‘Jays win homecoming game

Borchardt is king on and off the field

By Ross Pattermann

Long before the 8-man football season began for ‘Jays head coach Todd Diethelm and defensive coordinator Craig Diedrich, the two got together to brainstorm X’s and 0’s.

Athens was moving from a traditional 11man style to 8-man and neither was sure if that experiment was going to work.

Four games into the season and it’s clear to see the Athens’ 8-man experiment is a roaring success, with the ‘Jays boasting a 4-0 record, and out-scoring the opposition 190-22.

“When coach Diedrich and I sat down months and months ago to talk about this I think both of us agreed that defense might be the hardest because we don’t know what kind of offenses we’d see,” Diethelm explained. “But I don’t think people are ready for the skills that we have neither, so I think it evens out.”

The ‘Jays had no problems on either side of the ball on Friday, when they hosted the Wausau East Lumberjacks for their Homecoming game.

The stands were crammed full with fans of Athens football, the marching band played the school song, and even the Bluejays’ mascot made an appear- ance as Athens chopped down the Lumberjacks 44-6. “It feels good to see everybody back out,” Athens senior Caleb Borchard said. “The first game we didn’t really have many people out to watch us, and now everyone is seeing that we’re doing pretty good this year. It’s awesome to see all the support we are getting now.”

Fans were treated to huge plays from the ‘Jays on both sides of the ball in a game that featured blocked punts, forced fumbles and highlight reel touchdowns.

The Lumberjacks took the opening kick-off and drove downfield, but Athens forced Wausau East to turn the ball over on downs. That’s all it took the get the ‘Jays juiced up and ready to light up the scoreboard.

Senior signal caller Cooper Diedrich did the honors, scoring the first of his five touchdowns after he broke containment and gashed the ‘Jacks for a 78-yard rushing TD with 8:31 in the first quarter.

A two point conversion by Diedrich made it 8-0, and the lead would only grow. Diedrich busted off another TD four minutes later, breaking free from Wausau East defenders for a 28-yard run. Borcahrdt punched in the two point conversion to make it 14-0 with 3:49 to go in the first quarter.

“It’s great that we can execute on plays like that, and make a big play when we need it the most,” Borchard said.

It was defense that led to offense on the ‘Jays next score. Athens blocked a Wausau East punt, and recovered it on the Lumberjack ten yard line. Caden Decker dove into the endzone on the first play, and a two point run from Borchardt made it 24-0 with 2:16 to go.

The ‘Jays weren’t finished on offense just yet, and Diedrich added one more score on a 32-yard carry to make it 30-0 just before the first quarter expired.

Diethelm praised Diedrich’s playmaking abilities, but was quick to note that it takes a team to make a player successful.

“Diedrich is a special player . . . but he’s not selfish. He’s always telling me ‘Well Borchardt can do this, and Decker can do that, or Janke is taller than this kid, so let’s do this.’ It’s a team effort and the kids are buying into that and they’re making plays.”

The Bluejays shut out the Lumberjacks in the first half, and Diedrich continued to make Wausau East pay in the second quarter.

Diedrich added his fourth touchdown on another big play, toting the ball 60 yards downfield. The two point conversion was no good, but Athens’ lead swelled to 36-0.

The Bluejays final score of the game came late when Diedrich scored with 32 seconds in the first half off a 1 yard run. A Janke reception in the end zone for two made it 44-0 heading into the second half, and resulted in a running clock for the final two quarters.

The ‘Jays put in several of their younger players, and continued to move the ball even if they did not score. But neither did they let the Lumberjacks score during the third quarter.

Diethelm says that getting younger players involved is helping grow the excitement for 8-man, and students that were on the fence are now asking if they can join and play.

“All our games this year we’ve actually been getting a lot of playing time for our younger kids,” Diethelm says. “I know it’s drawing interest that they’re getting playing time because these other kids that didn’t come out are starting to say ‘Coach, can I play? Can I come out now?’” The Lumberjacks finally scored with 3:30 left in the game on a 14-yard carry from running back Ralph Pegues. Athens stopped the two point conversion, and as the time ticked off, it was the ‘Jays celebrating at games end.

Athens had another big night on offense, finishing with 422 yards. Diedrich led the way with 244 yards on 12 carries. He also threw for 97 yards, completing four of seven passes.

Caden Decker caught all four of those passes, and also carried the ball for 18 yards. Borchardt added another 48 yards on nine carries, and Kyler Ellenbecker finished with 19 yards on two carries.

Diethelm knows his team won’t be in the postseason, but that’s not stopping Athens from giving their best effort.

“They love to play the game, and this gives them an opportunity to play the game. Their adjustment has been fantastic and this group of kids is a lot of fun.”

IN IT TO WIN IT-Caleb Borchardt holds up the football, showing the refs that he scored the two point conversion against Wausau East on Friday. The ‘Jays are 4-0 inaugural season of 8-man football, and have outscored teams 190-22.STAFF PHOTO/ROSS PATTERMANN