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Saturday, August 22, 2009
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CLC building on success With 28 returning sophomores, 'pieces in place to make another strong run' Sports Editor Success apparently is breeding success in the Central Lakes College Raiders football team.
In head coach Greg Medeck's first two years CLC went a combined 14-7, played for the 2007 state championship and narrowly missed the finals last year.
Medeck and his staff greeted 60-plus players the first day of practice Aug. 7, which is believed to be a program record, bettering the record of 59 players in 2008. This year's contingent of 28 returning sophomores also is believed to be a program record.
"We've got depth, we've got experience," Medeck said. "I think those are going to be the two assets that are going to pay off for us in the end.
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Lawson Starr of Central Lakes College returned an interception for a touchdown against Rochester last season. Starr was CLC's second-leading tackler last season and is one of 28 players returning this season.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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"Our expectations are very, very high. We're two years in a row playing in the state playoffs, coming off one championship game, and 12 seconds away from a second championship game. We feel like we have the pieces in place to make another strong run.
"Hopefully, things will fall into place for us. We will have to work for it, the guys know that. They understand that nothing's going to be handed to them."
With a total of 31 sophomores (three transfers), and 64 total players, CLC has talent at virtually every position.
The Raiders must replace 2-year starter Mike Beehler, now the starter at Jamestown College. In two seasons at CLC he completed 397 of 687 passes for 4,770 yards and 44 TDs.
"This will be the first year in my regime that we don't have Mike Beehler at quarterback," Medeck said. "He was a 2-time All-American. I'm pretty sure he's the only 2-time All-American we've ever had here. Those are some incredible shoes to fill."
CLC football
Head coach: Greg Medeck, third season
Career record: 14-7 (.667)
2008 finish: 3-1 South Division, 7-3 overall
Captains: Lawson Starr, Andrew Hallberg, Brandon Sexton, Colt Gatzemeyer
Assistant coaches: Jim Strohmeier (offensive coordinator), Karson Pike (quarterbacks-receivers), Adam Buffington (linebackers), Carl Larson (offensive line), Darren Mayers (defensive line).
Schedule
Friday, Aug. 28, Fond Du Lac at St. Cloud State 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 5, Northland 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 12, at Mesabi 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 19, Itasca (homecoming) 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 26, at Rochester 6 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 3, at Fergus Falls 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 10, Minnesota West 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 17, at Vermilion 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 24, Ridgewater 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 31, State semifinals at No. 1 seeds
Sunday, Nov 8., state championship at SCSU
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Sophomore Colt Gatzemeyer, who backed up Beehler last year, and sophomore Andrew Maskell, a transfer from North Iowa Community College, which discontinued its football program, are competing to replace Beehler.
At running back the Raiders return Dennis Taute, who led the team in rushing with 692 yards and eight scores, and Brandon Julius.
"We expect him to be a very explosive player," Medeck said of Taute. "Julius was kind of a situational guy for us last year. He's a talented athlete who we think is going to contribute. And, we have three freshmen who will have an opportunity to find a way onto the field."
Four wide receivers return, including Dustin Kramer (23 catches, 232 yards), Kevin Beehler (19-146, 2 TDs) and William Paine. Alex Leach, a running back last season, has been moved to receiver. Transfers Ryan Fay from Minnesota-Duluth and Tyler Erickson from Bemidji State are in the mix.
"Our offensive philosophy is not going to change," Medeck said. "We're going to continue to try to be aggressive on offense, and that includes throwing the football."
Offensive line is another strength. Starters Brandon Sexton, Aaron Mevissen and Jordan Danielson are back along with Dan Hopson, a reserve last year who is fighting for a starting position this fall.
"We have some incredible depth in the offensive line and some of the bigger guys we've had in this program," Medeck said. "We're just about 300 pounds across the entire front so we will be large, and we will be deep.
"Dave Titus, a Brainerd grad, has come in and locked down our left tackle spot. He's doing a fantastic job. We've got a young man out of (St. Cloud) Apollo, Jordan Owen, who's pushing for playing time."
On defense, the Raiders return Jordan Macauley, Tim Slinger, Kyle Crozon and Anthony Laabs, all of whom played extensively last year (Crozon on offense).
"Crozon will be a force for us in the defensive line," Medeck said.
"He plays with a little reckless abandon that you can't really teach or coach. He's going to make plays for us."
At linebacker, James Gagnon returns in the middle along with Andrew Hallberg (95 tackles) and Roy Ash.
Medeck considers defensive back the anchor of the defense. Four starters, and six sophomores, return.
Cornerbacks Lawson Starr (123 tackles) and Karl Hunt (118) were second-team all conference players. Safety Dusty Parker (84 tackles, 5 interceptions) was first-team all-conference. Adrian Collie is back after a year hiatus and Chase Abfalter and Jason Smith return.
Parker is also back to punt as is kicker Felipe Castro of Brazil.
"We went through some serious issues with our kicking game last year, there's no question about that," Medeck said. "Midway through the season, after numerous struggles, and numerous tryouts among our existing players, I found Felipe kicking a soccer ball in the gym on campus. I asked him to come out and try kicking a football. He had never done that before.
"Felipe played 3-4 games for us. He was completely raw, with no instruction whatsoever. He went through the school year and I encouraged him to kick for the (Brainerd) Lumberjacks to get some more kicking experience. He's improved significantly. His range, distance and accuracy have all improved. I think our kicking game is in a much better situation than it was at this time last year."
Raiders roster
Number, name, position, high school, year
1-Dustin Kramer, WR, Eden Valley-Watkins, SO
2-Karl Hunt, DB, Kimball, SO
3-Lawson Starr, DB, Osseo, SO
4-Kevin Beehler, WR, Foley, SO
5-Adrian Collie, DB, Jackson, FL, SO
6-Alex Leach, WR, Pierz, SO
7-Dusty Parker, DB, Little Falls, SO
8-Sean Werner, DB, Zimmerman, FR
9-Ryan Fay, WR, Princeton, FR
10-Tyler Erickson, WR, St. Cloud Apollo, FR
11-Colt Gatzemeyer, QB, Sergeant Bluff, IA, SO
12-Andrew Maskell, QB, Spearfish, S.D., SO
13-Jake Ruhland, WR, Eden Valley-Watkins, FR
14-Cody Hendrickson, TE, Hayfield, FR
18-William Paine, WR, Sibley East, SO
19-Josh Skalicky, WR, Pine City, FR
20-Michael Iverson, RB, St. Cloud Apollo, FR
21-Jason Smith, DB, Spring Lake Park, SO
22-Felipe Castro, K, Cuiaba, Brazil, SO
23-Chase Abfalter, DB, Foley, SO
24-Brandon Julius, RB, Brainerd, SO
25-Kaleb Anderson, RB, Martin County West, FR
27-Dashon Ellison, DB, JFK, Patterson, N.J., FR
28-Dan Ngandali, DB, Buffalo, FR
31-Roy Ash, LB, Milaca, SO
32-James Gagnon, LB, Coon Rapids, SO
33-Mitch Ahrendt, TE, Eagle Valley, FR
34-Bob French, RB, Buffalo, FR
35-Dennis Taute, RB, Milaca, SO
36-Steven Andrus, LB, Nevis, SO
37-Eric Schneider, LB, Buffalo, SO
40-Andrew Hallberg, LB, Aitkin, SO
41-Cory Jackson, LB, Minnewaska, FR
43-Greg Wright, LB, Milaca, FR
44-Cody Robbins, LB, Northland Remer, FR
45-Andrew Peternell, 220, Albany, FR
47-Tim Slinger, DL, Faribault, SO
51-Jordan Moll, LB, Little Falls, FR
52-Mike Bertram, DL, Crosby, Deerwood, FR
53-Jordan Macauley, DL, Graham-Kapowson, WA, SO
55-Dan Hopson, OL, Big Lake, SO
56-Kyle Hedlund, DL, St. Cloud Tech, SO
57-Tucker Osterberg, LB, Dassel-Cokato, FR
58-Anthony Laabs, DL, Kimball, SO
59-Mark Fennig, LB, Buffalo, FR
60-Ben Brown, DL, Big Lake, SO
61-Brit Drews, DL, Mora, FR
63-Kyle Crozon, DL, Eden Valley-Watkins, SO
66-Jordan Danielson, OL, Elk River, SO
68-Jordan Owen, OL, St. Cloud Apollo, FR
69-Torey Walker, DL, Princeton, FR
70-Terell Johnson, DL, Buffalo, FR
71-Nick Jackson, OL, North Branch, FR
74-Justin Halpaus, OL, Elk River, FR
75-Tyler Hass, DL, Princeton, FR
76-Brandon Sexton, OL, Dakota Valley, S.D., SO
77-David Titus, OL, Brainerd, FR
78-Aaron Mevissen, OL, Big Lake, SO
79-Dillon Pool, OL, Rockford, FR
80-Devin Payment, WR, St. Cloud Apollo, FR
81-Jared Oswald, WR, Isle, FR
83-Justin Horsch, WR, Park Cottage Grove, FR
84-Randy Woodward, WR, Detroit Lakes, FR
85-Nick Graber, TE, Elk River, SO
MIKE BIALKA may be reached at mike.bialka@brainerddispatch.com or at 855-5861.
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