By Tyler Drummond
of The Gazette
The Rosholt Hornets look to overcome a tough first year in the Central Wisconsin Conference Large School Division, as they prepare to take the field in their sophomore season. The Hornets finished the season 2-7 last year, a record head coach Roger Clark feels they can improve upon.
"Last year was a tough adjustment for all of us, our first year in the large division and my first year as head coach, but we've got experience now so we should be more competitive this year," said Clark. "I know the kids, and I know their abilities and they know what to expect from me."
The Hornets have lost a lot of senior leadership this year, including Randy Printz, the starting running back from last year's squad. However, the Hornets have found Travis Richter to fit the hole at running back quite suitably.
"Travis has been looking real good so far in camp," said Clark.
Another change the Hornets had to make this year was at the quarterback position. Jeremy Richter, a junior, takes the reigns of the offense this year. "Jeremy has a real strong arm and is a little bit quicker than what we had last year," said Clark. "He got some varsity playing experience last year, so I have no problems with him behind the center."
Jeremy Richter will have the fortune of having a grade-A wide receiver in his arsenal this year. Adam Macht, a senior, is back this year as the team's go-to wide receiver. Macht, a big, tall wide receiver will make a great target for the first-year quarterback. "He's big, tall and he has soft hands. If you can get the ball close to him, he will usually catch it," said Clark.
On the other side of the ball, the Hornets are returning a few starters from last year's defense, most notably two of their three linebackers, as well as Macht who plays safety. "We've got two new assistant coaches on defense this year, with Tony Schmidt running it," said Clark. "I'm really excited to see where this defense takes us this year."
Another attribute that Clark feels will help propel this team to the top is that the off-season conditioning was better this year. "When the guys came in, they were all in somewhat decent shape," said Clark.
Even though the Hornets have a lot of good things working for them this year, Clark points out that they will need to solidify their running game. "For us to be a successful team, we need to have a more solid running game than we did last year."
The other key for the Hornets is that their underclassmen step it up a notch to fill the voids left by last year's seniors. "For us to be a good, solid football team, our underclassmen need to step it up, and that goes for both sides of the ball," said Clark.
This is Clark's second year as the head coach of the Hornets. "Last year we changed a few things with the players and the coaches but we've adapted a lot of things this year that will work better for this team," said Clark.