Young team ready to kick off

Sonja Karp
NLJ Sports Reporter
 
Last Friday, the lights began to shine at Schoonmaker Field as the Dogies suited up for the annual Orange and Black scrimmage, giving fans a sneak peak at the 2019 squad which head coach Matt Conzelman described as young, but full of potential.
“We dealt with quite a few injuries with our older guys last season so we had to throw our younger guys into the game,” he began. “It was a little bit of a baptism by fire for them then, but it may have been a blessing in disguise for us this year.”
After losing some key players to graduation and relocation, that experience gained by the younger players should play to the team’s advantage as they kick off competition this weekend.
Numbers are looking good this year with more than 30 kids on the roster. 
“That’s what we’ve been wanting to shoot for, and we have a big class of freshmen coming in, which is great,” he exclaimed. “We lost some size up front but we have a decent, young front line who saw some significant time last year.” 
The Dogies are bringing back some key players, including senior Bradyn Frye as quarterback, who Conzelman anticipates will be splitting time in that position with sophomore Slade Roberson. 
“These are two different players who each bring a different element to the game,” Conzelman explained. “Instead of just having one guy who will take all the snaps, we are able to look at the strengths each guy has and lean on those.”
Frye’s strength is in the running game with his power, while Roberson has the finesse of the passing game in his wheelhouse.
Frye will also be taking on most of the kicking responsibilities for the Dogies this season. As a soccer player, he has developed some skills putting the boot to the ball and Conzelman intends to take full advantage of that.
“Bradyn was kicking the heck out of the ball last Friday, and his PATs (points after touchdown) looked good,” Conzelman nodded. “Those points definitely mean something, because they can come down to the difference between a win and a loss.”
Other key players returning to the field include juniors Chauncey Jenerou, Christian Santos, Kale Corley, Skylar Jenkins and Triston Workey. They are joined by sophomores Braden Jenkins, Aiden Chick, Nick Jingleski and Brandon Donner. Six other sophomores and 14 freshmen round out the numbers for the Dogies.
“We have a huge freshmen class that is overall pretty good,” Conzelman declared. “I want to let them get their feet wet with some special teams to start, but realistically there are some of those guys that could probably start for us. We just don’t want to throw them to the 2A wolves right off the bat.”
The Dogies’ motto this season is that “first downs mean something”. Conzelman explained that his team’s goal is to get on the field and get one first down.
“We have to be able to move the sticks, because if you get one first down, maybe you get the momentum shifting and then pick up two or three and then maybe get into the endzone,” he surmised.
“Getting one first down also changes field position where you can then punt and hold them back. The more we have the ball in our possession means less time that it is in their possession so that is another advantage.”
Conzelman named the top contenders in the conference to include Buffalo, who is loaded with talent, and though Glenrock lost some kids they will be solid again with a good program. However, he considers the third spot to be kind of up for grabs with Burns and Wheatland being in the mix along with Newcastle for that spot.
The 2019 coaching staff includes Conzelman, Scott Beehler, Beau Gregory, Dave Christianson, Mason Pisciotti and Matt Barton who played with former Dogie Merritt Crabtree at Chadron State College.
The zero week contest coming up this Friday will see a different opponent for the Dogies than the usual Custer Wildcats. Due to changes in South Dakota regulations, Custer can no longer include Newcastle in their season schedule, however, there will still be a border war as Hot Springs has replaced the Wildcats to kick off the season.
“It’s a bummer that we can’t play Custer anymore, because that was always a good matchup,” Conzelman admitted. “But Hot Springs is also a good matchup for us.”
The Bison will present a challenge to the Dogies as they bring a lot of size to the line while Newcastle does not.
“We will definitely be outsized, so we are going to have to use our speed to our advantage,”” Conzelman nodded. 
Kickoff for the season opener is at 6 on Friday at Schoonmaker Field.