These two guys likewise have no varsity experience playing on the offensive line. Ball and Hurtt should remain defensive players only and Stein should be left at tight end. Dale's non belief in power backs is very evident when they play the better teams on their schedule and cannot get the tough yards down by the goal line and have to settle for field goals or attempted field goals.

There are only two guys that have any varsity experince on O line. I am not saying I agree or disagree with what you're saying except that experience is not a factor as there isn't much. As for the power game, I thought the short yardage package with 72 and 32 in the backfield leading 23 or 4 right up behind 78 and 62 was pretty strong. I would have liked to have seen a little more of that package.

IMO I think Jurgens and Roller can handle the TE position... Roller is an animal and I would be very surprised if he doesn't play alot of TE or LB this year. He is relentless on both sides of the ball......

These two guys likewise have no varsity experience playing on the offensive line. Ball and Hurtt should remain defensive players only and Stein should be left at tight end. Dale's non belief in power backs is very evident when they play the better teams on their schedule and cannot get the tough yards down by the goal line and have to settle for field goals or attempted field goals.

 

I agree that Stein's best position would be tight end (on offense) but did you see him when he had to block linebackers and defensive ends last season? He was a force to be reconned with. And don't get me started with my respect for Ball's blocking ability, he would be a fullback if we had that in our arsinal. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, these guys are primarily defensive players. Would you rather have linebackers play skill positions where they are more likely to be winded at the end of the drive, or offensive line where they don't have to move nearly as much and can knock some guys around? And as for Hurtt, he was seeing a little less playing time towards the end of the season last season at linebacker. I feel that they want to be able to utilize his abilities wherever they can. After all, they have a very good linebacking core.

 

You talk about the power back situation which I never understood either. We saw guys run the ball like Frisk and Hubbard, and look how those teams turned out. Ball would be a great 3-yard back, especially with some big blockers in front of him. IMO I wish Dale would have used him last season instead of Kramer on the goal line.

I think you will see #23 used more in goal situations next year. He looks to be near 200lbs

To realize why the move of Ball and Stein was made, all you need to do is see these guys without their shirts on...THEY ARE MEN! Now, that being said...guys like Rosenhagen, Dempsey, Funaro, Klink, Bardgett, Reiss, Schlosser, Brown, et al Need to get VERY SERIOUS in the weight room and then maybe Dale will use S&B elsewhere!

I don't think its a step down to move Ball and STein to the line. Stein is only moving 2 steps to the left or right if he switches to tackle. Ball on the other hand would be a very quick guard and with his small stocky stature he would be difficult to spot and could trap some ears off.

 

I also am one who thought they should have used Ball and Hurtt more in the backfield last year in the Red Zone but they didnt. They kept pounding little Kramer in there and many times it didnt work.

 

As far as the sophomores stepping in that remains to be seen. It is a pretty new ballgame going from Frosh to Varsity especially when you are playing the likes of Colerain, Ryle, CCH, etc.

 

This will the be last chance for those kids that will be seniors so I am sure they will do whatever it takes to get that 17th title.

 

My question to you all is will Travis Alford step in and be a force on Defense? He has a varsity football body and I hear he can lay some licks.

I don't think its a step down to move Ball and STein to the line. Stein is only moving 2 steps to the left or right if he switches to tackle. Ball on the other hand would be a very quick guard and with his small stocky stature he would be difficult to spot and could trap some ears off.

 

I also am one who thought they should have used Ball and Hurtt more in the backfield last year in the Red Zone but they didnt. They kept pounding little Kramer in there and many times it didnt work.

 

As far as the sophomores stepping in that remains to be seen. It is a pretty new ballgame going from Frosh to Varsity especially when you are playing the likes of Colerain, Ryle, CCH, etc.

 

This will the be last chance for those kids that will be seniors so I am sure they will do whatever it takes to get that 17th title.

 

My question to you all is will Travis Alford step in and be a force on Defense? He has a varsity football body and I hear he can lay some licks.

Didn't you just say the step from Freshman to Soph is a whole new ballgame and then you say Travis Alford should step right in on Defense. I'm confused:confused: No seriously, i know what you are saying about making that change from level to level. If a player is taught the proper way to utilize his skills then there really isn't that much difference. Upperclassman experience only becomes a added bonus imo.

Didn't you just say the step from Freshman to Soph is a whole new ballgame and then you say Travis Alford should step right in on Defense. I'm confused:confused: No seriously, i know what you are saying about making that change from level to level. If a player is taught the proper way to utilize his skills then there really isn't that much difference. Upperclassman experience only becomes a added bonus imo.

 

 

I meant as a whole dont expect a bunch of soph's stepping in and playing on that level right away. Although by mid season its safe to say you dont call them soph's anymore.

 

I see where you may have been confused though. ON the Alford thing, my point was to say that physically he is built like an upperclassman so will he be the exception and asked to step in and produce from the defensive side?

These two guys likewise have no varsity experience playing on the offensive line. Ball and Hurtt should remain defensive players only and Stein should be left at tight end. Dale's non belief in power backs is very evident when they play the better teams on their schedule and cannot get the tough yards down by the goal line and have to settle for field goals or attempted field goals.

 

 

As pointed out, no one on the team other than Hempling and Dowling (and his was limited) has any experience playing the offensive line in varsity games. Stein at least has considerable experience blocking at the tight end position. While he caught the ball well at times last year, if your qb is getting sacked before he can pass the ball, it doesn't matter how good your receivers are. Teams go no where with out quality offensive linemen (DMZ, if you reading, you knew I would type that didn't you). Admittedly Ball doesn't have experience blocking as an offensive lineman, but he was primarily a blocking back so the blocking concept will not be new to him.

 

As for Dale not liking power running backs, I think Conner somewhat falls into that category. While he has decent speed, its not breakaway speed. With another year in the weight room, I think he's going to be more of a power back than anything this year. And didn't Hubbard play running back for Highlands in 04 when they won state? If he doesn't fit into the category of power back, I don't know who does. Dale will go with a power running back when it fits his offense. As for why he didn't use Ball and Hurtt more last year at running back, keep in mind that Hurtt was hurt last year and was needed more on defense. Ball also started on defense. If anyone should have been the power running back it should have been Koester. Although I don't necessarily agree that not using a power back last year hurt us as much as some of you do. Kramer got those tough yards a lot more often than people think, and it was against quality opponents. Watch the Elder tape and see how we scored our first TD against them. Not only was he extremely strong for his size, he could find a crease in a solid wall pretty well. For every time people can point to where he got stopped, I can point out more that he didn't get stopped in short yardage situations.

 

Addressing other points made in this thread not necessarily by you 83, as for some of the linemen from the undefeated frosh teams stepping up, the only o linemen that I can think of from the undefeated frosh team that will be seniors are Hempfling, Dowling and Ries. All three of them will probably start on the o line this year. Heck, I don't even remember who the other starting linemen were when they were frosh. Did Jurgs play the o line also that year?

Add Stein and Ball to the o line, and you may see 5 seniors start. Off of the undefeated frosh team that will be juniors, you have Rosenhagen Dempsey, Bardgett, Funaro and Klingenberg. While each of these guys could push for a starting position on the o line, I think you'll see Rosenhagen and Funaro on the defensive line next year. The other three could start, but they need to get bigger and stronger if they are going to come close to being able to do what Ball and Stein can do, but from what I'm told they are working hard so its a possibility. And it probably makes more sense to move Stein and place Hurtt or Jurgs at tight end than have one of those two try to play o line. As for the undefeated frosh team that will be sophomores, probably only Brown, Grubbs and Schlosser will have the size to compete. And they will have to get much stronger for that to happen. Sophomores generally don't have the strength to play the line positions. But I know Brown and Schlosser are working out hard and will frosh bball over Grubbs should start working out, so who knows. Still I think its a long shot that a sophomore will win a starting position on the o line.

 

If come the end of two a days, some of the juniors and sophomores to be have done what it takes and Dale believes they can do the job, then you'll probably see Ball and Stein not playing the line. But Dale cannot count on that happening, so he's going with what he knows, not what might be. Which I think is the smart thing to do. While some disagree, I think Dale knows what he's doing. We've been beaten the last two years by two pretty good football teams, both of whom went on to win state, so they could not have been too shabby. Actually, both were dang good. To prove to you that I'm not totally blinded by my Dale tinted sunglasses, I wish Dale had played more seniors both ways last year like CovCath did. While it doesn't help the seniors graduating, I know Dale is going to do so this year and we will be better for it this year. But keep in mind that when you do play a lot of players (mostly seniors) both ways, it dramatically cuts down on the amount of experience your returning players have the following year. So it does come with a price. And I think it is a price that CovCath is going to pay this year.

As for Dale not liking power running backs, I think Conner somewhat falls into that category. While he has decent speed, its not breakaway speed. With another year in the weight room, I think he's going to be more of a power back than anything this year. And didn't Hubbard play running back for Highlands in 04 when they won state? If he doesn't fit into the category of power back, I don't know who does. Dale will go with a power running back when it fits his offense. As for why he didn't use Ball and Hurtt more last year at running back, keep in mind that Hurtt was hurt last year and was needed more on defense. Ball also started on defense. If anyone should have been the power running back it should have been Koester. Although I don't necessarily agree that not using a power back last year hurt us as much as some of you do. Kramer got those tough yards a lot more often than people think, and it was against quality opponents. Watch the Elder tape and see how we scored our first TD against them. Not only was he extremely strong for his size, he could find a crease in a solid wall pretty well. For every time people can point to where he got stopped, I can point out more that he didn't get stopped in short yardage situations.

 

I know what you're saying, but I still know that Mueller goes with speed first. If you can't run a 4.8ish 40, you can't be a runningback for Highlands. In this aspect, Hubbard was a special athlete (this is quite obvious). Not only could he outrun most players on the field, but he had the quickness to juke people out, and the power to carry 10 players from Cov. Cath. on his back, into the endzone. Conners really doesn't seem like much of a "powerful runner" IMO. He is more of a run away and fake out defenders, runningback. Though I do think he could be more effective this season running over some guys after he puts on some more muscle, I can't help but think his best strength this season will be his speed and quickness. I keep reminding myself that he had some very nice kick returns alongside Kramer last season when he outran the other team. I can't really think of any time were he drug any players for more than 2 yards on a running play. Either way, I really respect his athletic ability and I expect him to do excellent things this season. This includes being the stud runningback for the birds.

I know what you're saying, but I still know that Mueller goes with speed first. If you can't run a 4.8ish 40, you can't be a runningback for Highlands. In this aspect, Hubbard was a special athlete (this is quite obvious). Not only could he outrun most players on the field, but he had the quickness to juke people out, and the power to carry 10 players from Cov. Cath. on his back, into the endzone. Conners really doesn't seem like much of a "powerful runner" IMO. He is more of a run away and fake out defenders, runningback. Though I do think he could be more effective this season running over some guys after he puts on some more muscle, I can't help but think his best strength this season will be his speed and quickness. I keep reminding myself that he had some very nice kick returns alongside Kramer last season when he outran the other team. I can't really think of any time were he drug any players for more than 2 yards on a running play. Either way, I really respect his athletic ability and I expect him to do excellent things this season. This includes being the stud runningback for the birds.

 

 

I understand what you are saying, but then again, with the entire kick off coverage team concentrating on stopping Kramer from taking it to the house, you, DMZ, Gryche or I (well, maybe you:jump: ) could have gotten big yardage on some of Conner's kick off returns. As for his speed, remember he was caught from behind on a couple of those counters by CovCath and he was caught from behind by Male in the scrimmage I recall. I guess I just never thought of him as a speed back. But you may be right. I look at him as a pretty big back (getting bigger) with decent speed and decent moves (but no where near as shifty as Kramer). He just has a nice blend of all three skills and I agree that he'll be a stud running back this year and next. But I certainly don't count him as a speed back (certainly not in the likes of Kramer or Eamon Mueller or Zinni or Shrode or Gibson or ???). As for not carrying defenders, remember he was only a sophomore last year. When he was a frosh, he carried people. And I think he'll be carrying some people this year. My guess is that he'll be around 190 pounds. I guess what I'm saying is that if Dale only went with speedy backs, Conner would be moved to another position and Crawford would be made the featured running back, and I don't think that's going to happen.

 

As for Hubbard, when ever I'm down and need a little pick up, I just put in the 04 highlight tape and watch that run Hubbard made against CovCath. That does it every time.

If anyone should have been the power running back it should have been Koester. Although I don't necessarily agree that not using a power back last year hurt us as much as some of you do. Kramer got those tough yards a lot more often than people think, and it was against quality opponents. Watch the Elder tape and see how we scored our first TD against them

 

I will agree with you that Koester didnt touch it nearly enough. And yes Kramer was a warrior and could get to the pylon but running between the tackles you have to admit he was limited. He was their MVP last season so I have nothing but love for him I was just surprised several times inside the 10 when they kept him in there and didnt go to a power backfield with Ball/Koester/Hurtt in there.

I understand what you are saying, but then again, with the entire kick off coverage team concentrating on stopping Kramer from taking it to the house, you, DMZ, Gryche or I (well, maybe you:jump: ) could have gotten big yardage on some of Conner's kick off returns. As for his speed, remember he was caught from behind on a couple of those counters by CovCath and he was caught from behind by Male in the scrimmage I recall. I guess I just never thought of him as a speed back. But you may be right. I look at him as a pretty big back (getting bigger) with decent speed and decent moves (but no where near as shifty as Kramer). He just has a nice blend of all three skills and I agree that he'll be a stud running back this year and next. But I certainly don't count him as a speed back (certainly not in the likes of Kramer or Eamon Mueller or Zinni or Shrode or Gibson or ???). As for not carrying defenders, remember he was only a sophomore last year. When he was a frosh, he carried people. And I think he'll be carrying some people this year. My guess is that he'll be around 190 pounds. I guess what I'm saying is that if Dale only went with speedy backs, Conner would be moved to another position and Crawford would be made the featured running back, and I don't think that's going to happen.

 

As for Hubbard, when ever I'm down and need a little pick up, I just put in the 04 highlight tape and watch that run Hubbard made against CovCath. That does it every time.

 

I agree with you on everything you just said... especially the last part about THE RUN... :walk:

 

Quote- "The linemen opened up a hole for me and I just walked right in..."

(Jamie Hubbard)

It doesn't get any better than that!

Kremer was fine between the tackles...ESPECIALLY in the "power" backfield with Ashton crouched behind Schlosser/Hempfling. The only thing that stopped this formation was not calling it. Could work VERY nicely with Ball/Stein/Hempfling again this year. Question for LN...waaay back in the day when you played and the line was paving the way for the plowhorses in the backfield, on the state champ team, how many of the linemen were 2nd yr. starters? You, Rick Pendery, Jim Head?, Klump moved from C to G. My point being, that was a pretty fair country line that won state with quite a few new faces! ...and I always give credit to the boys up front...even the ones on the "far end" !!!

On the 2004 state team they had 5 first year starting linemen and they did pretty imo:dancingpa

 

So I dont think it will be a problem to add some guys that havent played there before keeping in mind highlands position blocks (just getting in the way of the defender just long enough for the speed back to get past) and trapping is just the same as a running back going out to block on the sweep motion play which dale loves so much. :sssh: