October 13, 2022 at 8:36 a.m.
Hodags to finish season against rival T-Birds
Hodags to finish season against rival T-Birds
The scheduling gods gave Rhinelander a trophy game against a close rival to end the 2022 season and the Hodags will look to retain the Northwoods Axe on the road against Lakeland in Minocqua this evening.
The T-Birds are back in the WIAA playoffs following a 21-7 win at Hayward last week - Lakeland's fourth straight win following an 0-4 start. The T-Birds have not hosted Rhinelander in four years - which, coincidentally, is the last time they won the Axe - and will be motivated on their homecoming night.
"They're a playoff team. They're proud. They want to go into the playoffs on a winning note and they obviously want to win an Axe back," Hodag coach Aaron Kraemer said. "This is going to be a tightly-contested game."
On the other side of the field, Rhinelander is in unfamiliar territory in its four years under Kraemer. For only the second time, the Hodags will go into a game knowing it will be their last of the season, regardless of the outcome. That also happened during the COVID-shortened 2020 season when a two-week culminating event was held in lieu of the WIAA playoffs.
"I talked to the seniors this week about their last opportunity to leave an impression on our program, on the field," Kraemer said. "For our young guys, this is another opportunity for them to step up in a rivalry game and set us up on the right path as we go into the offseason."
Here are five storylines heading into tonight's contest.
Triple threat
Slowing down Lakeland's offense begins with slowing down a trio of seniors at the core of the attack - running back Rocky Wagoner, quarterback Brayden Wiczek and receiver Max Masayesva.
Wagoner has been Lakeland's bell cow this year at tailback, rushing for 780 yards and 13 touchdowns.
"Great player, somebody that we noticed in track and field last year," Kraemer said of Wagoner. "He's a guy we're going to have to put to the ground and rally around. He does break tackles and he moves well."
Wiczek, in his third year starting for Lakeland, has completed 47.7% of his passes for 719 yards, six touchdowns and seven interceptions this year. Lakeland's passing game has picked up over the last two weeks, with Wizcek throwing for 302 yards and three scores combined in wins over Ashland and Hayward.
Masayesva (23 catches, 337 yards, 3 TDs) is not only Lakeland's top threat in the passing game, but a threat to run on jet sweeps, averaging 9.9 yards per carry.
Junior fullback Leonard Chosa comes in off his best game of the year, rushing for 63 yards on nine carries against Hayward. Ryan Carlson (10 catches, 129 yards), and Maccoy Holmquist (10 catches, 157 yards, 2 TD) have also been more active in the passing game as of late.
Up and down D
Though Lakeland has won four straight, their defense has been inconsistent. The T-Birds gave up 573 yards of offense in a loss to Medford earlier this year, and won despite allowing 429 yards two weeks ago against Ashland.
Lakeland put the breaks on Hayward's offense last week, however, holding the Hurricanes to 91 total yards. Hayward starting quarterback Alex DePew left the game after getting tackled on a scramble at the end of the first quarter and did not return.
Overall, Lakeland enters tonight fourth against the run in the GNC but last against the pass.
Heck of a run
Last week, Rhinelander quarterback James Heck recorded the team's longest play from scrimmage this year - an 82-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter of the contest. Heck also had a 14-yard run earlier in the game called back due to a holding penalty.
Heck is the team's leading available rusher, with 262 yards on the season, and Kraemer said will likely look to make more plays with his legs tonight.
"When you look at the depth at tailback and fullback, it's hard to say, 'Hey, your best runner's your quarterback, but we're going to put him under center and hand the ball to somebody else,'" he said. "You can definitely plan on seeing a little more with James. He's a guy, when he gets started running, he's like a freight train. It takes him a while to get going but, once he gets going and he's at full speed, he's a fast kid - and he's physical, which helps us."
Rivalry history
Tonight's game marks the eighth playing for the Northwoods Axe between the two teams - a trophy game started in 2015 and sponsored by the Northwoods River News and our sister paper, The Lakeland Times.
Rhinelander holds a 4-3 lead in the season, with Rhinelander winning four of the last five meetings - including last year's 32-7 win in a Week 3 contest.
The Rhinelander-Lakeland rivalry extends beyond the Axe Game. Since 2005, Lakeland holds a 8-7 advantage in a series that includes 11 GNC and three non-conference games, and one postseason meeting.
Unlike rivalries like Antigo and Merrill that are steeped in history, familiarity and proximity provide the fuel in this intra-county feud.
"These guys, they know each other," Kraemer said. "They play 7-on-7 with each other all summer long. They get the chance to see each other in all their different sports. There's times in the track tent, I'll turn around and there's Rocky Wagoner standing there in the track tent. They know each other well and they've been around each other and they, obviously, want to beat each other."
That's Incredible
Rhinelander has not won at Lakeland since 2012, when the Hodags defeated the T-Birds 26-18 as part of a playoff-qualifying season.
In fact Rhinelander has not played at Lakeland's IncredibleBank Field since 2018, as the last three Axe Games have all been played in Rhinelander.
The 2020 game was to have been played in Lakeland, but the T-Birds had to pull out of the scheduled Week 5 contest due to COVID protocols. The teams wound up playing for the Axe anyway three weeks later when the WIAA paired Lakeland and Rhinelander in the first round of the 2020 football culminating event, won by the Hodags 27-20 at Mike Webster Stadium.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
WEATHER SPONSORED BY
E-Editions
Latest News
E-Editions
Events
August
To Submit an Event Sign in first
Today's Events
No calendar events have been scheduled for today.
Comments:
You must login to comment.