Oakland Township, Pontiac, Rochester, Rochester Hills

Rochester Post: A look at local prep teams as gridiron season nears

» click to enlarge « Photo by David Schreiber Rochester Adams running back Andrew Lamkin splits the defense in a scrimmage against Warren Mott earlier this season. Photo by David Schreiber Rochester Adams running back Andrew Lamkin splits the defense in a scrimmage against Warren Mott earlier this season.

High school football season has arrived. And to help you get familiar with all the local teams, we present our annual football preview, chock full of information to review right up until the first kickoff.

Rochester Adams Highlanders
Last season’s record: 7-4
League: Oakland Activities Association White Division
Returning starters: Nine

Offensive keys:
Adams returns three starters on offense in slot backs Ben Hart and Jack Twitty, and tackle Alex Lang.
They’ll be looking to lead a host of new faces in the starting lineup, including quarterback Matt Sokol, who is 6 feet 5 inches and 215 pounds.
“He’s a fantastic athlete and worked very hard,” coach Tony Patritto said.
Adams’ spread option offense is dependent on an athlete at quarterback, and the last time the Highlanders had a signal-caller this size was in 2003, when they won the state championship with Alan Guy.

Defensive keys:
With six starters back, led by defensive lineman Matt Cobb and linebacker Kyle Niswonger, the defense is much more experienced.
“He’s really going to have to be the anchor and lead our defense,” the coach said of Niswonger.

Coach’s outlook:
The White Division has been a battle between Farmington Hills Harrison, Southfield High, Farmington High and Adams in recent years, and Patritto expects more of the same.
“Harrison is the defending league champion, so you have to give them an edge. After that, just like last year, any given week you never know who was going to beat who. I think it’ll be a lot like that this year,” Patritto said.

Lake Orion High Dragons
Last season’s record: 6-4
League: Oakland Activities Association Red Division
Returning starters: Nine
Offensive keys:
Lake Orion High has plenty of skill-position players back from last year’s Red Division co-championship team, but questions remain about the rest of the squad.
The Dragons are starting five new linemen, which are entrusted with protecting first-year quarterback Derek Delaura.
“The key is going to be the jelling of our offensive line, and if we can get consistent play from our quarterback. If so, we’ll be OK,” coach Chris Bell said.

Defensive keys:
Like the offense, the defensive line is made up of all first-year starters, though the unit has standout linebackers Derric Williams and Nick White to help.
“You have your growing pains, but we’re getting there,” Bell said.

Coach’s outlook:
Bell is seeing glimpses of how good his team can be, but knows it takes time.
“The football season is a marathon. You sprint to the first game, but then you have eight more after that. I think we have a chance to be very good,” he said. “Every game, we have to come to play. Every team we play is capable of beating us, but by the same token, we’re capable of winning every game.”

Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest Crusaders
Last season’s record: 4-5
League: Michigan Independent Athletic Conference
Returning starters: 13

Offensive keys:
There’s little doubt as to who’s in charge of the Crusaders’ offense in 2012; it’s the same guy that has been since 2010.
Senior Nathan Drews is back under center for his third year as the starter, and coming off a 1,500 yard-passing year last fall, coach Don Justice said his signal-caller looks as good as ever.
“He’s the man for us this year,” Justice said. “He had an awesome offseason getting ready for this. He’s ready to go.”
Senior Josh Morrison serves as Drews’ top receiver, but Justice also said there would be more attention given to the running game.
“We’ve struggled with that the past few years,” he added. “That’s been the focus this offseason, and with three starters back on the offensive line, we feel like that is a strength.”

Defensive keys:
After starting last season 3-1, injuries took their toll, especially the defense. In the final five weeks of the season, Lutheran Northwest allowed 31 or more points on four different occasions, including 40 or more twice.
With a good portion of his defensive starters back and healthy, Justice feels like the parade to his team’s end zone should be over.
“I think this group is as big and strong as it’s ever been,” he said. “We’ll be much improved from last year.”
Juniors Nick Raby and Trevor Schultz will anchor the defensive line, while Josh Mack and Evan Carver return to their inside linebacker positions.
In its four wins last year, Lutheran Northwest didn’t allow more than 22 points.

Coach’s outlook:
“I think this is a team that can contend for a league title and make a run at a playoff spot,” Justice said. “It’s not going to be easy. We’re pushing these guys to be as consistent as possible every single day. But with this group, we feel that just about every game on our schedule is a winnable game for us.”

Auburn Hills Avondale Yellow Jackets
Last season’s record: 5-5
League: Oakland Activities Association Blue Division
Returning starters: 11

Offensive keys:
The Yellow Jackets’ offense has had little problem putting up points in recent seasons, averaging 26.4 points per game last year.
This year, it’s up to receivers Eric Stubbs and Treyvon Munson, along with running back Michael Johnson, to keep up the pace. Clark Clancy leads the offensive line at tackle.

Defensive keys:
Conversely, with its high-octane offense, Avondale has also struggled at times to keep opposing offenses off the field. Last season, it let up nearly 30 points a game,
Defensive tackles Mitch Williams and Paul Czartorski, along with linebacker Chris Bracewell, and defensive backs Dillon Brancheau and Jabbar Mims, hope to put an end to that trend.

Coach’s outlook:
Coach Steve Deutsch said the squad has great camaraderie and that the offensive and defensive lines are key to success.
Avondale is looking to make its fourth trip to the playoffs in five years.

Pontiac Notre Dame Prep Fighting Irish
Last season’s record: 10-1
League: Catholic League, AA Division
Returning starters: Seven

Offensive keys:
Offensive depth was one of the Irish’s biggest strengths in 2011, and it more than paid off.
En route to winning 10 games, Prep poured in 409 total points, including 31 in a playoff loss to Marine City.
As 2012 gets under way, the offense may be the biggest question mark this fall.
“We’re going to be very young,” coach Kyle Zimmerman said. “We have to develop and learn a lot.”
One player back in the mix that should speed up that learning process is running back Jeremiah Johnson, who rushed for more than 400 yards last year despite not getting the ball all that often. Zimmerman, however, was quick to point out his nearly 8 yards-per-carry average.
“He’s going to have to carry us for a while,” Zimmerman said, adding that a decision on a starting quarterback had yet to be made.
“Whoever it is, we’re still going to throw the ball,” he said.

Defensive keys:
While last year’s offense was pilling up the points, the defense was busy holding opponents to roughly 11 per game.
Matching that output may be tough considering the exodus on players due to graduation.
“We lost our entire secondary,” Zimmerman said. “At the same time, we have some very talented kids, but very inexperienced.”
Veterans along the front of the defense include Connor Cervone, Andrew Wodrich, Vinny Famlaro and Aidan Cullen. Those four will be instrumental in keeping Prep’s defense as strong as it was last year.

Coach’s outlook:
Despite just seven kids back from a team that won 10 straight last year, including the Catholic League Prep Bowl, Zimmerman isn’t looking to take any steps backward.
“Our plan is to build on what we did,” he said. “As a team, we have a lot to defend, some big goals we’ve set for ourselves. We want to do all that again, and hopefully, take things a step further.”

Rochester High Falcons
Last season’s record: 4-5
League: Oakland Activities Association Red Division
Returning starters: 12
Offensive keys:
Receiver Manny Mendoza and quarterback Joe Doroshewitz are back to lead a potent offensive threat from the Falcons along with a host of capable running backs that coach Erik Vernon can use at his disposal.
“If we can get our line to jell, we’ll be all right. We just have to be more physical,” the coach said. “We’ve got a lot installed already. I feel like where we’ve been in the past to where we are now, we’re a little ahead.”

Defensive keys:
Brothers Shwan Shadaia and Shane Shadaia lead the defensive unit on the line and at linebacker, respectively, but Vernon said it’s going to take more than just those two to be successful.
“We’re relying on all 11 guys,” he said.
The Falcons run a 3-4 defense and are replacing three of the four linebackers.
“They’re aggressive, we just need to get them in the right spots,” Vernon said.

Coach’s outlook:
Last season, the Falcons began 1-5 before going on to win their final three games. Vernon hopes to skip the slow start this time around.
“We had a lot of guys here that played in those final games, so hopefully we have some good momentum going,” he said.

Rochester Hills Stoney Creek Cougars
Last season’s record: 1-8
League: Oakland Activities Association Red Division
Returning starters: Three
Offensive keys:
Brad Zube is the new coach of the Cougars and has brought his spread motion offense with him.
He’s counting on Sean Scullen, who will be seeing time all over the field at quarterback, running back and receiver.
“He’s our do-everything guy,” Zube said.

Defensive keys:
Stoney Creek also features a 5-2 defense, with linebackers Sam Clayman and Jack Van Almen anchoring the squad.
“The defense has been pretty aggressive so far,” Zube said.

Coach’s outlook:
The Cougars moved from the OAA White to the Red, but Zube is familiar with the competition. Last season, he coached Pontiac High, also a member of the division.
“I think we’re going to surprise some people coming into the Red. Clarkston and Lake Orion have won it every year that it’s been in existence, and everyone else is trying to catch up, but our guys are doing a great job. I think we’ll compete against everyone we play,” Zube said.

Auburn Hills Oakland Christian Lancers
Last season’s record: 2-7
League: Michigan Independent Athletic Conference
Returning starters: 10

Offensive keys:
For a team that scored 51 points all of last year, offense certainly wasn’t a strength. Coach Bill Schafer, now in his second season with the program, expects things to be much different his time around.
“I’m big on setting goals, and with the kids we have, my goal is to score five touchdowns — by halftime,” he said. “We’ll see if that’s too lofty of a goal, but we’re aiming high.”
One reason for the blatant optimism is quarterback Javarian Smith.
The dual-threat sophomore rushed for nearly 500 yards last year while passing for almost the same amount.
“The offensive line has to be good, and if it is, we are going to win some games,” Schafer said.

Defensive keys:
The Lancers’ defense struggled last season, there’s no way around it.
Six different times the team gave up 36 or more points en route to a loss.
That, too, will change this year, according to Schafer.
“Two touchdowns a game, at the most,” he said of what the goal is. “Again, we’ll see how attainable that is, but with this group, I feel it’s what they’re capable of.”
His confidence comes from the talent up front. With freshman Ryan Kostich joining returning starters Stephen Nichols, Josh Rupright, Preston Lasala, Chase Sumner and Bobby Roose, that area of the team is more experienced than any other.

Coach’s outlook:
Winners of just seven games in the past five seasons, Schafer feels like he’s finally got a group of kids ready to turn the program’s fate around.
“Last year, we averaged roughly 14 kids (on the roster) per game,” he said. “We have 22 kids on the team right now, and that is only going to help. At the same time, there’s a new breed of leadership here. We’ve got some guys with some experience, but the thing I love most is the fact these guys are hungry. They aren’t satisfied with how things have been.”