Published: August 20, 2008 10:35 pm            

Terre Haute South football season preview: Seniors lead Braves

TERRE HAUTE — Although Terre Haute South sent several players on to the college ranks and a few more to the Wabash Valley Football Coaches Association All-Star Game, its senior class on last year’s 2-8 high school football team wasn’t really a big one.

“Obviously we want to improve on how we did last year,” second-year coach Mark Raetz said recently. “We have a large senior class: 20, which is twice as many as we had last year. We have 14 starters back, so we hope experience will help.”

There’s another class that Raetz hopes will blend with the mix too, however.

“[Most of] the other starters will be sophomores, so we’ve also got a lot of inexperience,” the coach said. “But those sophomores were 6-3 as freshmen, playing against the same teams they’ll see this year.”

The Braves might be a little short on star power as the season starts, since many of the skill-position players are new.

They don’t lack big people, however, which could mean that the new runners, passers and receivers might have a little bit of a comfort zone.

“We had a very good offseason, and we picked up about 20 more players [than were on the varsity a year ago],” Raetz said. “We have bigger numbers and more commitment.”

Top returnees for South this fall include senior ballhawk Elias Brown (5-foot-11, 161), who had a pair of interception returns for touchdowns last year (although one was in the controlled scrimmage); senior tight end/linebacker Michael Mardis (6-3, 220), who’s making a defensive switch from end.

Other returnees for south include senior offensive linemen Josh Bridwell (6-3, 282) and Ethan Buske (6-2, 250); senior defensive back Michael Nasser (5-8, 150); and junior Bryn Schwartz (6-0, 170), who is moving to quarterback after earning a pair of letters as a safety and running back.

Schwartz will be joined in the backfield by a committee of runners that include sophomore Dillon Carter (5-10, 170), senior transfer Johnny Norton (5-11, 170) and a pair of diminutive sophomores who ripped off big gains in Friday’s controlled scrimmage: P.J. Montgomery (5-5, 150) and Tre Stephens (5-6, 150).

Mardis and Brown are among the group of receivers that also includes seniors Jonathan Thacker (6-2, 175) and John Haley (6-3, 200) and sophomore Kevin Bracken (5-9, 165). Junior Mitchell Dagnon (6-1, 165) is another receiver and also the backup quarterback.

Bridwell and Buske are the right and more experienced side of the offensive line, but the left side — sophomores Zach Lewis (6-1, 338) and Nate Schuster (6-3, 260) is the bigger side. Senior Cody Kraemer (6-0, 230) will be at center, and junior Brandon Brock (5-10, 180) and sophomore Aaron Sullivan (6-1, 240) are available in reserve.

Mardis and junior Billy Byerley (5-9, 180) will be the inside linebackers, backed up by sophomores Logan Buske (6-3, 195) and Zach Schultz (6-1, 180). Senior Derek Thomas (5-11, 160) plays the Brave position — somewhat of a safety/outside linebacker mixture — and juniors Tanner Symon (6-0, 165) and Cody Bell (5-10, 188) are competing at strong safety.

Brown and Nasser are an outstanding set of cornerbacks, with feisty sophomore A.J. Buck (5-7, 150) at free safety. Reserve defensive backs include senior Mat Foster (5-9, 150) and sophomore John Story (5-7, 135). Story’s father, also John, was a state 100-yard dash champion at Gary Roosevelt and later ran and played some football at Indiana State.

Then there’s the defensive line, where the newfound depth really makes itself known. Starters could be senior Kyle Krockenberger (6-1, 205) and sophomore Dustin Galenski (5-10, 226) at ends, junior Nate Drada (5-11, 267) at tackle and senior Josh Bell (5-9, 280) at nose. But six other Braves — seniors Tyler Furniss (6-5, 198), Gary Passmore (6-0, 230) and Dustin Doss (5-10, 195), junior Joe Hamblen (6-1, 220) and sophomore twins Joel (5-7, 265) and Josiah (5-8, 265) Blakely, will also be rotating in.

“We’re big on the offensive line,” Raetz said. “We’re not as big on the defensive line, but with 10 guys rotating we should always be fresh.”

Thomas will be the punter and Ethan Buske the kicker.



Terre Haute South schedule

Friday — At Bloomington South, 7 p.m.

Aug. 29 — vs. Terre Haute North at Memorial Stadium, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Sept. 5 — At Vincennes Lincoln, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 12 — At Carmel, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Sept. 19 — At Center Grove, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Sept. 26 — Ben Davis, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Oct. 3 — Indianapolis North Central, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Oct. 10 — At Warren Central, 7 p.m. (MIC)

Oct. 17 — Lawrence North, 7 p.m. (MIC)

MIC — Metropolitan

Interscholastic Conference game

        

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