Skyhawks continue to build and move forward

“We return a good number of starters on both sides of the ball from last season, which is definitely beneficial…our team has developed greatly, as they have trained with a purpose this off season,”

~Johnsburg Head Coach

Mike Maloney

 

 

By Todd Rohde~ SPORTS CORRESPONDENT

Last season’s success and achievements for the Johnsburg football team wasn’t measured in wins or losses. But rather by the way that the Skyhawks continued to learn, gain experience and remain positive along the way.

With the above in mind, the Skyhawks will continue to move along the same path as they look to further advance their skills and move forward in the right direction. In the process, Johnsburg will most likely be rewarded for their hard work and determination by landing a few victories along the way.

The Skyhawks are a work in progress as they are coming off of a season where they went winless a year ago, but that hasn’t dampened their spirits and instead only made them a stronger team. The program was 0-9 overall and 0-6 in league play for the year.

“We return a good number of starters on both sides of the ball from last season, which is definitely beneficial,” head coach Mike Maloney said.

“Our team is a battle-tested group, however depth continues to be an issue for us although our young men are up to the challenge that lies ahead this season.”

Like most teams, the Skyhawks lost a handful or so of quality players to graduation, most likely of who will be missed the most in tight end/defensive end Michael Conroy and fullback/linebacker Christian Nugent. But Johnsburg has many returners and newcomers alike, who are up for the challenge of filling their voids.

This year’s team has a robust 27 players out for the program including 10 of both seniors and juniors to go along with seven sophomores. The Skyhawks do have several starters and letterwinners back, but they haven’t chosen any captains to lead the team as of yet.

If Johnsburg is going to have some success this year, they are going to have to rely on several players to have some big performances. Some of those key players include quarterback Nick Brengman, tight end/linebacker Ben Stillwell, linemen Zach Kinney and John Conroy, offensive guard/defensive end Eric Wagner and free safety Brad Iverson.

The goals and keys for the Skyhawks this season is for the offense to minimize turnovers and for the defense to create as many as possible. Johnsburg will also look to be physical blockers and limit missed tackles.

The strengths of the team fall in the leadership and character of the seniors and returning starters. Execution late in the game will be critical to the Skyhawks success, as they must overcome adversity and self-imposed limitations in order to win a good number of games this season.

Johnsburg hopes to be able to hang with the teams in the conference and be able to notch a victory or two along the way for their efforts.

Although all teams in the league will be a challenge, those providing the biggest obstacle include Grayslake and Woodstock North, as well as Crystal Lake Central.

This is Maloney’s second year at the helm for the Skyhawks and he will be assisted by Karl Jennrich, Sam Lesniak, Zach McCaule, Damon Malone, Jon Murphy, Chris Leathers and Mike Sommerfield. The Skyhawks began practicing Aug. 14th and came in ready to go and with enthusiasm.

“Our team has developed greatly, as they have trained with a purpose this offseason,” Maloney said. So now our challenge as coaches is to get better on as much as possible to prepare them for the games.”

 

 


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