GANS HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
The Gans Grizzlies, who suffered through a 2-9 season, but still made the Class B playoffs, are ready and roaring to go in 2023.
“We’re pretty excited,” Gans third-year coach Brian Morton said. “We’ve got all our skill players back. Our linemen have two years of experience under their belts. They’re developed. We’ve got some big outlooks for the season. These last two years, we’ve had no depth at any position. This year, we’ll be able to move some people around into other positions and give kids some back up. It’s something we really haven’t had before. I think our kids are ready to go. The coaches are ready. I feel like we’re way ahead that we’ve ever been this time of year before.”
One thing that’s made for a lot of high hopes is a healthy quarterback in senior Hunter Walters.
“He’s our returning quarterback,” Morton said. “He’s coming off an injury last year. He missed the first half of the season with a broken arm — he received that at the first scrimmage of the season. So, he missed the first six weeks. He came back for us, and he threw the ball really well. We started gelling after we got him back.”
Gans likely is going with a 1-2 tandem at running back.
“Clay Martinez started running the ball very well for us last year,” Morton said. “He’s a very athletic, strong and big kid. He runs hard. We would like to split some of those (running back) duties with Caiden Kennedy. He’s really coming around. He’s been doing a good job running the ball for us in practice drills.”
Morton is high on his receiving corps.
“Nakota White is another one who is going to see a lot of action at tailback, and he also will be our No. 3 back some and be at that No. 4 spot on receivers,” he said. “He is definitely our best receiver. With us running the spread offense like we do, we run a lot of one-back (offense). Josh Brunk started for us last year as a freshman. He’s a big kid and has good hands. He’s really starting to develop as an athlete, so he’s probably going to be a big target for us this year. Anthony Vasquez is an incoming freshman, who can catch the football and is a strong kid. He’s one we have high hopes for.”
The Grizzlies’ offensive linemen could very well be one of the team’s strengths.
“Brenden Strickland is one of our better guards and has put some time in at center,” Morton said. “He’s really grown over the last two years. He’s getting stronger. He knows his duties much better. He’s the leader on the offensive line for us. We’ve got some young ones — Wesley Thornell, Beau Anderson, Jarrett Frazier and Preston Bennett. We have some high expectations for Wesley. He did start for us last year, but he really developed over the summer. Beau is a big, strong country kid. We feel like he’s really going to do some good things for us, but he hasn’t really been able to practice and be on the field due to injury. Jarrett is another kid who didn’t play for us last year. He’s a decent-sized kid and learns quick. Preston is another one we really have high expectations for. He’s an incoming freshman. We definitely have more depth in our line than we’ve had in the past.”
One area in which the Grizzlies struggled last year was on defense as they were outscored 582-228. Morton has made it a point to try to improve the team defensively this past off-season and summer workouts, and he likes how things are looking — thanks to the likes of Martinez, Kennedy, White and TaShawn Achan.
“Clay does an excellent job at nose guard for us,” Morton said. “He’s our running back. We dropped him down on nose guard, and he gave people fits last year. TaShawn is another kid who has really come along. He likes to hit. He’s never had the linebacker position before, so we’re trying to train him into a linebacker for us this year. I think he’s got the mentality and skill level he’s going to be able to do a good job for us. Caiden is another one for us who we really want to step up on defense for us and make some big plays. Nakota has always been a strong defensive player for us. He’s just a good steady kid on offense, and he’s one of our best, steady defensive players.”
