DIGITAL SPORTS SEASON PREVIEW
NORTHWOOD IS YOUNG BUT HUNGRY FOR PLAYOFFS
By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com
Northwood’s T-shirts say it all.
“Unfinished Business”
At 5-5 last year, Northwood fell one game short of making the playoffs in just the program’s second year as the team’s loss to Rockville sealed the team’s fate.
Now the program is looking not only to pick up where it left off, but take that next step to reach the 2A/1A playoffs.
“That really killed us,” senior running back Lydell Baker said. “We were so, so close. … That really ignited us and it makes us play to the next level, it makes us want to get the playoffs more. And every single day we come out here and work five times harder than other teams to make sure we get there this year.”
The glaring force working against Northwood is that Baker is the only full-time offensive starter returning and the team only has one defensive starter back. The team had 28 seniors last year and only 12 players return to the team overall, meaning there’s a lot of new faces at Northwood.
“A lot of people think that because we lost a lot of seniors that we won’t do as good,” Baker said. “But we have just as many athletes and those athletes have a whole lot more potential. And the hard work we’re putting in is going to bring the potential out of them.”
“It’s hard work but we come out here and put in the hard work so it’s like we didn’t lose those seniors,” added junior wide receiver Keith Hudson.
Baker will lead the team offensively and defensively at linebacker. He’s a 5-foot-11, 210 wrecking ball that yelled at his teammates to get fired up throughout the team’s scrimmage against Flowers last Friday.
“I’m looking to carry this team,” Baker said. “I’m going to get it done.”
Quarterback Jimmy Hessler threw for 1,400 yards in six games before injuring his toe last season. He returns with more experience and a bevy of talented wide receivers to throw to this year.
“I’ve got a depth of 11 receivers,” Hessler said. “I think we’re in good shape and like I said I think we’ll do better this year than last year.”
The team is so optimistic because of those young receivers and the presence of Hessler and Baker, two key cogs from last year. The team also feels that there are many talented players moving up from the junior varsity.
“I think we just have to be special on offense,” Coach Dennis Harris said. “We don’t have a big offensive line but we have some guys in the right places that can get some stuff done offensively. We’re a little slim in numbers but they do work hard.”
Hessler, who also stars for the school’s baseball team, has his theory about how the season will go.
“Well the first varsity year we went 0-10. Then we went 5-5 last year. If we keep the trend going we can be 10-0,” Hessler said with a smile. “Well, we’ve got some tough teams. I’m thinking maybe 7-3.”
JUMPSTART: Northwood gets its chance to exact revenge in the first game of the season on Sept. 5 as the Gladiators will face 2A foe Rockville, who denied them from the playoffs last year. From there, Northwood faces winless Blair and then another playoff qualifier in Clarksburg in Week 3.
“We have to be strong in those first three,” Harris said.
