DELPHOS – The Delphos Jefferson football seniors have had a nice three-year run.
They’ve posted three straight Northwest Conference titles and three straight playoff appearances.
But a second-round playoff loss to Mechanicsburg (42-12) in the Division VI regional semifinals has the Wildcats searching for more this year.
“You learn the most from the games that you lose,” Delphos Jefferson coach Chris Sommers said. “We learned a lot from that game. I thought the kids played extremely hard to the very end. They believed that we could win that game. It just didn’t happen. But that is the game that you continue watching the most. There are things you have to learn from it.”
Gone from last year are two Lima News Dream Team players, defensive lineman Bryce Lindeman and second team all-state linebacker Dalton Hicks, who will play at Kent State. Hicks was the NWC defensive player of the year and first team all-district.
Overall, five starters return in the Wing-T offense, while six return on defense.
Among the veterans on offense is senior fullback Hunter Binkley, who in 10 regular-season games ran for 1,165 yards (7.3 average) with 18 TDs. He was a Lima News Dream Team player, was second team all-state, first team all-district and first team all-NWC.
In the 49-0 victory over Shawnee last year, Binkley had 17 carries for 191 yards and five TDs.
“He’s a high-motor player,” Sommers said. “You never know what’s going to happen in a play with him because he can continue to drive the pile. He’s very quick and very powerful. He’s the type of kid who can run around you, but also isn’t afraid to lower the shoulder. He brings that explosiveness. You can hear him coming off the line.”
Also back is senior quarterback Jace Stockwell, who threw for 1,169 yards and 15 TDs. He also ran for 109 yards. He was second team all-NWC at quarterback.
“Jace is a good quarterback,” Sommers said. “He has a very good arm and spent a lot time in the offseason working on his mechanics of throwing the ball. He’s an extreme competitor and probably the smartest player I’ve been around. He’s a coach on the field.”
Also back is running back Brenen Auer, who ran for 800 yards last year. The top returning receiver is veteran Drew Riess.
The lone returning offensive lineman is second team all-NWC left tackle Chase Harmon (6-1, 237).
Helping fill the void on the offensive line will be several players from an undefeated junior varsity team last year.
“We’re high on them,” Sommers said. “They have to get game experience.”
The defensive line returns end Davion Tyson (6-2, 204) and tackle Brandan Herron (6-4, 300).
“Our defensive line is going to be pretty big and have a lot of length,” Sommers said.
The two returning linebackers are Binkley, who was second team all-NWC at linebacker, and Auer.
Veterans in the secondary are Riess at cornerback and Stockwell at safety. Both were first team all-NWC defensive backs.
“We have guys who have played in big games,” Sommers said. “We have guys who won big games and lost big games and that’s important. They know what it takes as it gets up to that playoff level.”
For Sommers, the goal is for his team to get better each week so that it’s going full-tilt come playoff time.
“If you can go into Week 10 playing your best football, I think you’ve had a successful season,” he said.
.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}
