Revamped Cardinals take on Panthers in season opener

Questions will be answered come Friday night for Newton High’s Cardinal football team and its opponent, Knoxville. Every high school athletic team has questions of itself as a new season begins.

The Cardinals and Panthers step on the football field with new looks in personnel, especially offensively, as 2015 gets underway. Both teams lost top offensive threats to graduation.

“I really like what we’ve got going here,” Newton head football coach Ed Ergenbright said. “Every team develops its identity as it moves forward. Some years you have a better idea with returning players and other years it’s a mystery.”

Newton takes a two-game winning streak over Knoxville into Friday’s season opener at 7:30 p.m. at Knoxville’s Ken Locke Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the Panthers, 41-7, in 2014 and beat them, 42-28, in 2013 with both games at Newton.

The Cardinals went 7-4 and the Panthers were 4-6 last year. Both teams broke back into the playoffs last year.

“Knoxville has players back from that team and is a well-coached team. They made a nice run later in the year after we played them and made the playoffs after 24 years of not making them,” Ergenbright said. “We’re excited to get the season started, and see where we are as a team.”

Newton has had a strong competition during the preseason for quarterback as three players — senior Parker Schuster, junior Reagan Maple and sophomore Garrett Sturtz — battled for the starting varsity position. Ergenbright said Sturtz will be the Cardinals’ starting quarterback Friday.

“At this point, Garrett gives us more of a complete run/pass package and runs the offense well. It was a close battle and all of them handled it well. Parker and Reagan did a great job showing improvement, and if either one have to go in, they can move the team for us,” Ergenbright said.

Senior Joseph Banfield gets the starting tailback spot for the second year in a row. Banfield, 6-foot-1 and 185-pound, was Newton’s third-leading rusher with 519 yards on 89 carries. Banfield had seven rushing touchdowns.

Dalton Nevels, a 5-foot-9, 160-pound senior who had three carries for 52 yards last year, and Jwan Roush, a 6-foot, 175-pound senior, are the starting wingbacks in Newton’s gun-rocket offense. Roush, who had not played football the past two years, will start his first-ever high school football game.

Sophomores Jace Lukefahr and Tristin Langmaid provides depth behind Banfield. Junior Jordan Norvell and sophomore Carson Cazett are backups at wingback.

“We’re striving to be as balanced as we can on offense. We need to be able to throw the ball a little and definitely run the ball. Establishing the running game is a priority for us. We want to get to the edge and utilize our speed. We’re working on putting together an offensive line which allows to to use a power running game also,” Ergenbright said.

“That’s what we like about this gun-rocket offense — the versatility of it. It’s a work in progress for us as we develop the elements that fit our personnel. While we don’t have the big-play wideout we had last year, we do have players who can catch the ball and run solid routes,” Ergenbright said.

Seniors Bryce Tish, Jake Bennett and Grant Nook are expected to be playing at the split end position for the Cardinals. Andrew Weiland is the starting tight end with junior Josh Gulling and sophomore Ryan Constant rotating in at that spot.

Ergenbright said the tight end spot is a key blocking position for the Cardinal offensive scheme. He said all three have proven they can block well.

“How far we go this year, I believe, will be determined how our top five offensive linemen and a mix of other players on the line take us,” Ergenbright said. “We believe this line can be every bit as good as last year’s offensive line, maybe a little more physical. We’re more balanced across the board up front.”

Seniors Duncan Lee and Jacob Smith are anchors along the line. Lee returns as a 5-foot-11, 205-pound guard while Smith, 5-foot-10 and 200 pounds, steps into the starting center job. Sophomore Caden Manning (6-foot-2, 265 pounds) moves from center to tackle while juniors Caleb Kite (6-foot-1, 215 pounds) is the other tackle and Alex Miller (5-foot-9, 220 pounds) is the other starting guard.

“These five guys have made steady improvement in practices. We have things we can do better, and they will get better each week,” Ergenbright said. “This first game is always a gauge of where we are and what we have to do to get where we want to be in every phase of the game.”

Gulling is the top placekicker for Newton this season with sophomore Zach Combs as a backup. Sturtz is the team’s No. 1 punter heading into the first game with Gulling and Combs providing depth at that spot.

Knoxville returns its No. 2 and No. 3 rushers from a year ago in senior running backs Connor Bailey and Deon Snyder. Bailey rushed for 531 yards on 69 carries with two touchdowns and Snyder had four touchdowns on 122 carries for 508 yards.

“We have to stop the run. Last year, we had trouble with teams which lined up and ran power against us. We’re bigger, stronger and more active up the middle on defense,” Ergenbright said. “We’ll be playing defensive line by committee early this season while we shake things out to find out which players fit well. We also are developing linemen on both sides of the ball to keep fresh bodies in there.”

Right in the middle of the Cardinal defensive line will be 6-foot-3, 235-pound junior Lucas Montgomery. He will be joined by Manning, Miller, junior Trenton Brady and sophomores Benny Cheng, Landon Hansen and Evan Walker. Gulling and Constant are working as defensive ends.

Lee and Lukefahr will be in the linebacking corps, but also could be in the down position along the line. Junior Brady Smith and senior Austin James will work in the middle linebacker spots. Playing outside linebackers will be Bennett, Nevels, and senior Clay Hansen.

“Bryce Tish is a three-year starter as our free safety. Senior Cole Peters and Jwan Roush are our starting cornerbacks with a couple of younger players — Jaron Roush and Keith Steinbach — backing them up. Senior Michael McKinney will help spell Bryce at safety,” Ergenbright said.

Ergenbright said junior running back and linebacker Reese Rosenquist is recovering from an injury. He said Rosenquist will rejoin the team during the season.

“We have a nucleus of senior players this season who have been through the battles. They’ve stepped up and being great leaders in the off-season and preseason,” Ergenbright. “I believe a big key to success is strong leadership and good team chemistry.

“The kids have worked hard since practices began, and before that, so I’m pleased with where we are at. We’re focused on being competitive and successful, which means we can’t turn the ball over, we have to score when we have opportunities and we have to play good defense.”

Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
641-792-3121 ext. 6535
or jsheets@newtondailynews.com