‘Jays eager to begin season

Athens starts schedule at O-W Friday

By Casey Krautkramer

The Athens football team gets its first taste of actual 8-man game action this Friday night when it plays at Owen- Withee, which is also making the transition from 11-man to eight-man football this season.

Both squads are certainly accustomed to playing each other in the Cloverwood Conference for years and most recently as members of the Marawood Conference. They are both in the Rogue 8-man football conference this season and are not eligible for the WIAA 8-man playoffs in their inaugural seasons.

Athens has the following six returning starters on both offense and defense this year: Seniors Cooper Diedrich, QB/RB/LB/SS; Caleb Borchard, FB/DL/LB; Kody Lepak, OL/TE/DE and Caden Decker, RB/WR/DB along with juniors Kyler Ellenbecker, RB/ LB and Aiden Janke, TE/DE. These players account for the team’s six returning starters on both sides of the ball.

Thorp football head coach Keldric Stokes recently called Athens quarterback Cooper Diedrich one of the best players in Wisconsin this season on a WDLB radio show.

The Blackhawks will see more than their fair share of Cooper Diedrich highlight reel plays on Friday, as Diedrich will be running the ball and also passing it to his favorite tight end Aiden Janke. Athens head football coach Todd Diethelm, now in his fifth year in charge of the program, said of course his team is going to take advantage of having a 6 foot, five-inch player like Janke.

“Cooper is an athlete and I will allow him to use that on the field; he will have the ball in his hands a lot,” Diethelm said. “He will need to make the correct reads and he could be very diffi cult to stop. I expect big things from Cooper and the rest of my players. We have a lot of talent and ability and now it’s time to put it on the field.”

Coach Diethelm expects to receive good production from the following newcomers to the varsity squad this season: Seniors Aiden Guralski, LB/DL/OL; Evan Guralski LB/DB/OL and Peyton Zettler, OL/DL; junior Blake Hein OL/DL and sophomores Jacob Annala LB/RB, Ryan Peel, DB/ RB and William Perez, DB/RB.

Athens assistant football coaches this season are Craig and Cameron Diedrich, Adam Ellenbecker, Dale Westfall, Shawn Steinke, Tyson Zettler and Darion Ellenbecker.

Coach Diethelm doesn’t feel it’ll take this team too long to adjust to playing 8-man football this season.

“Once the whistle blows it’s still football and the players are excited for what’s to come and I feel they will be fine,” he said. “There will be some adjustments to be made, but there are many with high football IQ’s and their instincts will kick in as it does in the 11-man game.”