October 6, 2022 at 8:48 a.m.
Hodags face must-win scenario on senior night
Hodags face must-win scenario on senior night
The Hodags can no longer guarantee a playoff berth, but two wins over the final two weeks could get them onto the bubble of teams looking for one of the spots to fill out the field of 224 teams. That begins tonight against a Merrill team looking for a win to secure its playoff fate.
According to WisSports.net, 187 teams are projected to finish the season with a record of .500 or better in their respective conferences, leaving 37 spots available for teams with sub-.500 records in league play. Should Rhinelander somehow run the table, it would make for an interesting selection Friday in one week's time.
Obviously, that will be a tall task for a Hodag team that has dropped three straight games - the last two in blowout fashion to conference co-leaders Medford and Mosinee. An injury-depleted squad is in desperate need of some mojo, especially on the defensive side of the ball, where the team has surrendered 96 first-half points over the last two contest.
"I think it's a heart thing that we're going through right now," Hodag head coach Aaron Kraemer said of the team's tribulations over the last few weeks. "It's going to take all 13 seniors - guys that are playing and aren't - and all the players that are going to play in the game on Friday to get a positive result out of a game that means so much and a game that is so emotional, especially the last one our seniors will play on this field."
On the other side of the field, Merrill, which was picked to finish near the bottom of the GNC, is just one win away from clinching its first playoff berth since 2017 following back-to-back 28-6 wins over Ashland and Hayward.
"It's a good Merrill team that's perhaps shocked some people, but they're not a shock to me," Kraemer said. "They have the pieces to be a successful team and they have a couple of kids that we saw at the Northwoods Combine this summer and I thought to myself they're going to be a good outfit. It's come to fruition. We're excited about the challenge."
Here are five storylines going into tonight's contest.
Trainer's room
Rhinelander's injury picture has become more clear, but not necessarily much better, over the last few days.
Conner Jensen, who was injured last Tuesday at practice, is officially out for the season. On Saturday, the senior lineman tweeted that he sustained a torn MCL and ACL.
"At the end of the day football is just a game. But the memories and relationships I've built will take me way farther in life then any win or loss," his tweet thread read. "To all my coaches and teammates, I love you guys and I consider you all family. I will never forget the times we have had. But we all need to roll on and finish strong."
"My heart hurts for Conner, but he's had a great career and a lot to look back at and be proud of," Kraemer said. "I hope, for his sake, that he comes back and that's not the last play he plays on a football field. I know he's contemplating going and playing college football and I hope, for his sake, that he does, because he certainly can fit in on teams around our area."
Additionally, Truman Lamers' family posted on social media late last week that the sophomore had surgery to repair a broken bone in his hand that will cost him the remainder of the season. Kraemer also confirmed that Owen Kurtz will not return this season following the shoulder injury he sustained near the end of the first half of the Sept. 23 contest against Mosinee.
In all, the Hodags have nine players listed as out for tonight's game - five of whom were starters at the beginning of the season.
Honoring the seniors
Regardless of what happens tonight or next Friday, this will be the final home game for this year's senior class of 13 players. Even if the Hodags sneak into the postseason, they would undoubtedly be on the road for opening round of the WIAA tournament.
"The senior class has been with me since I've taken over as head coach," Kraemer said. "My first year was their freshman year and it's been incredible to watch those kids grow. Some of them have grown not only in physicality and in the game, but emotionally and in their character and type of people that they are.
"We're excited about senior night to celebrate our senior class. This is a special one for our seniors and their parents. We're hoping some of that senior leadership shines through this week and that our junior and sophomores step up to the plate and the challenge ahead of them."
Merrill offense
The Bluejays are primarily a running team out of a pro-style pistol I. Bruising tailback Nathan Brzoznowski, checking in at 6-foot, 205 pounds, is Merrill's leading rusher with 865 yards and 11 touchdowns so far on the season. Most of that production has come in the last two games, as he rushed for 247 yards and two scores against Ashland, followed by a 211-yard, three-TD performance last Saturday against Hayward.
Quarterback Brian Ball is also a running threat with 344 yards and five touchdowns on the ground so far this season.
"They're a physical ground-and-pound lead type of team. They want to send it at us," Kraemer said. "They want to run the football. They are an inside the tackles team. They do try to get outside with their quarterback, and he's a really talented athlete. We've got to make sure we don't fall asleep when (Brzoznowski) doesn't get the ball and we get (Ball) to the ground."
Ball has completed 49.2% of his passes so far this season for 393 yards with two touchdowns and five interceptions. Bradyn Pieper (14 catches, 235 yards, 2 TDs) and Logan Pages (11, 131, 0) are his top targets.
Merrill defense
The Bluejays have allowed 18.4 points per game this season, but have been a bit Jekyll and Hyde, defensively. Merrill has allowed 30, 43 and 44 points in its losses to Crandon, Medford and Lakeland, but only 12 points combined in its four wins against Northland Pines, Antigo, Ashland and Hayward.
Overall, the Bluejays are allowing only 168.1 yards per game on the season - including only 4.1 yards per carry on the ground.
"They're a defense that's physical up front, but we feel we match up with them athletically," Kraemer said. "We'll look to use our athletes to take advantage of that this week. But also, we have to be able to run the football inside the tackles against this team as well."
Erik Mann and Sawyer Marnholtz led the way for Merrill's 4-3 defense with 44 and 43 tackles, respectively.
Longstanding rivalry
Though it does not have a trophy attached to it like the Bell Game against Antigo or the Axe Game against Lakeland, Rhinelander-Merrill does have a long history behind it as the 15th-longest active rivalry in the state, according to WisSports.net.
This will be the 98th meeting between the squads, with Merrill holding a 50-45-2 edge. The teams first met in 1921 and have faced each other annually almost every year since. The last time the teams did not meet was 2008, when Merrill first moved to the GNC and Rhinelander was still in the Wisconsin Valley Conference.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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