Solanco suffered through a 1-9 campaign in 2012, and just never got anything cooking offensively. With a new full-time QB under center and some experienced kids back in the trenches, the Golden Mules are thinking improvement. The weapons are here to do that. Below is Solanco’s Countdown to Camp preview.
SCHOOL NAME: Solanco Golden Mules
COACH: Joe Pearson
LAST YEAR: 1-9 overall, 1-6 in L-L Section 2
LAST 5 YEARS: 17-33
RETURNING STARTERS: 8 on offense; 7 on defense
KEY PLAYERS: OG-NG Bo Spiller; RB-DB Toby Kreider; WR-LB Caleb Groff; RB-LB Coby King; QB-LB Noah McCardell; TE-DE Dakoda Westfall; OT Colin Buffington; OT-DE Casey Pierce; C-LB Mike Chew; OG Alex Furches.
OFFENSIVE OVERVIEW: Say hello to McCardell, Solanco’s new full-time QB in Pearson’s “Hybrid Wing-T” scheme. He completed 10 passes in part-time duty last fall; Mules' completed just 28 passes last season, and Pearson is hoping for a little more diversity this time around, so McCardell might go up top a little more, especially with WR Groff and wing-back Kreider back in the mix. Kreider rushed for 468 yards and caught seven passes last year, and those numbers should go way up, especially with a rugged o-line, Solanco’s annual bread and butter. Keep an eye on Spiller (6-2, 245) at the line of scrimmage; he was a two-way all-star last fall, and he’s one of the top upper-weight wrestlers in District 3. He’ll make you black-and-blue after an evening in the trenches. Solanco averaged just 7.0 points per game last year, so needless to say this group needs to kick it up a notch.
DEFENSIVE OVERVIEW: A couple of key kids to keep an eye on here, like McCardell (40 tackles, 2 fumble recoveries) and Groff (26 tackles) at outside ‘backer, cover-corner Karson Beane (15 tackles) and Kreider (52 tackles, 3 INT) at strong safety. Pearson said there could be some growing pains at the inside ‘backer spot in his “3-4” scheme, so the quicker those guys come together the better; Mules allowed 31.3 points per game in Section 2 contests last fall, and that’s too many. The last thing Solanco wants is to get in a shootout. Controlling the line of scrimmage, finishing tackles and forcing three-and-outs would behoove this group.
BIGGEST GAME: September 21 vs. Lampeter-Strasburg. It’s the annual Milk Jug Game between the neighboring school districts. And it’s a high-noon kickoff. Catch the Quarryville Fair while you’re in town.
MORE SOLANCO GOLDEN MULES: 2013 SCHEDULE
L-L LEAGUE SCRIMMAGE SCHEDULES
REINHART’S CRYSTAL BALL: Solanco’s offense flat-out sputtered last fall. The Mules suffered five — count ‘em, five — shutout losses, averaged just 196 yards per game, and their lone victory was against winless Lebanon. In its final four games, Solanco was outscored 110-7, and that TD came in Week 10. So priority No. 1 in Mules’ camp is getting the offense back on track and moving forward. Pearson is excited about McCardell and his abilities, and Kreider is a nice weapon who should make plays in space. And Solanco should be able to lean on a beefy line. Don’t see another 1-9 season in Quarryville. But if the Mules want to move up the charts, they’ll have to move the ball a lot more consistently — and score a lot more than the 10 total touchdowns they did last fall.