Editor”s note: This is the first in a five-part series profiling Lake County”s varsity football teams.
MIDDLETOWN — “They”re small, they”re smart, they”re quick.”
With these half-dozen words Bill Foltmer provided an overview of the Middletown Mustang team that he will take into his 28th year as head coach at the school. Consider it a warning. After a down (6-5) season in 2011, when the Mustangs were outclassed by St. Helena and Willits in the North Central League I race, you can expect them to be, as Foltmer puts it, back “in the mix of things” this season.
They are lightweights only on the scale.
How small are they? Well, Ben Pike, who took over as quarterback mid-season last year is 5-foot-7 and 163 pounds when soaking wet and will not see over most defenders well enough to be a pocket passer. But he outsizes Tyler Drew — who, surprisingly runs from the fullback position in the Middletown offense — by a dozen pounds and is an inch taller. Brett Einboden, at 220, is the only Mustang who weighs in at more than 200 pounds.
Sophomores Anthonie Guzman, another pony back; Cody Chorjel, a guard and linebacker; and tackle Wyatt Hall speak to the smart part. All three are 4.0 students and, already penciled in as starters, are obviously talented. Historically, Foltmer”s roster has rarely had sophomores on it. He can”t remember the last time three of them made it. “It”s been a while,” he says, “but if I bring up a sophomore he”s going to play for us.”
The underclassmen trio, Foltmer adds, has stood up well in preseason drills. “Their names are not being called out for making mistakes,” he said. “You go through it one time and they get it.” Foltmer sees a lot of potential in Guzman, who can also play the wing. “He”s very elusive with good speed and hands.”
The quickness? Well, if Foltmer says the Mustangs are quick, they”re quick.
What the longstanding Middletown coach is hoping for in this year”s group is the consistency that was lacking last year. And so far so good. He calls his team “solid.”
“The problem last year was that our kids would be great for one series and then maybe be terrible in the next series or the next game. I was a little disappointed when a kid would show that hey, he”s got it and this is going to be a solid player, then we”d have to take him out because he wasn”t aggressive,” Foltmer recalled. “The consistency has to be much better this year. You gotta see them step up and be more consistent with their blocking.”
The bedrock of this year”s Mustangs is 13 returning operatives — six on offense and seven on defense. Foltmer is counting on leadership from this group by Pike, who in ”11 returned from an early injury to provide a needed spark, along with Tyler Rockwell at tight end, and defensive veterans Anthony Tacla and Jared Carrillo.
It will be interesting to see how the “smaller, smarter, quicker” 2012 Mustangs shake out. As is the case each season, Foltmer is obliged to play to the blend of talents, or, as he says, “play the hand that you get” at a small school.
“When you”re small you can”t be slow,” he says. “Our line is not going to be muscling up anybody, so they gotta be smart, rely on their technique, realize the type of players they are and use that to their advantage.”
Expect to see Middletown vary up its offense, operating from a Wing-T on one series and an I-formation on the next, depending on which fullback is on the field. Brad Beckwith, up from last year”s unbeaten JV team, is the I-formation fullback. At 6-foot-1, 197, he is the second biggest Mustang. The aforementioned Drew runs in the Wing-T.
“In short-yardage situations you”ll see Beckwith come into the game to provide the hard yards or a lead block,” said Foltmer. “Drew is good for running traps.”
Foltmer expects Drew and Austin Benson, both quick and hard working, to provide the breakaway runs that were at a premium last season.
“The breakaway runners have got to do better than last year when they get to that second level (into the defensive secondary),” he said. “They gotta make better decisions for going left or right when they get into the open field, like the good running backs we”ve had in the past. When they have an open field I want to see them turn that into a 10-yard gain and maybe turn the 10-yard gain into a 50-yard gain.”
Other Mustangs to watch:
— Logan Smith, a 6-foot-2, 187-pound athlete is one of seven seniors and can play well at several positions. “He”s my kind of guy,” says Foltmer.
— Junior Brad Bologna, who didn”t play for the Mustangs last year, is being counted on to back up Tyler Rockwell at tight end. Foltmer: “He”s a pleasant surprise, an aggressive kind, with good hands and good size (5-11, 196).”
— Josiah Amos, who quarterbacked the ”11 JVs to their unbeaten 10-0 season and backs up Pike.
— Wideout Barrett Southern, a junior who returned a couple of punts for touchdowns for last year”s unbeaten JVs.
Foltmer regards Willits as the frontrunner in the NCL and St. Helena will be a force as well, but says on the whole the league is probably better, most especially Clear Lake and Lower Lake.
“We”ll have to work when we play those guys.” he said. “We won”t be beating them by 50. But if we don”t throw the interception or turn the ball over on a fumble like we did last year, they”ve got to beat us.”
