Fort Loramie junior quarterback Max Maurer looks for a target while pressured by Minster’s Charlie Schmiesing during a nonconference game on Friday at Memorial Field in Minster. Maurer threw for 65 yards and two TDs and ran for 54 yards on 10 carries.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Fort Loramie faced archrival Minster twice last season. With the Redskins having lost 12 seniors (several of which were multiple-year starters) to graduation, sixth-year coach Spencer Wells knew a Week 1 matchup with the Wildcats this year was going to be tough.
A Week 2 matchup with Versailles (1-0) will be tough as well.
The Redskins are looking to bounce back from a 41-28 loss to Minster when they host Versailles in a nonconference game on Friday.
Minster, which is led by three-year starting quarterback Brogan Stephey, gained over 400 yards of offense. Stephey ran for 197 yards and four TDs and threw for 153 yards and two TDs.
Wells said he was pleased with most of Fort Loramie’s defensive play and the potential the team has if issues are fixed. The Redskins forced Minster in late down situations many times, but Stephey and his teammates converted 7-of-12 third downs and 3-of-5 fourth downs.
“We did a lot of good things. Now the challenge is to do it consistently,” Wells said. “I think any time you’re replacing a lot of your previous team, it’s always a challenge. When we become a consistent team, we’re going to be pretty dangerous.”
Most of the returning experience on defense for Fort Loramie is on the defensive line. Senior tackles Roger Hoying and Calder Bergman are both returning starters, as is senior end Damian Bruns.
“I really like our defensive line,” Wells said. “We return some good depth there. Brock McCumber has been a bright spot at the linebacker position. He has stepped in a starring role and has been doing a nice job.”
Among the big pieces the squad lost are Caleb Maurer and Logan Eilerman, who graduated as the program’s all-time passing and receiving leaders.
Max Maurer started at quarterback against Minster, but Gabe Hart played some at the position; both are juniors.
“Both quarterbacks showed a lot of heart,” Wells said. “Max I thought was really efficient in the pass game. …We didn’t quite get him going in the run game like we were hoping to. That’s something we need to do. We had a two-minute package with Gabe, and he came in and showed a lot of heart as well and led us to a touchdown. He really stepped in and did a great job.”
Senior running back Will Holland has returned after rushing for nearly 1,000 yards last year.
“Will is definitely the bell cow there,” Wells said. “We’re going to ride him hard. …We were so close on a lot of run plays (against Minster) to really popping one. We’ve just got to be consistent; when we become consistent with our blocking, consistent with our pulls, consistent with our execution, I think our run game is going to take off.”
Wells said newcomer Carter Eilerman has played well at tight end, as has newcomer Cole Barhorst at receiver; both are juniors. Junior Spencer Knouff, who is also the team’s punter, came in on offense late against the Wildcats and hauled in a 29-yard TD reception; Wells said he is likely to see more passes thrown his way.
Hoying is back at center. Senior tackle Jason Siegel and junior guard Louis Hart are also returning starters on the offensive line.
“Those three guys need to lead the way in the ground game,” Wells said. “That’s going to be what we hang our hat on. We’ve got to be able to run the football. We’re really excited about our offensive line; those guys are going to be a big reason why we can run the ball.”
The Redskins will face another tough Midwest Athletic Conference member in a nonconference game this Friday. The Tigers, which won the Div. V state title in 2021 and finished 9-4 last year, started the season with a 26-0 win over Celina.
Versailles had 265 yards of offense and intercepted four Celina passes. Returnee Michael Osborne has transitioned to quarterback and threw for 119 yards and two TDs; he also ran for 57 yards and one TD.
Osborne caught three TD passes in a 26-21 win over the Redskins last season at Hole Field.
“We’ve got a lot of respect for them,” Wells said. “I think a lot of Coach (Ryan) Jones. I think he does a great job there. They’re a typical Versailles team that we’ve seen. They’ve got athletes, they’re physical and they’re going to execute and make you earn it.
“They have a dynamic quarterback in Osborne. We saw one Week 1 (in Stephey) and we’re going to see another one this week. We’ve got to be prepared for that.
“Our guys felt like last year, we let one slip away at Versailles. We just need to focus on playing our best football consistently and we feel like when we do that, we’re going to be in good shape.”
Sidney to open MVL play with Stebbins
Sidney (0-1) will look to bounce back from a season-opening loss to Bellefontaine when it hosts Stebbins on Friday.
Stebbins’ struggles on Friday against former Central Buckeye Conference rival Springfield Shawnee were worse than Sidney’s at Bellefontaine. The Indians managed 93 yards of offense and committed three turnovers in a 41-0 loss to the Braves.
Stebbins finished 4-6 last year and is working to replace several key starters lost to graduation, including multiple-year starter Adrian Norton, who threw for 552 yards last year and ran for 772; he previously played at receiver and amassed over 1,000 receiving yards in 2021.
Two players split time at QB against Shawnee: Devin McCormick and Xavier Dozier. Eight players carried the ball and together amassed 63 rushing yards on 26 carries. The Braves accrued 316 yards of offense, 236 of which came on the ground.
Sidney’s offense sputtered at times with bad snaps, penalties and two turnovers against Bellefontaine on Friday, but it still amassed 350 yards of offense in the 46-19 loss. The squad also racked up more than 300 yards of offense in a little over two quarters in a 39-22 victory in a scrimmage at Chaminade-Julienne two weeks ago.
Junior Julius Spradling had 134 all-purpose yards at Bellefontaine and led the squad with 17 tackles, 15 of which were solo.
Since the squads started playing each other in 2019; their games have been very competitive; Stebbins won 34-27 last season in Riverside.
Anna to travel to Brookville
The Rockets started the season with a dominating performance over Indian Lake but may have a bigger challenge this Friday when they travel to Brookville.
The Blue Devils, which beat Anna 46-14 last year and finished 11-2, started the season with a 54-14 win over Tri-County North. They amassed 414 yards of offense and led 35-14 by halftime.
Senior quarterback Keegan Mehr threw for 123 yards and one TD with two interceptions and ran for 53 yards and one TD; he threw for 88 yards and two TDs against Anna last year. Junior RB Wes Adams, also a returnee, ran for 116 yards and three TDs on five carries against Tri-County North.
The Rockets amassed 333 yards of offense against Indian Lake. Junior running back Zach Osborn ran for 166 yards and four TDs on 26 carries.
Lehman Catholic looks to follow hot start
The Cavaliers beat Lima Perry by 70 points to open the season and will try to follow the hot start this Saturday at Sidney Memorial Stadium against South Charleston Southeastern.
The Trojans beat Springfield Northwestern 28-20 on Friday to start the season. They finished 7-5 last season and are looking for a better campaign this year, with several returning starters.
Among the returnees is senior quarterback Zack McKee. He threw for 140 yards and two TDs with one interception against the Warriors. Junior running back Hayden Davis, also a returning starter, ran for 117 yards and two TDs on 25 carries.
WEEK 2 AREA FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Stebbins at Sidney
Anna at Brookville
Versailles at Fort Loramie
Southeastern at Lehman Catholic*
*Game on Saturday at Sidney Memorial Stadium
