Second year of eight-man ball
Athens was undefeated last season
The Athens varsity football team might’ve lost dual threat starting quarterback Cooper Diedrich to graduation, but the Bluejays still have some stud senior players back this season in tight end Aiden Janke and linebacker Kyler Ellenbecker.
Janke measures as an imposing football player listed at six feet, six inches tall and 230 pounds. He received his first Division 2 college football scholarship offer from Minnesota State University Moorhead in August, which is also where Athens football alum Nathan Belisle enjoyed an outstanding college football career as an offensive lineman for the Dragons. Janke is a very strong football player who benches 300 pounds, squats 405 pounds, power cleans 245 pounds, has a 32 inch vertical jump and is the defending WIAA Division 3 shot put throwing champion.
Ellenbecker is receiving interest from Division 3 college football programs thus far. He is a thumper at linebacker who stuffs the run and measures five feet, 11 inches tall and is 195 pounds. Ellenbecker is also a strong football player who bench presses 245 pounds, squats 400 pounds, power cleans 215 pounds, runs 4.9 seconds in the 40-yard dash, scores a 47 in the 300-yard shuttle and has a 29 inch vertical jump.
Janke has the ability to play many positions on the football field including tight end, running back, defensive end and linebacker. Ellenbecker plays quarterback, running back and linebacker. Athens’ other top returning football player this season is senior offensive and defensive lineman Blake Hein.
The Bluejays’ top newcomers to the 2022 varsity football squad are sophomore offensive and defensive lineman Nathan Osborn; junior running back and linebacker Jakob Annala; junior running back, tight end and defensive back William Perez; freshman running back and defensive back Evan Passehl; sophomore tight end and offensive and defensive lineman Brayden Frahmann; junior offensive and defensive lineman Daniel Dvorak and sophomore tight end, defensive end and defensive back Austin Dean.
Athens fifth year head football coach Todd Diethelm has coached in the Bluejays’ program in some capacity for 16 years. His assistant football coaches are Craig Diedrich, Shawn Steinke, Adam Ellenbecker and Darion and Tom Ellenbecker.
Last season, Athens won the Rogue Conference and finished the season with an overall 11-0 record. Athens is again not eligible for the eight-man football playoffs this season. Schools who switch from 11-man to eight-man football need to wait two years before they are eligible for the eight-man playoffs.
Coach Diethelm has 16 varsity football players again this season, as he anticipates Athens remaining an eight-man football squad in the future. The Bluejays will compete in the CWC-East eight-man conference this season. Athens will at least field a junior varsity football team in 2022.
Athens has a promising team this season, despite being low on its number of varsity players again. Coach Diethelm is counting on his three top senior players to lead the team to a successful 2022 season.
“We will rely on our three seniors to take these young men under their wings and help them get used to the game,” he said. “Kyler, Aiden and Blake will be relied on tremendously.”
Eight-man football teams like Athens start their season one week after the traditional 11-man football squads. Therefore, while the area’s 11-man football teams play their regular- season openers this Friday, Aug. 19, Athens has a scrimmage this Saturday, Aug. 20, at Wausau Newman.
