With only 22 players, a quarterback nursing a broken back, the loss of an all-state linebacker, new coaches, no JV team, new wrinkles to the offense and a junior class that makes up two-thirds of the squad, uncertainty reigns for this year\u2019s Juneau-Douglas High School football team.<\/p>\n
But uncertainty is the flip side of opportunity, and as the coin spins before Saturday\u2019s opener against Thunder Mountain High School, the Crimson Bears feel good about their chances.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there are positives about it (the uncertainty). We\u2019re looking forward to a challenging season but everyone is willing to put in the effort necessary to put our best foot forward,\u201d JDHS coach Kevin Hamrick said during practice last week.<\/p>\n
JDHS went 5-3 overall last year and 1-2 in the Southeast Conference. The Crimson Bears were held out of the medium school state playoffs by a Glacier Bowl loss to TMHS<\/a>, a 48-0 defeat that marked their first-ever loss to the Falcons and held them out of postseason play for the first time since 2002.<\/p>\n After that loss, the hunter has become the hunted, with the road to the state playoffs likely going through Thunder Mountain.<\/p>\n Bolstering the Crimson Bears\u2019 lean 22-man roster (Hamrick still expects a few more players to suit up) is a class of 15 juniors, many of whom had varsity experience last year. Hamrick said the group is experienced and tight-knit.<\/p>\n \u201cThis junior class is great,\u201d Hamrick said. \u201cWe don\u2019t have the senior leadership that we had last year, but these juniors are stepping up and they\u2019ll have two years to be seniors.\u201d<\/p>\n Due to lack of numbers and budget, JDHS is without a JV team for the second year in a row.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Offensive outlook<\/strong><\/p>\n Swift and deep at skill positions, and with the return of junior quarterback Bubba Stults, the Crimson Bears should score in bunches if their offensive line can stay healthy.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a lot of speed and we have a good line but we don\u2019t have a lot of depth at line,\u201d Hamrick said. \u201cWe have good depth at our speed positions.\u201d<\/p>\n After graduating all-conference tight end Hunter Hickok (86 catches, 1,247 all purpose yards, 9 touchdowns) the offense will work without the security blanket he provided. Stults, last year\u2019s SEC all-conference quarterback, has earned Hamrick\u2019s trust and said this year \u201ceverybody is a target\u201d as he plans to wheel and deal in the Crimson Bears\u2019 pass-happy offense.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year was my first time as varsity quarterback, so it was just \u2018give it to the big guy (Hickok) and let him do what he does,\u2019\u201d Stults said. \u201cI am more experienced now with the help of the coaching staff so I think they\u2019re going to trust me to throw the ball a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n Stults \u2014 who suited up this year despite suffering a broken back in last season\u2019s Glacier Bowl \u2014 has been cleared by doctors and looks nimble in practice. He still feels a little discomfort with his back sometimes but with his rigorous offseason therapy he is hopeful the injury won\u2019t be an issue.<\/p>\n JDHS is getting practice reps to several other options in case Stults is sidelined, with junior Liam Van Sickle and sophomore John Hamrick taking snaps as backups.<\/p>\n The Crimson Bears filled several new coaching positions this year, including hiring a new offensive coordinator, Rory Niere. Niere and the coaching staff are installing a new offense that should help the Crimson Bears cut down on mistakes and strengthen their running game.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not a total change, but we added a more refined running game to balance our offense. We\u2019re trying to get a good running game going to support our already advanced passing game,\u201d Hamrick said. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to reduce some of the information the QB and other players have to deal with. \u2026 Last year we had too many reads for a high school team.\u201d<\/p>\n Being competitive means eliminating mistakes, according to Hamrick\u2019s philosophy. The new offense, while allowing more balance between the running and passing game, will also cut down on the reads, or decisions, offensive players will have to make on a given play. JDHS\u2019 short roster necessitates players learn multiple positions. The simpler, more balanced offense is intended to facilitate that.<\/p>\n With the new offense, JDHS will take advantage of their backfield\u2019s speed. Running backs Van Sickle, Donavin McCurley and Lance Galletes-Fiagatusa will look to keep defenses honest with a combination of speed and power.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, it\u2019s good,\u201d Stults said of the running game. \u201cWe have a lot of quick people. Liam is quick and we have Donavin (McCurley) too, he\u2019s quick and small and nobody can tackle him.\u201d<\/p>\n Van Sickle and McCurley are two of the fastest players on the team. Galletes-Fiagatusa is one of the team\u2019s hardest hitters.<\/p>\n \u201cLance is just as fast as anybody else; he\u2019s a manimal and he\u2019s fit to truck somebody,\u201d Elisoff said.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Defensive outlook<\/strong><\/p>\n If Hickok\u2019s graduation left a hole in JDHS\u2019 offense, it created a cavern on defense. The all-state linebacker and two-time SEC defensive player of the year averaged 12 tackles per game last year, something Hamrick said they simply can\u2019t account for.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t replace him altogether, maybe two guys can replace him,\u201d Hamrick said. JDHS will look to Nathan Van Sickle for leadership in the box. \u201cNathan Van Sickle is a good inside linebacker for me. Hunter (Hickok) was such a unique combination of size and speed but I think Nathan (Van Sickle) could get there when he\u2019s a senior.\u201d<\/p>\n Hamrick is also experimenting with defensive lineman John Elisoff in the linebacker position.<\/p>\n JDHS defense is simple and relies on speed and positioning rather than size. Sometimes the Crimson Bears run four man fronts, sometimes five, but in any case Hamrick likes to keep as much speed on the field as possible, which often means relying on undersized tacklers. To compensate, the coaching staff teaches an \u201calligator\u201d tackling technique which allows his smaller, faster players to take down big opponents and avoid leading with their heads.<\/p>\n \u201cYou lead with your shoulder and twist, which gives the smaller guys leverage if they hit low,\u201d Hamrick said. \u201cWith all the new rule changes telling us you can\u2019t lead with your head, high school referees are getting coached up and called on it.\u201d<\/p>\n With such small numbers, the main concern for JDHS on either side of the ball is staying healthy, which means they\u2019re doing less full-contact work in practice and more conditioning.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter whether it\u2019s offense or defense, with these numbers, for us it\u2019s about staying healthy,\u201d Hamrick said. \u201cWe have a great first squad and if we can stay healthy we\u2019ll be successful.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 2016 JDHS football schedule:<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Aug. 13, JDHS vs. TMHS<\/p>\n Aug. 20, JDHS vs. Kodiak<\/p>\n Aug. 27, JDHS at Ketchikan<\/p>\n Sept. 3, JDHS at Homer<\/p>\n Sept. 10, JDHS vs. California<\/p>\n Sept. 17, JDHS vs. Ketchikan<\/p>\n Sept. 24, JDHS at North Pole<\/p>\n Sept. 30, JDHS at TMHS<\/p>\n Two teams from the Southeast Conference (TMHS, JDHS, Ketchikan and North Pole) will make it to the state medium school playoffs to face two teams from the Northern Lights Conference (Soldatna, Kenai, Palmer, Kodiak and Eagle River). Seeding is based on conference records.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 2016 JDHS football roster:<\/strong><\/p>\n (Positions weren’t available at press time)<\/p>\n John Williams SR<\/p>\n Luis Lozada SR<\/p>\n Donavin McCurley JR<\/p>\n Liam Van Sickle JR<\/p>\n Jonathan-Che \u201cBubba\u201d Stults JR<\/p>\n Devin Stevenson JR<\/p>\n Lance Galletes-Fiagatusa JR<\/p>\n Koen Schultz JR<\/p>\n Max Wheat JR<\/p>\n Cody Galletes JR<\/p>\n Tyler Collins JR<\/p>\n Elliott Gifford JR<\/p>\n Nathan Van Sickle JR<\/p>\n Derrick Roberts JR<\/p>\n Dylan Vernon JR<\/p>\n Dominic Watt JR<\/p>\n John Elisoff JR<\/p>\n John Hamrick SO<\/p>\n Cristian Batac SO<\/p>\n Tristan Bryant SO<\/p>\n Luis Mojica FR<\/p>\n Kasey Hamrick FR<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Head coach: Kevin Hamrick<\/p>\n Position coaches and coordinators:<\/p>\n Rory Neire, Sam Dalin, Vincent Yadao, Mike Behrends, Dave D\u2019Amore and Ryan Van Sickle<\/p>\n Manager: David Timothy<\/p>\n Read more sports:<\/strong><\/p>\n TMHS football preview: Unity means victory for snowballing program<\/a><\/p>\n Runners make memories at Frank Maier Marathon<\/a><\/p>\n
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