September 22, 2022 at 8:34 a.m.
Hodags to play the role of underdog
RHS looks to bounce back on Homecoming against GNC-leading Mosinee
Hodags to play the role of underdog
It may be just as well for the Hodags to quickly get over the disappointment of losing to their rivals for the first time in four years last Thursday. The team has no time to feel sorry for itself entering what figures to be its toughest stretch of the season. That begins tonight as GNC co-leader Mosinee comes to town for a Homecoming night matchup at Mike Webster Stadium.
Hodag head coach Aaron Kraemer admitted that it's difficult to move forward from a 26-14 loss at Antigo that also puts the Hodags in a potentially precarious playoff position, but he said the team has no choice.
"We're going to move on and we're going to continue to try to fix the issues that we had from the past weeks," he said. "That's how coaching and leadership works. You try to find solutions to the problems that you have. You can't stew on them. You've got to find solutions to those problems and the solidify the things we did well."
The Hodags will need to do that against a Mosinee team that last year denied Rhinelander its first conference title since 1989 and is showing all indications of repeating as GNC champs.
The Indians have rolled through the first three weeks of conference play, scoring a whopping 47.7 points per game in wins over Lakeland, Ashland and Hayward. The Hurricanes took advantage of an early second-quarter fumble to go up 14-7 on Mosinee, but the Indians scored 28 straight points to end the half and cruised to a 48-14 win.
"They want a track meet. They're a feed the cats programs. They want to score points. You've seen that teams have scored against Mosinee this year," Kraemer said.
Rhinelander, meanwhile, is far from conference title contention following a 1-2 start in league play. The Hodags come in as massive underdogs, a role Kraemer said his team needs to relish.
"This week is a big belief week, a big plan belief week. We have to execute the plan to its fullest and, if we can do that, we certainly can beat this team."
Here are five storylines entering tonight's game.
Injury update
The Hodags will likely be without the leading rusher Payton Campbell for the second straight week as the junior continues to deal with an upper leg injury that prevented him from playing in last Thursday's loss against Antigo.
Rhinelander rushed for 99 yards against the Red Robins in Campbell's absence - their lowest output in three GNC games. Senior Kaleb Winter, back in the lineup after missing the nearly three entire games after suffering a knee injury on the opening kickoff of a Week 2 loss at Denmark, shouldered the bulk of the load last week, but was held under two yards per carry.
"We have to find ways to make big plays when we need them and to keep teams honest. We want to run the football. It was difficult last week," Kraemer said. "Kaleb said it this week, he said, 'You know, I've only taken about 20 handoffs from (quarterback) James (Heck).' He's got to get back into the fold. We've got to make sure we can spell him with our other backs - Robert Schramke and Dresden Klaver."
From a broader perspective, injuries to different players have played a key role in three of the Hodags' four losses so far this season. The Hodags had multiple players go down in the Week 2 loss at Denmark and were without Winter, tackle Kaeden Pillar and receiver Brendon Eckrich in a Week 3 loss to Ashland.
"It's difficult when you have to make changes and it seems like, offensively, we've had to make a lot of changes this year to the way things run," Kraemer said. "This is a difficult situation. Yeah, it's been a difficult five weeks, but what are we going to do? How are we going to respond?"
Easy as 2-3-4
When it comes to Mosinee's offense, the big challenge is containing its three most explosive weapons. Coincidentally, they are lined up numerically on Mosinee's roster - No. 2 Gavin Obremski, No. 3 Davin Stoffel and No. 4 Keagan Jirschele.
Obremski, a junior, has stood out at quarterback. He enters the week ninth statewide in passing yards (1,156) and has thrown 17 touchdowns to six interceptions over the first five weeks of the season. Obremski is also a threat to run, averaging 7.3 yards per carry with two touchdowns so far.
Stoffel and Jirschele are the only two returning first-team All-GNC players from 2021 and have put up formidable numbers this season.
Jirschele has 476 receiving yards, 208 rushing yards and six touchdowns this season. Four of those scores came in succession in the second quarter last week as Mosinee rallied to a 35-14 lead over Hayward at the break.
"They like to get the ball in space to Jirschele," Kraemer said. "They like to make sure you can't tackle him. He's good and shifty in space and teams dive at him. If we can rally to the football, stay on our feet and corral him, whether its an eight-yard gain or a 15-yard gain, that's better than an 80-yard touchdown."
Stoffel has caught 19 passes for 430 yards and eight touchdowns so far. At 6-foot-6, he presents many of the same challenges on the edge that Antigo's Mason Gray did last week when he caught two touchdowns over the top of the Hodag defense.
"We have to be prepared to switch up coverage and get a guy that's of similar athletic ability and stature out there," Kraemer said of Stoffel, who caught the go-ahead touchdown pass in the fourth quarter of last year's 14-7 Mosinee win over Rhinelander. "We just have to understand where he is and who needs to be covering him."
Make them earn it
Kraemer said Mosinee has more balance on offense this year, which bears out in the numbers. A usually pass-happy Mosinee team has run the ball 53.9% of the time. In addition to Obremski's ability to scramble, and Jirschele's ability as a pitchman, tailback Barnes Bunkelman has rushed for 204 yards and six touchdowns so far.
Still Mosinee's high-flying attack is predicated on the big play. Of Mosinee's 29 touchdowns, 17 could be classified as "explosive plays" - either runs of at least 10 yards, passes of at least 20 yards or return touchdowns.
"Their scoring prowess is predicated on the big play," Kraemer said. "They can drive down the field and score on you. They do have that capability, but ... (we want to) make them work for every single yard they get." if we can do that, defensively, we feel offensively we can play our game and be successful and get ourselves in a position to win the football game."
On defense
Mosinee's defense has yet to pitch a shutout this year and comes in allowing 20.6 points per game. Teams have had some success running the football on Mosinee, as the Indians come in allowing 190.4 yards per game on the ground and 5.9 yards per carry.
The team's four linebackers have been the standouts so far. Stoffel leads the way with 40 tackles followed by fellow inside linebacker Brady Lokken (34). The team's two outside backers, Bunkelman and Wyatt Harris, are third and fourth on the list.
"Lokken and Stoffel are two very good players at the linebacker position," Kraemer said. "They can make the linemen in front of them look really good. We have to understand where those guys are."
Happy homecoming
In addition to playing the role of major underdog this week, the Hodags are doing so during homecoming, which always comes with its own set of challenges and distractions.
Kraemer said, as has been the case in prior years, the goal is to strike a balance between business and fun this week so that the players leave with a memorable experience.
"You've got to let kids be kids and then make sure they understand the expectations during practice and that the can execute the plan we're putting in place this week for Mosinee," he said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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