COLUMBUS GROVE – Playing football with urgency is good. Playing it with urgent care is not so good.
After injuries sent more than a dozen Columbus Grove football players to the sideline last fall, the Bulldogs had one of the youngest lineups in the area.
With a year of experience the still young Bulldogs hope to improve on last season’s 4-6 record this season.
“We have 13 guys coming back who started but they didn’t necessarily start because they were ready. They started because they had to,” Columbus Grove coach Andy Schafer said.
“We’re young but we’re somewhat experienced. It’s going to be interesting to see how that translates on the field,” he said. “At one point in the season we had about 15 injuries, which really forced young guys to play. We have all those guys back and we’re still young. We only have four seniors.”
While Columbus Grove has much of its roster back, it also has significant holes to fill, starting with replacing lineman Rece Roney, who was first-team All-Northwest Conference on offense and defense. Quarterback Reid Stechschulte (1,273 yards rushing, 783 yards passing) and running back Eric Warnecke (666 yards) are also gone.
This year’s personnel and those absences could mean the Bulldogs will be passing the ball more than in the past. Stechschulte averaged more rushes (19) than passes (13) per game last season.
“We were so heavy on the run. Almost everything we did was geared to the run,” Schafer said. “Now, with losing three offensive linemen plus our running back and our quarterback, things are a little different.
“But we have all that skill on the outside. I think it’s going to be important for those guys to kind of be the leaders. If they are, it’s going to open up the run,” he said. “I think the strength of the team is our receivers.”
The skill on the outside Schafer referred to is four receivers, possibly five, depending on how the competition to be the starting quarterback plays out.
Caleb Barrientes (8 catches last season), Owen Fuerst (7 catches), Trevor Taylor (5 catches) and Adam Bogart (1 catch) are expected to provide more offense with a year of experience.
Freshman Blake Reynolds and junior Brady Hauenstein went into the scrimmage part of the schedule competing for the starting quarterback job. If Reynolds wins the job, Hauenstein will be a receiver.
Three of Grove’s returning starters received some type of All-Northwest Conference honors last season.
Linebacker Garrett Nemire (89 tackles) was a second-team selection. Barrientes, who had four interceptions, and defensive lineman Cody Johnson were honorable mention.
Johnson, a 6-foot, 4-inch, 360-pound junior could be one of the top players on the Bulldogs’ defense. It is possible he has improved enough that they could line up in a 3-4 defense rather than having four defensive linemen like they did last year.
“He’s definitely going to be one of the keys to our defense,” Schafer said.
Enoch Jones is a four-year starter on the offensive line and a three-year starter on the defensive line. “We’re kind of expecting big things out of him,” Schafer said.
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