Team: Oakland-Craig
Mascot: Knights
Colors: Orange and White
Class: C-2
Head Coach: Joe Anderson (8th season) (56-19 record)
2016 record: 9-2 (lost to Battle Creek in State Quarterfinals)
Returning Starters: 8 offense 7 defense
Overview:
Oakland-Craig returns 8 starters on offense and 7 on defense from last year's 9-2 State Quarterfinal team. One of those players is Garrett Seagren (6'2, 180 WR/DB SR), according to Head Coach Joe Anderson. "Yeah Garrett's a great player. He's just a great all around athlete. He's an all-state basketball player. Last year he was an All-state football player for us. So if you look at the last two years he's had big years in receiving, and we expect more out of him on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. And he's definitely going to be one of our leaders of our team."
Seagren has compiled 775 yards receiving on 38 receptions with 11 touchdowns for the Knights.
Anderson adds Seagren is a very integral part of the team. "Garrett is a very explosive athlete. His combination of good speed, allusiveness, great hands, and leaping ability really make him hard to cover one on one. He has 1,375 yards receiving in his last two seasons. Also good leader back at safety, and very good punt returner. Great athlete who also excels on the basketball court."
Anderson says he expects big things out of the skill guys besides Seagren. "What's going to really compliment him is we have some other really good receivers. Kobe Benne (5'10, 165 WR/DB SR) had a really breakout year his first year playing football last year, and he's going to really do some big things. If people key on Garrett he's going to have a chance to make some big plays. Garrison Dodge (5'8, 160 WR/DB JR), Robby Mayberry (5'10, 170 RB/S JR) are some other guys that our Quarterback's been finding a way to get them the ball. Ben Smith (6'9, 160 RB SR) who's a kid in the backfield. Not a real big kid, but he had 300 or 400 or 500 yards last year. He looks really good from the backfield right now. He's a senior, a kid that's played a lot of football. Is just a tough kid."
Smith and Mayberry figure to shoulder more of the load at running back this season after All-Stater Hoss Smith was lost to graduation.
Returners on the offensive line include Marcos Quintero 5'10, 195 OL/DE SR), Tyson Harney (6'3, 220 OL/DL SR), and Cole Bures (6'3, 190 OL/DL JR). The Knights also have 260 pound JR Justyn Hale and 6'5 220 pounder Laurence Brands.
On defense, Oakland-Craig Wyatt Uhing (5'9, 160 JR) and Daniel Sechler (5'10, 175 JR) return at linebacker while Jefferson McNeill (5'11, 160 JR) will see some time at cornerback. Ian Lundquist (5'9, 170 SO) and Jared Mulder (5'11, 180 JR) are also expected to be in the mix at linebacker as well.
Anderson gives this assessment of his team. "Smith and Robby Mayberry give us some good experience at RB. Up front we are lead by Quintero. Harney and Bures also started all 11 games last year on the line. Hale and Brands give us two big bodies to plug into the missing spots. John Werner and Max Ward could also help there as well. Defensively our front three should be solid with Quintero (64 tackles), Hale, Harney and Bures. Uhing, Smith, Sechler all have starting experience at LB with Werner and Mulder ready to step in as well. Our DB return 4 guys with starting exp in Seagren, Mayberry, McNeill, and Benne. Overall it should be a solid year. We will still be relying on quite a few sophomores and juniors to step up as our senior class is not very big (5 kids). Our schedule will test us early in the year."
Season Outlook:
Oakland-Craig begins the season next Friday at home against Malcolm. Anderson says the Clippers are a solid team. "Yeah one game at a time. Malcolm's had a good program. So Coach Amen runs a really good program over there. They always have a winning record. So we're going to have to be ready to go in that first game you never know a lot of things can happen. Turnovers, penalties, and you never know what to expect in that first game."
The Knights won last year's game 34-3 in Malcolm.
I don't think Oakland-Craig will have a whole lot of trouble with the Clippers in the end, but the next two games could be very tricky.
The Knights have out of district games at Battle Creek and at home against defending Class C-2 Runner-up Crofton the following two weeks.
I think this Oakland-Craig team will be tested early, but look for the Knights to weather the storm and go on to have a fine season.
I think Oakland-Craig will hit their stride come District Play.
Oakland-Craig is in District C2-3 with Logan View, BRLD, Wisner-Pilger, Fremont Bergan, and Tekamah-Herman.
Bob Jensen of the Huskerland Prep Report expects Oakland-Craig to contend for another District Title this year. "I think Oakland-Craig's going to be just fine. I think that's a district championship football team, but I got to tell ya...Bergan's going to be right on their heels. And there's a couple other local teams that got a chance to have nice seasons as well."
Jensen projects Oakland-Craig to win 7 games in the regular season and a playoff game.
I also feel the District will come down to Oakland-Craig and Fremont Bergan with Logan View in the mix.
All of Oakland-Craig's road games are very tricky this year. The Knights will definitely have to figure out a way to win at least a couple of games away from home to make the playoffs.
The good news for Oakland-Craig is they have a lot of experience and talent back. The Knights will use two quarterbacks in Evan Reinert and Mulder so I look for each of those players to perform at a high level.
Making the playoffs is never easy, especially in Class C-2 with the field being only 16 teams, but when it is all said and done I look for Oakland-Craig to be right there.
Losing Hoss Smith at running back definitely hurts, but I look for Ben Smith and Mayberry to pick up the slack and help lead this team to the playoffs.
The Knights definitely have their work cut out for them this year, but look for Oakland-Craig to have a typical Oakland-Craig like season, which is going 8-1 or 7-2, or something like that.
I think a first round playoff win is very possible for this team too, and the Knights might even be able to make it farther than the quarterfinals this time around.
2017 Oakland-Craig Knights Football Schedule:
08/25/17 Malcolm
09/01/17 @ Battle Creek
09/08/17 Crofton
09/15/17 @ Ponca
09/22/17 BRLD
09/29/17 Wisner-Pilger
10/06/17 @ Logan View
10/13/17 Tekamah-Herman
10/20/17 @ Archbishop Bergan
No comments:
Post a Comment