By TYLER DRUMMOND
of The Gazette
The Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) Panthers are lacing up their cleats and getting ready for another year of Wisconsin Valley Conference football.
The Panthers are coming off a 7-4 record last season, a team anchored by senior leadership. However, with the departures of three offensive line starters, a starting safety, the starting tight end, the top three wide receivers, and linebacker Dan Harke, the heart and soul of the Panther defense, a lot of questions remain. How effective will the offense be, and how solid will the defense be?
"Everything's coming together fine. We lost a lot of talent from last season but we're returning a lot of good kids," said head coach Pete McAdams.
One of those kids is the strong-armed senior quarterback, Ted Schlafke. Schlafke is coming off a year in which he was named to the All-Conference team. "Teddy is a great all-around athlete," said McAdams. "With the loss of the offensive linemen it makes our offensive line much smaller than it was last year, which is both good and bad. Bad because we don't hold the blocks as well and good because we have a mobile offensive line to work with a mobile quarterback."
The Panthers have already experienced a setback, even before the first game. Starting senior running back Wes Sutton will be sidelined for a portion of the regular season with a torn PCL muscle. "It's a setback for us because we don't really know when Wes is going to be back," said McAdams.
Bryan Trzebiatowski will be doing the majority of the running for the Panthers while Sutton is sidelined.
He's a good solid back and I feel very confident with him back there. What he lacks in speed he makes up for with his punishing running skills. He's a workhorse and he doesn't shy away from tackles, he'll go right after you," said McAdams.
Another strange incidents was the team practiced last week, Monday through Friday, without the use of a locker room. "They were still under construction and we weren't allowed in," said McAdams. "That hurts because you lose some of the bonding that would have taken place that first week."
One of the kids who will need to step it up this year is Josh Harke, who will be taking the place of his older brother this year at linebacker. "He's a great leader and a good solid player in practice," said McAdams.
The defense is the biggest "if" this season for the Panthers. The Panthers lost a lot of big hitters from last year's linebacking core so it will be a big test to see how the kids respond. "It's the biggest test, more so than any other facet on defense," said McAdams.
Some of the other new players that will be coming in and stepping up for the Panthers are Troy Riley and Jared Foreman. Riley will be taking over the tight end duties and makes for a big target for Schlafke at 6-6. "He's going to be a great player but he's got a lot to prove," said McAdams.
Foreman on the other hand will be taking over the kicking duties for the Panthers this year. However, Foreman is also a soccer player at SPASH with both seasons running at the same time. "There are a few minor conflicts with some of his weekend soccer tournaments but it's nothing that we all can't work out," said McAdams. "It's a testament to how hard Jared works because he plays two sports and has school at the same time, he has to work harder than anyone else."
As for McAdams, this is his fourth year as the head football coach at SPASH. "I really enjoy the job here at SPASH. It's great working with the athletes here, watching the kids trying to find out which sport they're best at and what positions really fit them."
Before McAdams was the head man at SPASH, he worked eight seasons at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, as the defensive coordinator, and also spent three springs in Europe working with football players as well.
McAdams doesn't see himself leaving SPASH anytime soon. "As a coach, you always are looking to see how you can better your career but I really don't see myself trying to leave this school."
The philosophy for this year's squad is the same as it has been every year during the McAdams era, take every game one at a time. "It's nice to see how the kids can tell you the team's philosophy. We've got our goals this year and we aren't overlooking anyone. We're focused on step one and we want to be able to outwork every opponent we play," said McAdams.