September 20, 2020 at 3:34 p.m.
Hodags look sharp in scrimmage
Hodags look sharp in scrimmage
Juniors Caleb Olcikas and Cayden Neri rushed for a combined 249 yards and the Hodags scored four touchdowns in a scrimmage against Northland Pines at Mike Webster Stadium, while holding the Eagles out of the end zone.
The scrimmage was originally supposed to take place at Lakeland, but Lakeland was forced to back out late in the week. So Rhinelander and Pines called an audible, moving the scrimmage to Rhinelander.
"It was really nice to have them down here and have the scrimmage at home," Rhinelander coach Aaron Kraemer said. "Obviously, we would have liked to have played against Lakeland too. I reached out to coach (Dan) Barutha at Lakeland just to let him know my thoughts were with him this week because it sucks not to have the opportunity to play. The fact that we got that opportunity, I'm really happy we were out here and it's Friday night lights again."
Friday's scrimmage was pretty game-like, with two, 30-minute running-time sessions for the varsity played very closely to an actual game, minus some special teams elements.
Olcikas and Neri, looking to replace last year's duo of Drake Martin and Peyton Erikson, shined throughout the scrimmage. Olcikas opened with runs of 19 and 16 yards on the first to plays of the scrimmage and nearly had two touchdowns. He fumbled inside the 1 on the Hodags opening drive, but senior tight end Jacques Tulowitzky was there to recover the ball in the end zone for a score. Olcikas capped off the Hodags' fourth offensive possession with a five-yard score, what proved to be his final carry in a 15-carry, 133-yard effort.
Meanwhile, Neri saw more touches toward the end of the session and had the longest play from scrimmage of the evening, breaking free for a 68-yard score on the first play of Rhinelander's sixth possession. He finished with 116 yards and a score on seven carries.
"You saw the thunder and lightning tonight," Kraemer said. "Cayden and Caleb both have their own style, but they certainly both are kids I'd watch out for in the GNC."
Senior quarterback Quinn Lamers also looked sharp, going 7 of 9 through the air for 109 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The score came at the end of Rhinelander's second offensive possession, as he went over the top to senior receiver Jackson Labs for a 42-yard touchdown. An overthrow that led to an interception deep in Pines territory on Rhinelander's third offensive possession was the only real blemish for Lamers on the night.
"Quinn told me last week in a text message, 'This is the best I've ever felt as a quarterback,' and you're seeing it," Kraemer said. "The one pick that we had, I'm not going to make an excuse for him. It was a poor throw, but he was pressured and we're going to work on it."
Labs ended the night with three catches for 70 yards while junior tight end Joe Schneider had two catches for 37 yards.
Meanwhile, the Hodags' defense kept Pines in check much of the night. Four of the Eagles seven possessions ended in three-and-outs. Pines' most sustained drive came on its second possession, as it marched more than 50 yards into Rhinelander territory before losing the ball on a fumble, recovered by Tulowitzky at the 22.
In the end, Pines was held to 80 yards of offense on 28 plays. Sixty-three of those yards came on the ground as the Eagles were 1 for 6 through the air for 17 yards. Senior nose tackle Ben Sinclair unofficially was credited for a team-high six tackles, including two tackles for loss.
"I felt really comfortable with where we are at. I think there's a lot more our defense can do that we didn't really show tonight," Kraemer said. "I'm really excited about our physicality, but we have to tackle lower. We have to finish. There's things that we have to do and we're just going to continue to work on the little things."
Between the lines, Friday night's scrimmage felt pretty normal in football terms, as the teams play through the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hodags appear to have remedied the issue they had with their face shields fogging up by removing the protective film from the visor area of the helmet, while leaving it in place on the facemask, thus covering players' noses and mouths. The biggest hiccup seemed to be the constant reminder for players to spread out on the sidelines. The players' box has been extended to 80 yards this year - between the 10-yard lines - up from 50 yards to encourage physical distancing.
"Obviously, with all the protocols we put in place and what we're trying to do with our players, I feel like I'm breaking a puppy right now," Kraemer said. "It sucks for me because I want to build relationships with our kids but, at the same time, I want to take care of what we need to take care of. I need to rely on my seniors to make sure we're taking care of our business on the sideline first because, if we're not healthy, we can't play."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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