In a world that has witnessed nothing even remotely close to a sense of normalcy since mid-March, the Seckman Jaguars, among other football teams, hope to change that just a little on Friday night.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic the Jaguars, coming off a 2-8 season in head coach Nick Baer’s first season, host De Soto in a non-conference game.
Following that game in Imperial, Baer isn’t sure where the season will go from there.
While schools in Jefferson County and south have been practicing for over two weeks, their St. Louis counterparts, which make up a good chunk of Seckman’s Suburban Conference, just started on Monday. In addition, some schools in the St. Louis area have moved their season to next spring.
Football teams in the Suburban Conference were split into five color-coded pools this year. The Jaguars are in the fourth-tiered Orange pool with Mehlville, Northwest, Oakville, Parkway South and Webster Groves.
As he sat in his office recently, masked up, Baer admits this has been an interesting situation.
“We’ve just tried to control what we can and how we go about our business,” Baer said. “After nearly five months of essentially being away from school, and all the things that go with it, the kids have been ready to get back out here. And they’ve been great about it. As for our schedule, after week one, nothing is certain. But it’s looking like we can play Fox and Northwest after that, and I think we will be able to work with some other local teams through week five. After that, we hope our St. Louis opponents will be ready to schedule, and we can be able to play out the season.”
Baer noted that the Jaguars return three senior starters on the offensive line in Colton Critchlow, Brandon Granger and Cole Campbell. Beyond that on the offensive side, a re-tooling has taken place, after some key components were lost to graduation.
“We’re looking for those guys to lead and anchor the line,” the Seckman coach said. “(Sophomore) Cole Ruble, who placed third at state in wrestling, has to be able to make a splash at quarterback, and we’ve got a whole new group looking to touch the ball. (Senior) Sebi Feliciano at running back has been one of the strongest kids in the weight room. And Noah Isaia, a sophomore, will be fun to watch.”
At wide receiver, Grant Calhoun and Tanner Barker, both seniors, can make plays.
“It’s no secret that Seckman’s offensive forte has mostly been running the ball, and that’s still our go-to.” Baer said. “But we do need to have playmakers to be able to put the ball in the air when we need to.”
On the defensive side, there are a few spots where the Jaguars will be young, particularly on the line.
“Brandon Borawski, Will Becker and Michael Stivers, all sophomores, are big, strong, tough kids, and I think they’re ready,” Baer said.
Baer is looking for Kaleb Niebuhr to anchor the defense at linebacker, and in the (defensive) backfield Seckman’s got seniors Dylan Lynch at free safety and Grant Salsman at cornerback.
“Robert Frank is another guy we’ve been impressed with, and I think Justice Ashlock, on the defensive line, will wear out some people,” Baer said. “Not that we took steps back last season, but I think some of these guys, off the 2018 team where we won (a school-record) six games, really want to continue to see this team turn it around. But we’re focused on now, locked in and loaded. They’re ready, and I’m really impressed with their maturity, even the younger ones, and their ability to stay focused.”
TOMORROW: JCAA softball previews