G.B. Southwest going back to the basics
GREEN BAY – There will be a lot of new faces in the Green Bay Southwest football team’s lineup this year.
Co-head coaches Pat Wallace and Tim Birr wasted little time in testing their inexperienced squad by having them go through the ropes course at the Door County Adventure Center in Sturgeon Bay.
“We really learned some stuff about our team,” Wallace said. “We learned what we communicate well at and how we need to improve.
“The sky is the limit if they do it the right way. We feel this team has the potential to be in the playoffs, but we also don’t know how we’ll respond to adversity because we don’t have that experience. But we see the potential.”
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The Trojans will have to walk a tightrope through the Fox River Classic Conference to qualify for the playoffs.
Southwest is coming off a 3-6 campaign, which saw it miss out on a postseason berth despite finishing second in the FRCC in total offense (390.7 yards per game) and first in interceptions (12) on defense.
They have to replace four-year standouts in Nick Howard and Isaac Klarkowski.
Howard, who led the FRCC in passing yards and was one of the conference’s top rushers, is now a quarterback at Dartmouth College.
Klarkowski earned first-team all-FRCC honors as a two-way lineman last year and is now at Rice University.
“For the first time that I can remember, we have no honorable mention (all-conference) kids back,” Wallace said.
“You almost have to go back to the foundation of baby steps. That one-percent-a-day type of deal. If we can get one percent better today, then we’re doing the right thing.”
Southwest is relying heavily on the experience of senior linebacker Taejon Richard, who was second on the team last year with 84 tackles and was a starter two years ago when the Trojans advanced to the WIAA Division 2 state semifinals.
While there aren’t a lot of familiar faces, Wallace said he likes the prospect of the offensive line being bigger than it was across the board than last year.
“This has been a good group to be around,” Wallace said about the team. “They’ve been fun.
“We see parts. But like anything, parts only take you so far because you have to work together.”
G.B. Southwest at a glance
Co-head coaches: Tim Birr and Pat Wallace, 7th season, 36-26
Last year: 3-6
All-conference players to replace:
Nick Howard, QB/OLB, 1st team/HM
Isaac Klarkowski, OL/DL, 1st team
Will Pytleski, WR, 1st team
Alex Kaczmarczyk, ILB, 2nd team
Josh Yasha, WR/DB, HM/1st team
All conference players returning:
None
2019 Schedule
Aug. 22 Ashwaubenon
Aug. 29 De Pere
Sept. 6 at Manitowoc
Sept. 13 at Bay Port
Sept. 20 Sheboygan South
Sept. 27 G.B. Preble
Oct. 4 at Pulaski
Oct. 11 at G.B. Notre Dame
Oct. 18 Sheboygan North