Jesuit Varsity Football: Game One Preview (Skyview)
Week one of the much anticipated Jesuit football season opens up on Friday night as the Crusaders take on highly ranked Skyview out of Vancouver, Washington. The game is set to be played at the Kiggins Bowl at 8:00pm.
With aspirations to dominate the Metro conference and make a deep run into the OSAA playoffs, head coach Ken Potter will be tasked with replenishing the offensive line, famously known as the franchise.
Entering into his 37th year as head coach of the Crusaders, Coach Potter has always made the offensive line the focal point of his teams. Potter recognizes the great importance of a strong offensive, so what better then to tag them as “The Franchise”?
With the departure of four starting offensive lineman due to graduation, including Roice Cleeland now playing for the University of Washington and first team all state selections, Sylus Wallace and Sean Khouri. The lone returning starter is Liam Cassidy. Cassidy, ranked as a three star recruiting prospect, holds scholarship offers from Nevada, UNLV, and Portland State.
Cassidy standing at six foot five and weighing three hundred pounds has four years of experience playing varsity football. As a veteran player, Cassidy has all the tools to take on the role as not only the leader of the franchise and team captain, but also the crucial job of left tackle protecting the blind side of senior quarterback Jacob Hutchinson.
When asked about the restocked offensive line, Cassidy described them as “inexperienced and green”. Cassidy then went on to mention that some of the new franchise members have had some varsity and junior varsity playing experience, naming the likes of seniors Joe Schuler and Seamus Ferguson and juniors Trace Spreen and Soren Gaston.
“It has been a process of learning so many new plays and adapting to the pace of playing varsity football,” Cassidy said. “Sometimes we have had to put in some extra work after practice to make sure that everyone is prepared and ready”.
As Jesuit has been revamping “The Franchise”, a natural question has come into play. Will the Crusaders continue to run their trademark “ground and pound” style offense? Many would say that running the ball is the reason why Coach Potter has had so much success for over three decades and is so close to the coveted record of all time wins, just short of the record by eight games. Running the ball at will repeatedly is no easy task, not to mention having a brand new offensive line.
Cassidy believes that even an inexperienced offensive line will not stop Potter from calling his run-heavy offense.
“We absolutely plan on running the ball, I am confident that we can run the ball on anyone. We are a strong team up front and will continue to move guys from point A to Point B against their will.”
Though Jesuit will continue their thirty-seven year offensive philosophy of “ground and pound” football, Cassidy made it clear that they are more than capable of putting the ball in the air.
“If Potter wants to let it fly then that is what he will do. We have so many weapons to unleash and the run heavy offense will not stop us from doing that”.
So who are the offensive weapons that the Crusaders are waiting to unleash?
Jesuit may have a young and inexperienced offensive line, however Coach Potter has a team littered with skill players that have played an abundant amount of varsity snaps. This year’s offense will be headlined by four-year varsity starter and team captain Jace Burton.
When asked about how he has been able to help prepare some of the younger guys Burton put an emphasis on team comradery.
“We have spent a lot of time watching film and lifting weights as a team. The seniors have a big role as leaders of a younger team and it is our responsibility to make sure that the team is as prepared as possible”.
Burton may be vital to the team, but is not the only weapon at Jacob Hutchinson’s disposal. Junior track star Grant Valley is expected to have a breakout junior season after displaying some promising moments as a sophomore.
Three-star Elias Johnson, who is committed to the University of Washington as a defensive back is also expected to be a key part of Hutchinson’s receiving core.
With the expense building, the state of Oregon waits to see the “new” Jesuit Crusaders.
They have a tall order as they travel north to take on Skyview. There is quite the buzz going around about the Storm as they are an experienced team, contrary to the Crusaders. The Storm finished last year with an 8-2 record and made an appearance in the Washington state Class 4A playoffs.
Skyview returns six all conference players including quarterback Jake Kennedy, running back Trey Jacob and wide receivers Gavin Packer and Riley Artis. The experience of the Storm lining up against the inexperience of the Crusaders will be something that many will pay attention to.
Many questions will be answered tonight as Ken Potter begins his quest to become the winningest high football team in Oregon High School football history.
