHEDULES:
West Bloomfield 71-31
Clarkston 69-32
Oxford 64-34
Lake Orion 55-40
Adams 46-45
MANAGEABLE SCHEDULE: Adams: The Highlanders have a really manageable schedule when you looking deeper into it, playing against teams that went 46-45 last season. They have a tough week one game with Romeo. “When I see Romeo I kind of think of look in the mirror, similar in school size you know the kids they don’t have a bunch of four star, five stars they got kids you know they have D1 guys every now and then, they are very well coached, they are a state championship staff (2016) and those kids are going to play hard, they are going to block and tackle really really well and they’re really tough at home, for us we know it’s a huge challenge but we see a lot of ourselves in them and we played them a couple of times over the years in the playoffs, they’ve been really tough battles” Coach Tony Patritto said of playing Romeo. They have Rochester, Stoney Creek, North Farmington, and New Baltimore Anchor Bay which seems really winnable. “We play Rochester week two, you know that’s a rivalry game and that’s always tough” Patritto added. They still have Stoney Creek and North Farmington as well on the slate. “That’s always a passionate game, I expect Coach Powell and I’ve known his dad for a long long time to have a great game plan against us and you know Ricky did a nice job scheming against us last year so we know that’s going to be a really tough game” Patritto said of playing Stoney Creek. “Then we got to play North Farmington who we’ve had a tough time with over the years because their coaches do a great job and they know us well from the Harrison years” Patritto said about playing North Farmington. When they get into league play they have Clarkston and West Bloomfield coming to Adams but going to Lake Orion and Oxford will be tall tasks.”We have a stretch and I would put this three game stretch against anybody’s three game stretch in the State, we play West Bloomfield, Clarkston, and Lake Orion (two of those three are at Adams) in that sequence, those are three really tough games to have back to back to back” Patritto said about that early stretch of games. “Oxford who we play after Lake Orion, those coaches knows us so well, they’re great guys, great coaches, the Oxford kids are a lot like our kids, they are going to grind” Patritto added about playing Oxford. Overall the Highlanders have a ton of experience coming back which always helps. They could be a team to watch for. I think ultimately to beat great teams like Lake Orion, Clarkston, and West Bloomfield, we have to have balance because those are really smart coaches and if we’re one dimensional it doesn’t matter who you have playing receiver or quarterback, then we’re going to be in trouble” Patritto concluded.
NIGHTMARE SCHEDULE: Oxford: This might be the most difficult schedule I have ever seen anyone go through in my years of covering high school football. The Wildcats non-conference schedule is brutal and they are playing against teams that went 64-34 last season. They open at Swinehart against Utica Eisenhower then have to play the defending Division Four State Champs the following week then have to play Oak Park who could be much improved in week eight and then play Macomb Dakota in week nine. Luckily for Coach Zach Line and company three of those four are at Wildcat Stadium and that’s not mentioning the division which they have Lake Orion and Adams coming to Wildcat Stadium and trips to the Swamp and the Wolves Den. “When you play off teams your kids aren’t as focused, your practices aren’t as intense, you can say they are but they just aren’t but when you’re playing the top dog week in and week out you’re going to continue to get better and better but when you know you aren’t going 9-0 but when it matters in the playoffs you’re going to be ready to go and you’re going to give some teams problems” said Line. It’s going to be tough sledding for Oxford that is for sure but they played a tough schedule before and it got them to the postseason twice.
TEAM ON THE RISE: Clarkston: The Wolves have been a really interesting offseason story this summer with everything that has gone on with them but Clarkston has a pipeline of proven talent ready to take over although the transition from the sub varsities to the varsity doesn’t always translate to success but the Wolves junior class is really talented. They have a tough slate with three of their first four games on the road and Clarkston is facing teams that went 69-32 last season. The Wolves have Belleville in week one which is going to be tough. They have Oxford and West Bloomfield coming to Clarkston along with Utica Eisenhower and Bloomfield Hills which is likely homecoming. The Wolves have to go to Lake Orion, Adams, and Troy Athens. Clarkston looks prime to be very good for years to come.
TEAM THAT’S IN TROUBLE: No One: I don’t really see a team that’s in trouble in this division, there is so much parity in this division that it wouldn’t surprise anyone if all five teams in this division makes the playoffs.
WEST BLOOMFIELD LAKERS:
LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 10-3, 3-2 Red. Lost 40-35 to Southfield Arts and Tech in the Division One State Semifinals.
POINTS SCORED: 429 (30.6 ppg). 163 Red (32.6 ppg)
POINTS AGAINST: 291 (20.7 ppg). 145 Red (29 ppg)
KEY PLAYER: Jamal Shakesphere-Quarterback/Wide Receiver/Defensive Back.
STRENGTHS: Proven Skill Players, Offensive Line
CONCERNS: Defensive Secondary, Discipline
GAME OF THE YEAR: September 13 at Adams.
PROJECTED RECORD: 9-0. 4-0 Red.
PLAYOFF TEAM: Yes.
The Lakers had a really strong year last season but fell to Southfield Arts and Tech in the Division One State Semifinals. The loss should motivate them to do really well heading into this season. “Our biggest challenge is you know we were really close to our goal last year, I had a little up and down year but by the end of the year we were where we wanted to be, had a shot to win it and you it didn’t go our way” said Coach Zach Hilbers. West Bloomfield made some changes this offseason. The Lakers have Beau Jackson coming into the program. Jackson was at Novi Detroit Catholic Central last season and looks to be the starting quarterback for Hilbers. “Beau’s done a really good job that’s come in and learn our stuff and you know be a leader, I told him we got two young guys that we really, really, really like and we’re not going to give anything to anyone, right now they are in competition with each other and he’s done a really good job understanding and accepting it” Hilbers added about Jackson. A player that has been on my radar has been Jamal Shakesphere. Shakesphere can play anywhere on both sides of the football including quarterback. “He’s played quarterback for us on the younger levels, he was the backup to Rick Nance. This offseason he’s shown his offensive versatility, he’ll have some packages when he plays quarterback and play running back and slot receiver, free safety. After we got some injuries last year our two best tacklers were our quarterbacks (Nance/Shakesphere.) He’s a tough kid that works hard and wants to play football, he’s what every kid wants, he wants to get out there and play every way he can” Hilbers said. West Bloomfield has Jailen Allos and Josh Tate at running back. “They are close, pretty good friends when the hang out together outside of football, outside of the school and inside the school as well but they both really stepped up, Josh is a great coachable kid that we really expect to be one of our leaders in the offensive backfield with Jailen again we have a lot of guys where we’re lucky to say we got positional flexibility and versatility, he’s played free safety, he’s played strong safety, he’s played outside linebacker, he’ll play some slot and tight end, he’s gotten stronger, he’s gotten bigger, and he’s really just scratching the surface of his ability” Hilbers said of Allos. Whoever the quarterback is will have proven pass catchers in Kamryn Flowers, Elijah Durham, Christian Banks, and Obi Duru coming back. “Kam has worked his butt off this offseason, he was a speed kid that could run and be a good receiver, we used him how we could, he’s a lot more versatile now, he’s really worked on his game, knows he can’t just run by everyone even though he’s fast and I think he’s more of a complete player than last year, he’s been taking some snaps on defense. He wants to do whatever he can to make himself and our team better” Hilbers mentioned about Flowers. “Elijah’s been awesome he realizes what he has to do, he was more reserved for a couple of years on varsity, letting the seniors do their thing and he realizing that it’s his turn to step up and be that leader, it’s been a growing process for him and I’m really proud of him because he’s trying to embrace it and take that role for him” The offensive and defensive lines should be very interesting to watch. They have Jeremiah Benson, Travis Robertson, Michael Pittman, Kamari Pittman, and Dwayne Broome coming back. They added Jay Gardenhire who transferred from New Jersey this offseason at 6.8 350 lbs on the offensive line. “His mom was getting a new job relocating to the Midwest and had family in the area, we’re fortunate enough that you know we were his landing spot. He’s done a really good job kind of buying into our strength training and what we told him what to do to reach his potential, we’re excited to see what he’s about” Hilbers said about Gardenhire. The back end of the defense should be very good with proven experience in Blake Simmons, Ezekel Davis, Malcom Gibson, Christian Hood, Brody Pikur (out until midseason-labrum surgery,) and Will Espy coming back at linebacker. They have Jonathan Edison, Shakesphere, Malcomb Ross, Sean Johnson, and Kaliq Robinson in the defensive secondary coming back for Hilbers. The Lakers have program strength and loaded again to make another deep postseason run this season. “Our biggest challenge now is not to be complacent and realize we had a tough road to get there and if we want to get back and make one or two more plays and hopefully have a chance to win one or two more games, it’s going to be really hard, you can’t take it for granted the past success and all it does it means there is a bigger target on your back especially in this league” Hilbers concluded. West Bloomfield will for sure be a threat this season.
BEST CASE: The Lakers defense is shored up especially in the defensive secondary to go along with their high octane offense they could be in line to have another successful season.
WORSE CASE: If the Lakers are having quarterback issues and aren’t up to par defensively especially in the secondary then they could be in line for a ton of Big Twelve shootouts this season.
West Bloomfield Podcast (First Segment)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TujKDHv0lc&t=1218s
LAKE ORION DRAGONS:
LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 10-1, 5-0 Red. Lost 38-37 to Clarkston in Division One District Finals.
POINTS SCORED: 435 (39.5 ppg). 181 Red (36.2 ppg)
POINTS AGAINST: 214 (19.4 ppg). 76 Red (15.2 ppg)
KEY PLAYER: Jackie Vasquez-Running Back/Wide Receiver/Defensive Back.
STRENGTHS: Quarterback, Defensive Secondary
CONCERNS: Linebackers, Rushing Attack
GAME OF THE YEAR: August 29 at Northville.
PROJECTED RECORD: 7-2. 2-2 Red.
PLAYOFF TEAM: Yes.
The Dragons had a really strong year going unbeaten with wins over Saline, West Bloomfield, Adams, Oxford, and Clarkston in the regular season. They had a really tough 38-37 loss to Clarkston in the district finals last season. “Last season was a lot of fun, we were a great football team, it was great to see the kids play to their potential, I thought we got better every single week, we had a bunch of tremendous players, the schedule we played was really tough, every game was tough there was no easy game but it was a great year, we ended up losing in the second round of the playoffs which was an upset after we handled Clarkston (won 42-21 at Clarkston) a couple weeks prior in the league championship game but us and Clarkston goes way back, a lot of times who wins the regular season and then gets upset in the playoffs (2006, 2007.) It’s really hard to play someone in the playoffs twice because they are making adjustments and we need to make adjustments, it was a great football game, we had multiple opportunities to win the game, both teams played really hard, they had some key players who made key plays at key times that kept drives alive for them, we had chances to put them away, they just made one more play than we did, at the end of the season your still proud of the kids, they were disappointed after the Clarkston game, it was a great game, I can’t fault the effort or your preparation that’s football, you can’t win them all but we came up just a little bit short and it wasn’t because of our preparation, I have to give Clarkston credit. Overall there were a lot of offensive records that were set, defensively that was the best we had in years. we have an all state kicker that is returning so it was special all the way around, the coaching staff, the kids, it was a lot of fun, it was great, a lot of memories and we’re ready to turn the page and get ready for the season” said Coach and Athletic Director Chris Bell. Lake Orion has made the postseason six of the last eight years should be solid this season but they have some questions especially on the defensive side of the football. The Dragons had a really good junior varsity team going 6-3 last season but sometimes that doesn’t always translate going to varsity. “There’s too many to name, and they are all good players, they are competing for jobs, there is a lot of talent, a lot of good players, the coaching staff down there did a really good job getting them ready, we were able to spend a lot of time getting them ready in the playoffs so we had a really good chance to work with them, they are going to fill some key roles and that’s a strength, we have a good mixture of juniors and seniors, this year offensively we are senior heavy but we’ll have some key juniors in there and defensively it will be a good mixture of both” Bell said about his junior varsity team and the transition to varsity. Lake Orion has some proven experience coming back for Bell who are multi-sport athletes. “Our best players are multi-sport athletes, it’s something we believe in Lake Orion, sometimes kids specialize and that will take care of itself but our athletes play as many sports as they can, it makes them a better athlete, it avoids burn out” Bell added about multi sport athletes playing a big role on the team. The Dragons have a duel threat quarterback in three year starter TR Hill coming back. Hill had a really good year as a duel threat last season and is looking to do more this season. The rushing attack especially the power game is a question mark after losing Billy Robertson to graduation. They have Jackie Vasquez coming back at one of the slot wide receiver spots. Vasquez has proven to be very versatile on both sides of the football. Jayden Borrero could be a player to watch along with Travis Acker and DonDiego Hopkins is another player to watch who could see some time at the power back spot. Hill has proven pass catchers in Jahmari Cooper and Ryan Rocheleau coming back along with newcomer Kyle England (transferred from Detroit Old Redford) at wide receiver. The offensive and defensive lines should be a strength again this season. They have Brendan Nepchuk, Landon Morris, Lane Garris, Parker Bressett, Leo Cassell, Jacob Escobedo, and Brennan Ellison coming back. They also have some depth on the offensive and defensive lines as well which allows Bell to move some linemen around. “We return eight starters on offense, we return TR Hill obviously one of the best quarterbacks in the State of Michigan, we return Brennan Ellison, Landon Morris at guard, we return Jacob Escobedo at tackle, we have Jackson Vasquez at the slot, we return Jahmari Cooper who played outside, is going to play inside this year, he’ll be in the slot. We have Ryan Rocheleau who played his way into the lineup, he had a lot of playing time until he got injured. Ryan has had a great summer, he’s going to play on the outside but when we go to our tight end set, he’ll be inside. We return a lot of fire power on offense, we got to figure out who are running back is, Trey Pochmara was our backup last year but he also is in the defensive secondary, it will be a running back by committee. We got to replace the guard and center up front but we got some good kids there, we’re going to be big and strong up front, we do have a transfer that moved into the district in Kyle England who came from Detroit Old Redford, he’s going to play at one of the wide receiver spots, he’s been tremendous all summer, we got talent at the skill spots, we’re big up front, we return the quarterback, we’re going to have a ton of guys running the ball, we should be able to score a lot of points” Bell said about his offense. The back end of the defense could be the question mark this season for Bell especially losing Kaydon DeGraffenreid and Joey DeBrincat to graduation. The Dragons also lost defensive coordinator Rick Powell this offseason (became new Stoney Creek coach.) They have Russ Purdy taking over the defense as the defensive coordinator. Purdy coached linebackers last season and was a defensive coordinator at Seaholm under Coach Jim DeWald. Lake Orion has Payton McIntyre and Alex Hensley coming back at linebacker along with Pochmara, Grady Harbin, AJ Leitz, and Austin Conn in the defensive secondary coming back. Brody Thompson, Hopkins, Jackson Shoskey, and Max Neering could be players to watch on the defensive side of the football this season. “We’re going to have a great defensive line, TNT looking really good we have Parker Bressett, Brendan Nepchuk, Lane Garris all got a lot of time last year he’s back. We got Peyton McIntyre at linebacker and then we return three of the four in the secondary with Austin Conn, and AJ Leitz, Trey Pochmara and Grady Harbin stepping in, he was our nickel and got a lot of time, we’re really experienced in the secondary. We lost three really good linebackers, we do have to replace those three but we got some great kids who have worked hard this summer, we got talent, we got people, defensively we’re going to be athletic, run to the ball, we got a good secondary that allows us to be aggressive like we were last year so we’re really excited defensively” Bell said about the defense. They have Will Hoffman handling the kicking duties Hoffman was an all state kicker last season and could see some time at linebacker. The Dragons have a brutal non conference schedule which includes Northville, Stoney Creek, Farmington, and Saline this season. Program strength looks to be solid for Bell especially with the youth levels along with merging all three middle schools in Scripps, Waldon, and Oakview Middle Schools and the Lake Orion Youth Football program.”We have four teams, two seventh grade teams, two eighth grade teams (Green and White teams,) there is good coaches down there, several of them have high school coaching experience, the idea there is to give as many kids in our district an opportunity to play football, they want to be coached, learn about the fundamentals, have some fun, play for your school, dress in the green and white, the younger they get its about the fundamentals and having fun but it’s also trying to be successful in the middle school and it’s our feeder program, they do a great job and we support them when we can and our numbers are good coming into high school who want to play football in the freshmen level, we’re going to have over 50 players on the freshmen team which is a credit to our middle school program, if they aren’t doing a good job then we’re not going to see those kids in the high school level that’s what it’s all about” Bell added. Lake Orion also has a very strong youth league which helps a lot. “The Dragon foundation runs the youth league, the demand for roster spots had exceeded the number of roster spots we have, kids want to play, this is a great thing. Our youth league coaches do a great job also John Blackstock does a tremendous job with our tackling program and that’s exploded as well, it’s a feeder program just like in baseball you go from T-Ball to machine pitching which is a tethered process in football you have flag football which is tremendous which kids can play as long as they want and if they move into the rookie tackle which is a scale down version of regular football, fewer players, smaller field, more rules to encourage passing, more wide open the kids really enjoy it and then from there they play in full youth league, full size field, regular football, getting into it, it’s all about being age appropriate to make sure your kids are having a positive experience, learning the fundamentals, they’re safe, they’re well coached as the move up, that’s what’s it’s about” Bell said about the youth levels. The Dragons have a really strong community base which is shows every Friday night. “Lake Orion football is special, the community comes out on Friday nights whether it’s at home or on the road where they will be times there will be more fans on the road then those on the home bleachers, the community has been so supportive of our program. Lake Orion is a special place, we want to make sure the kids know that” Bell concluded. The Dragons have the talent and should be competitive this season. It comes down to if the young players adjust on the fly and if they stay healthy, if they do, look out.
BEST CASE: If the Dragons stay healthy and perform to what they are capable of on both sides of the football then Lake Orion would be in line for another really good season.
WORSE CASE: If Hill gets hurt and injuries mount especially to their star players then it’s a serious concern for the Dragons and their season.
Bell Interview-Casey Campbell Podcast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsnYsuvcdi4
Lake Orion Football Preview Show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0b40KeBHFt8&t=1061s
CLARKSTON WOLVES:
LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 6-6, 4-1 Red. Lost 21-20 to West Bloomfield in Division One Regional Finals.
POINTS SCORED: 290 (24.1 ppg.) 146 Red (29.2 ppg)
POINTS AGAINST: 290 (24.1 ppg.) 107 Red (21.4 ppg)
KEY PLAYER: Lucas and Griffin Bowman-Running Backs/Defensive Secondary/Linebacker.
STRENGTHS: Rushing Attack, Proven Wide Receivers
CONCERNS: Both Lines, Defense, Quarterback
GAME OF THE YEAR: September 20 at Adams.
PROJECTED RECORD: 5-4. 1-3 Red.
PLAYOFF TEAM: Yes.
It was a really odd year for the Wolves who have made the postseason 20 of the last 21 years and will look to make it 21 of the last 22 years this season. Clarkston struggled to make the postseason but they went to the regional finals falling 21-20 to West Bloomfield after having a field goal blocked. “It was definitely one of those up and down seasons part of that is attributed to our schedule and never having much of a break, being in the OAA Red is obviously I think as good as a conference, league there is in the entire state and then our schedule we had with the crossover and non-conference slate, I mean we played two state champions (Southfield Arts and Tech and Harper Woods) in our crossovers games and our non-league games were Northville and Eisenhower who are two really good football teams last year so our record wasn’t great and was up and down and not as consistent as I like it to be but some of that can be attributed to the opponents we played including the non-conference games we had” said Coach Justin Pintar. The Wolves have a ton of questions coming into the season and have had a ton of offseason drama as well. They have a ton of skill players and Clarkston’s junior varsity went 8-1 last season but as they all say junior varsity doesn’t always translate to varsity. The Wolves have a ton of proven skill players despite losing Desman Stephens and Brody Kosin to graduation and they lost Brady Collins who transferred to Detroit University-Detroit Jesuit. “Brady mentioned at the end of the school year that he was going a different direction so he’s not expected to play here this fall” Pintar said about Collins departure. Pintar mentioned that the quarterback competition is down to two guys in Alex Waszczenko and Mick Mahaffey. “We got a couple of younger guys in Alex Waszczenko and Mick Mahaffey who’ve been kind of battling it out in the summer for that quarterback spot, they’ll be a little inexperienced because they are sophomores but they are both very good athletes, there teammates like them, and they are well respected. Alex has a little bit more different skill set than Mick does. Mick is probably as fast a guy we got on our team so he gives us an element of speed there. They’ve been battling it out, we’ll see when the pads come on, we got a couple of weeks to figure it out but we feel pretty good about both quarterbacks” Pintar said about both quarterbacks. The Bowman twins are coming back for the Wolves. Griffin looks to be key at linebacker while Lukas is solid in the defensive secondary. Both twins are really capable running backs and proven pass catchers will be looking for this season. “This is their third year of varsity football, they played a key role for us last year and now with three years under their belt they know what’s expected of them and they know what they need to do, they are definitely the kind of kids you enjoy coaching because they are all about football, they’re all about going out there, they play hard, there won’t be a time that I won’t have to question their effort on the field, they don’t play that way, they play all out all the time and they are physical, they’re fast, they want to run the ball hard, they aren’t afraid of contact, on defense they are looking to find the ball so we’re excited to have them back for another year under their belt and it’s exciting to have them back for one more season after this” Pintar added about the Bowman twins. Whoever the quarterback is will have proven pass catchers in Grayson Clark, Brady Beck, Cameron Quaine, Benny Adams, Colton Williams, Hank Orgow, Wendell Childs, and Cameron Love at wide receiver and TJ Shaffer at tight end coming back. “We got a lot of pieces in terms of skill pieces on the field, we don’t have the power five guys like we did last year (Stephens and Kosin) but we feel really good about our depth and have the ability to spread the football around which can sometimes be an asset as well when you know teams know where you want to go with the football it makes it easier for them to defend that when you got four, five, or six guys that you’re really trying to get the football too, I think it makes it tougher on defenses so I feel we have that ability to spread the football around a lot this year to different guys” Pintar mentioned about his deep wide receiving core. The offensive and defensive lines are a concern for Pintar despite having Zach Radlick and Drew Ball coming back on both sides of the football but they will be really young on both sides of the football. “Our most experienced offensive lineman is going to be Drew Ball, he was a starter on defense for us and came in and started on offense and got hurt at the end of the season which was a big loss for us up front but he’s not our typical Clarkston lineman that we’ve had in the past, he’s not that 285 lbs, 6.3, 6.4 lineman, he’s a little undersized but he played with great technique and he’s physical and strong. The lack of size he makes up with everything else with the energy and effort and he plays that way on the defensive side too, he’s kind of one of those guys that can be a game wrecker or game changer on the defensive side of the ball so we’re excited for him to be on our offensive line yet again and after that we’re going to be a little bit more younger, there is a good chance that we’re going to start two or three juniors on that offensive line, one of which was with us last year, so he’s got some good experience just being on varsity, he got a little bit of time, not a lot of time in games but he was going up against these guys in practice all the time and that makes a lot of difference, we’re going to be a little bit younger we lost five seniors who at some point played last year but our offensive line last year was as small as we’ve ever had, I think at one point three of them were under 200 lbs and the other ones were 225 at that, we should be a little bigger which I’m looking forward too, not going to be quite be a vintage Clarkston offensive line but a little more size never hurts up front” Pintar mentioned about his offensive and defensive lines. The back end of the defense will be the major test for Pintar but he has both Bowman twins there as well. They have Beck, Love, Jackson Kopish, Waszczenko, and Jackson Craiglow coming back in the defensive secondary along with Aidan O’Neil handling the kicking duties. “Our back seven or eight are looking pretty good, our linebackers Griff (Bowman) plays one of our overhang backer spots and then Brady Cody is a guy who missed last season that works his butt off in the weight room and we’re excited to see what he can do at middle linebacker, Cooper Collins is another kid, who’s a really good athlete, has good size that we’re going to look at playing either an overhang or a back end defensive end depending on where we need him. We got a lot of guys, we are pretty fortunate with what we got and just on the seven on seven stuff in the summer, I think those guys have looked good and we’re expecting a lot out of our defense and hoping that’s probably the most improved part of our team” said Pintar. Clarkston has a ton of program strength with their freshman, junior varsity, Clarkston Jr. High, Sashabaw Middle School, and the Clarkston Chiefs youth football program. “That’s a huge part of the success is the programs we’ve have at the sub-varsity level, seven through 12, one of the things we’re fortunate about is a lot of our coaches stick around, a lot of our coaches are in the district, they’re teachers, they want to help out in any way they can, we’re really lucky from year to year, we probably retain 90 percent of our coaches and that makes a big difference because they know the system, they know what our expectations are, they aren’t trying to coach up your coaches at the lower level so that’s a big part of it is just having that continuity and consistency at our lower levels and we’re really fortunate in that way and I don’t think that’s the case at every school and in the terms of our seventh and eighth grade, I believe all of those levels went undefeated last year, not mistaken if they played a game not playing each other, our seventh and eighth grade are strong, our numbers have been really good at both levels, I think we’re at about 70 kids last year at seventh and eighth grade at each level and then this year’s incoming freshmen class we’re thinking it’s going to be in the 50’s but it will drop off before the season starts but if we’re in the 50’s with our freshmen program that’s a really good sign, both our freshmen and JV programs continue to do what’s in the best interest of the program and sometimes that doesn’t always lead to winning every single game, they may lose some games because they’re trying to run our stuff and maybe it doesn’t quite fit as well with the freshmen but it makes a big difference later on and there’s the case that we may take some guys maybe away from our JV team and that maybe affects their depth and stuff but both those levels have had success and traditionally have had success and continue to have success so we’re really fortunate, the one thing about Clarkston football is we don’t have transfers, we don’t have anybody coming in from outside the school, we’re not out there recruiting other kids from other teams, we play with the kids we got, and the kids we got are really good and they put in the work, put in the time, they believe in what we are trying to teach them and coach them and that makes a big difference, and it starts at the Chiefs level and I know their numbers have been very good again recently, it starts down there and that’s our feeder system and we’re lucky that we have the continuity the program is not a nine through 12 program like it is in some places but a seven through 12 program for us but our feeder program ties into it as well and we’re lucky to have that” Pintar said about program strength. Pintar credited legendary coaches in Clarkston basketball coach and athletic director Dan Fife and former coach Kurt Richardson for showing him the way around the land of Clarkston. “When I first got hired here, I was introduced to Coach Fife, we sat down and talked and he knew that I coached basketball before and I wanted to coach basketball so he got me a position at Sashabaw Middle School and so right from the start he was one of the first people I met and the opportunity to coach next to him or alongside him is something I will cherish forever, he was really welcoming even as a seventh grade coach those guys invited me to come watch practices or sit on the bench or go in the locker room and listen to the talks, I always appreciated how he was welcoming in that way, he was always accepting everybody and wanting anybody who wanted to be involved had an opportunity to come and learn from him. The thing that I probably take away the most from him was the standard he set, the standard of excellence, he never wavered on, he was an ultra competitive human being, he didn’t want to lose, he set that standard for his team and he made sure he held his team to that standard, it takes a special person to do that, when the games weren’t going well or when practice was done he had a way of connecting and relating to people and telling a story, just having a conversation knowing everybody’s name, he was a guy who was as good as it gets off the court and that’s the biggest difference. Really fortunate to kind of watch his craft and learn from him and there is stuff I know I say today, I took from him and I’m really grateful for that opportunity” Pintar mentioned about Fife. “You get your first teaching job and it’s at Clarkston you got Dan Fife on one hand and Coach Richardson on the other hand and to be able to learn from and see how those two guys lead by example, same thing with KR he set a standard and he held everybody to that standard not just the players but as coaches to that standard so the opportunity to learn from a guy like KR is just incredible and you package that with being able to learn from Coach Fife on the other side with basketball and talk about landing in a lucky spot for myself, the thing I really appreciated in the two to three years I’ve taken over here is that KR is a guy that I have any questions if I need any help with anything or if I want to run anything by him he’s a phone call away and he’s always there to help. He always wants to help but he doesn’t want to step in anybody’s toes and that can be hard especially with guys who have dedicated their entire life to this, the reason they dedicated their entire life to this is because they are so passionate about it and it can be hard for those guys to step away and not be overly involved and KR has done an incredible job whenever we need him without trying to step on anybody’s toes and I really appreciated that, it makes it easier to lead when that’s the case, very fortunate, very lucky to have KR around and still here to talk too and run ideas off of and I’m really lucky to be in that spot having coached under KR” Pintar added about Richardson. The Wolves should be in the conversation with the numbers (70 kids in the varsity, 40’s JV level, and 50’s in the freshmen level, expecting 70’s in the seventh and eighth grade level) and proven talent but the concerns are still there with this program. “Football will change their live for the better, they’re going to learn things, they’re going to form friendships and bonds that are going to last a life time, there’s dealing with adversity as a team and to achieve goals, there is so much that football provides that the kids who gets this experience are very fortunate, it’s something I hope we get more kids involved because it will help them for the rest of their life, we’re always hoping to try and get more kids involved” Pintar concluded on the numbers. Clarkston will be a player that is for sure this season.
BEST CASE: The Bowman twins stay healthy and continue their dominance on both sides of the ball. They develop their offensive line and find a quarterback and the defense shows major improvement then Clarkston is back to Clarkston.
WORSE CASE: The Wolves struggle at quarterback, the offensive line struggles, and the defense really struggles. Also injuries especially to the Bowman twins would be really concerning for Pintar and Clarkston. The Wolves non conference schedule isn’t strong unless Southfield Arts and Tech, Troy Athens, and Bloomfield Hills show improvement. They have Belleville and Utica Eisenhower which helps but the three mentioned need to win games to enhance the Wolves resume, this is something they can not control. Clarkston is the most vulnerable when it comes to missing out on the postseason for that reason.
Clarkston Podcast (Third Segment)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aSQVvOwPNc&t=3101s
ADAMS HIGHLANDERS:
LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 6-4, 2-3 Red. Lost 42-14 to West Bloomfield in the Division One First Round.
POINTS SCORED: 250 (25 ppg) 100 Red (20 ppg.)
POINTS AGAINST: 189 (18.9 ppg.) 113 Red (22.6 ppg.)
KEY PLAYER: Matteo Humbert-Fullback/Linebacker.
STRENGTHS: Quarterback, Rushing Attack
CONCERNS: Defensive Secondary, Depth
GAME OF THE YEAR: September 13 vs West Bloomfield.
PROJECTED RECORD: 8-1. 3-1 Red.
PLAYOFF TEAM: Yes.
It was a really interesting season for the Highlanders which had a really young team but they did make the postseason falling 42-14 to West Bloomfield last season. They had some struggles especially on the defensive side of the football which was really unusual for a Coach Tony Patritto program. “Last year was kind of a disappointment, we didn’t play well in the conference but the conference was really outstanding in terms of talent, we were playing a sophomore quarterback and we had Brady (Prieskorn) who’s a great player but we weren’t deep in other spots so you know I think we learned a lot from last year and hopefully what we learned from last year will help. For the veer to work, it needs the offense, defense, and special teams to do well and when they struggle to get all three phases that usually spells trouble. Adams was really young as mentioned last season but they have a ton of proven experience coming back. “It all started back in the late 80’s when I was coaching at U-D Jesuit, I coached a guy name Ron Rice who went to Eastern (Michigan) and played for the Detroit Lions, he was a sophomore quarterback, 15 years old and we were playing in the Central Division of the Catholic League at that time so Catholic Central, DeLaSalle, Brother Rice, St. Marys so we didn’t have a lot of linemen so what gave us an opportunity to at least make some first downs and move the ball to keep possession against those great teams was run triple (option) so that’s where it all started, I learned most of it from Tony Annesse who is the head coach at Ferris State University and his brother coached with me for many years and that’s where I learned most of the fundamentals, I studied the academies and everyone who does their own little wrinkle on it and when I went to Bishop Foley before I came to Adams (2002) we were in the same boat, we had a 22 man varsity roster playing DeLaSalle, Brother Rice, St. Marys and those schools, (Detroit) DePorres back in the day and for us to be successful we had to double at the point of attack, read somebody and that way we were only to block ten guys instead of 11 so that’s really the premise of what we do now is much more diversified with the spread option, still running elements of the triple (option) that people have to prepare for but when people load the box we can do some other things now and I have to give credit to my son Mark Patritto who’s helping me call the offense now and helping me kind of expand my thought processes on the offensive side” Patritto said about the veer offense. The Highlanders have a proven quarterback in Ryland Watters coming back. Watters made a name for himself last season and will look to continue that success for Patritto. He mentioned that Watters could see time at linebacker this season. “If our quarterback is good we’re usually okay, he’s about 6.2, 210 (lbs), he’s a really tough kid, he’s a really good athlete, he’s going to play a little defense for us at linebacker so you know our battery in the backfield in the triple (option) having a good quarterback and fullback makes us more balanced and hopefully more difficult to defend” Patritto said of Watters. Adams has Matteo Humbert comes back at running back. Humbert was the B back (lead running back in the veer offense) and a very good linebacker as well. “Matteo he’s a three year starter at fullback, he was our linebacker too so you know he’s really worked to make himself bigger faster and stronger, he’s probably the hardest worker I’ve ever had in my 35 years, we expect him to be a dominant force especially on offense carrying the ball but also as a really good linebacker so Matteo is going to be a great two way starter” Patritto said of Humbert. Watters should have proven pass catchers in Lachlin Tillotson, Jack Cici, Cam Dywood, Connor Helfridge, Trenton LaGarge, and Landon Greier at wide receiver coming back.”I think you know Lachlin, Connor Helfridge, Trenton LaGarge and a bunch of other dudes are really stepping up at the reciever positions, our slots can really run routes, Cam Dywood’s going to be a junior, he runs really good routes, so we’re hoping some of those guys who didn’t play a lot last year can catch some the ball we would had thrown to Brady (Prieskorn) and give us some balance so people can’t load up the box against us” Patritto said about his wide receivers. The offensive and defensive lines should be solid with Liam Kania, James Tsamadis, Rowan Kawa, and Henry Little coming back. “We have Liam Kania returning, 6.3 220 (lbs) just a chicil specimen, well play defensive end and offensive tackle, opposite him will be Rowan Kawa who’s 6.4 288 (lbs), he’ll play the other tackle spot. We’re going to be young at the other line positions, that’s going to be the biggest question for us” The back end of the defense will be the question for Patritto with Watters, Tillotson, and Humbert coming back at linebacker. Adams has Tommy Offer, Paxton Battershall, and Cici coming back in the defensive secondary. “We have two outstanding seniors in Tommy Oliver and Paxton Battershall who will play slot for us and start on defense and then we have Lachlin Tillotson who’s our best returning receiver and corner, he’s going to be a big play guy and we got some juniors that I think will surprise some people” Patritto added. Program strength looks to be solid especially with the middle school programs at Van Housen and some from West Middle School along with the Rochester Raiders youth football program. “So last year our freshmen and JV teams were very competitive teams, they were small rosters but really tough kids and they both had really successful seasons beaten the schools that were much bigger than us but this year believe it or not this is the most kids we’ve had in our program since 07, we’ll have 40 on the freshman, 40 on the JV, and over 40 on the varsity and we haven’t had those kinds of numbers at the lower levels so it was really hard for us especially at the JV level because we’re playing teams like Lake Orion, Clarkston, and West Bloomfield that put two platoons at the JV level and we got eight guys going both ways you know with a 22 man roster so we won a lot of those games and now we have a little bit more depth in the program, I’m excited to see what those guys do and we get players from two different Middle Schools (Van Hoosen and West) and our local club the Rochester Raiders, used to be the Redskins, I’ve never paid attention to anybody in the middle school so I have no idea what they are doing, so when they show up as a freshmen, I coach them” Patritto said about program strength. The Highlanders should be better but they have a ton of questions especially in the defensive secondary. Depth is another concern to watch with Adams. “You got to be reasonable, you could be a really good team like Oxford or Adams and win two games or no games in the OAA Red, they’ll be no shame in that to be perfectly candidate with you but our expectations like 21 (went to the Division One State Championship Game) and 22 is to win the league so last year was not good, we had three league losses (Lake Orion, Clarkston, West Bloomfield) and that’s just not acceptable so we know we have a very small margin of error, if we’re not executing at a high level, no pre snap penalties, no turnovers, we have to take care of the ball and finish drives with touchdowns, not field goals, we know we as Adams to beat the biggies and to beat the great four teams in our conference, we got to play close to perfect to win so that’s what were going to strive for, I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not but we’re going to give it our best shot” Patritto concluded. The Highlanders should be a team to watch this season.
BEST CASE: The Highlanders are back to being Adams with the veer offense (triple option.) Watters is healthy, Humbert is having a monster season, and Tillotson is having a monster year along with a much improved defense. If these three stay healthy then Patritto could have a chance to make some serious noise in the postseason.
WORSE CASE: The lines and the defense struggles for a second straight season. Also if injuries mount and Watters regresses, those could also be red flags. The schedule is toughen enough for the Highlanders but the postseason seed might not be as good as they want.
Adams Podcast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlbXDIDaYi8
OXFORD WILDCATS:
LAST SEASON’S RECORD: 4-6, 1-4 Red. Lost 58-26 to Lake Orion in Division One First Round.
POINTS SCORED: 218 (21.8 ppg.) 91 Red (18.2 ppg.)
POINTS AGAINST: 282 (28.2 ppg.) 176 Red (35.2 ppg.)
KEY PLAYER: Luke Johnson-Running Back/Linebacker.
STRENGTHS: Quarterback, Rushing Attack
CONCERNS: Defensive Secondary
GAME OF THE YEAR: August 29 at Utica Eisenhower.
PROJECTED RECORD: 4-5. 0-4 Red.
PLAYOFF TEAM: Yes.
The Wildcats have played one of the most vicious schedules in the last four years and with the rules in place, even a losing record can get you into the postseason like what Oxford did last season, making the postseason with a losing record and needing to win three of their last four games to even make it. The Wildcats have a really tough schedule again this season for Coach Zach Line. “It was a testament of the guys to keep working, you’re going to have games where we don’t play Oxford brand of football, I think our guys have zero quit in them so we always have a chance in every game, we enjoy having a harder schedule, I mean you look at it we open up with Ike (Utica Eisenhower) and we end the season with Dakota so it doesn’t get any easier especially with our OAA Red schedule we have” said Line. Oxford has some questions when it comes to depth but they have proven playmakers coming back but talking to Line he mentioned that this was his deepest team he’s had at Oxford. “The more grown up your team is, we have a senior heavy team this year the better off you are” said Line. The Wildcats have a proven quarterback in Jack Hendrix coming back. Hendrix had a breakout year last season and had a monster game against Stoney Creek which turned their season around. “Jack has done a really good job, his biggest improvement is his leadership and his command of the huddle so you know as soon as you walk into the huddle you’re going to have confidence with Jack because he’s going to speak clearly, speak with confidence, and he knows the plays better know so he’s not just saying words, they mean nothing to him, he knows the playbook, he’s spent a lot of time this offseason, at lunchtimes going over the playbook where he’s reading where he’s going, knowing where the running back’s doing and why’s he’s doing that so he’s in a good spot as far as X’s and O’s go so it makes him more confident as a player and obviously Jack is gifted at throwing the football and he’s got enough speed and quickness to make people miss, he’s going to be a really good quarterback for us, and we’re looking forward for him to have a great junior year” Line said of Hendrix. Oxford has been known for pound the rock under then coach Bud Rowley. The Wildcats have a proven runner in Luke Johnson. Johnson has been a stud at running back and is expected to see some time at linebacker. “Luke is a stud, he’s our only named captain so far, named him in the spring in the offseason, Luke is our leader, as he goes, we go, he’s a great player, gifted in a lot of a lot of ways, he’s taken a big jump so far, I can already tell as a leader being vocal and holding his guys accountable so that’s a huge asset for us having Luke at linebacker, running back it’s a great thing to have in our arsenal” Line said of Johnson. Johnson will be wearing the legendary #42 this season. #42 is a huge honor in Oxford to have. That number honors greats such as Line, his brother Prescott Line, and Tate Myre have worn that number for the Wildcats. Hendrix will have Jake Champagne, Liam O’Neil, Eli Carpenter, and Owen Pavlock coming back at wide receiver. “We’ll roll with a lot of other guys but Jake is a great receiver for us, he’s a big body, catches the ball really well I think the basketball side of him allows him to use his body and you know box people out in space and he’s getting better and better at that and that comes with being a senior and even having more confidence and you can see it with Jake now, he’s more confident with what he’s doing, he’s not asking as many questions as he was, he’s flying around and having fun” Line said of Champagne. “We got a good arsenal of receivers, we have three or four that I could mention” Line added about his wide receivers. Pavlock and O’Neil could also see time in the defensive secondary. Drew Cady handles the kicking duties. “The Cady family is always professional, they always stay after, they’re going to get their kicking in and kick even longer, you know they’re always going to be ready so as a coach I don’t have to do much in practice because I don’t want to get their leg hurt but I also trust they are dialed in, they’ll be ready to go when that kick is needed, athletically both of them (Drew and his brother Jay) are super athletic so it’s kind of a double edge sword because you want to use them on offense, defense, and everything else but you know you have a gem of a kicker and you want to make sure they are ready to kick. I know with Jay we used him everywhere, he was our corner, he was our tight end, he was our kicker and that’s a lot on his body and they play soccer so as a family they’ve done a good job of cold tubing, taking care of their bodies but they are the exception of how they go about their business, they are pro mentality so I always know that Drew while he’s at soccer, he’s going to come to football practice, go all out and then go into the cold tub after, take care of his body, get protein, get water, he’ll be ready to go the next day but as far as kicking goes, Drew has done a great job, he’s been doing a ton of camps, we haven’t done a lot of kicks this offseason but he’s been playing more of the tight end role for us and he’s done a good job” Line said of Cady. The offensive and defensive lines are question marks for Line but they have some experience with Liam Carr, Nolan Cumbey, Reed Swiss, Brandon Cass, Liam Combie, and Brendan Cass coming back. “We got a good amount of returning guys or guys that moved up from freshmen to play JV that might be ready to be exposed this year at a younger age to the varsity level so we are deep at that position which is nice which he haven’t been in the past, we’re in a good spot but this year we are we have not put a starting five together for any of our camps yet, we’re trying to get guys many reps as possible to get our depth, get our understanding and grow our program” Line said of his linemen. “We got Liam Carr coming back, he’s our leader on the line, he’s put in a ton of work this offseason, get in better shape to move quickly so just the amount of work he’s put in is going to make him a better player this year, he’s smart” Line said of Carr. “Brendan Cass was a great guard for us, and Liam Combie, we have three senior returners and the rest I can’t tell you because of the competition which is awesome” Line added. The Wildcats will have Johnson along with AJ Kuppa at linebacker as mentioned but Line is high on Dean Rice who also see time also at tight end. “He does a really good job for us, he’s physical, he’s got good hands, he blocks well” Line said of Rice. Line is also excited about Preston Wilder who played a lot as a freshman as the backup running back. “Going from eighth grade to varsity is a huge jump and he was exposed to that in football and in wrestling season so he got a lot of experience last year and breathing down a fire hose so Preston will have who I think will have a great year” Line said of Wilder. “I think AJ Kuppa is going to have a great year, young buck, he’s a physical gets to the football, it’s old school Oxford football” Line said about Kuppa. Program strength has been solid for Line and they could be in the hunt for years to come. “Really good, both our sub varsities are way up, we’re probably around 90 kids between the freshmen and the JV, that’s really good so as far as the younger levels are concerned our numbers are up so hopefully good things for Oxford as far as that goes again at those levels you want to make sure those guys are learning football but they are having fun like the biggest process is getting them from OJW (Oxford Junior Wildcats) through middle school (Oxford Middle School) to the varsity level which is the pinnacle of football for most kids in their hometown and keep having fun and obviously at the varsity level it gets more serious, your best 11 on the field but we want to make sure our kids all the way up, we’re finding ways to make sure that football remains fun” said Line. The Wildcats could have a really similar story like last season, they have experience which always helps. “I feel a lot of excitement about our team when we have our workout days our numbers are up when we have our camp days our numbers are up and that tells me that the kids are ready to get things going. We’ve kind of had a lull the last couple of years but you see guys chasing after a leadership roles, you see guys competing, you see guys having fun, those are all signs of a good team and if you don’t have a good team then you don’t have nothing, you can have all the X’s and O’s you want but if the team isn’t together and having fun, working hard together you’re not going to have anything and so we embrace that brand tough and gritty, those are things we talk about when you when you leave Oxford you feel us” Line concluded. Oxford could be a scary team to watch despite what their record could be.
BEST CASE: If they stay healthy look out. Johnson and Hendrix have monster seasons and the offensive line really develops along with a shored up defense. The Wildcats would be a tough one for anyone in the postseason.
WORSE CASE: Injuries and non conference losses derail the Wildcats. Also the lines if they aren’t fully developed and the defense struggles that spells trouble for Oxford.
Oxford Podcast (Second Segment)