BELLINGHAM - Earlier this summer, Squalicum's Reed Richardson looked around and realized that, entering only his seventh season, he was the second-longest tenured football coach in the Northwest Conference 2A ranks behind only Lynden's Curt Kramme.
Of course, that distinction becomes much easier in a year when Blaine and Mount Baker move down to 1A and the five other NWC 2A schools welcome new coaches.
But Richardson knows this is a prime year for the Storm to make a move - and not because of his experience.
"We have 18 seniors, which is pretty big, and a number of them have been two-, three-year starters for us," Richardson said. "We've got weapons all over the place. It's kind of nice. Guys like Luke Weber, Landon Tripp and Trey Hunter, all those guys played last year, and they're players - serious players.""
The Storm had only eight seniors last year, meaning a number of their weapons got seasoning last fall and should be ready for big things.
That starts at quarterback, where Clark Hazlett returns as a bigger, stronger, more experienced sophomore, ready to lead a talented group of skill position players.
Weber, the team's leading rusher in 2011, Blaze Yetter and Hunter will probably share the load in the backfield along with sophomore Nick Manchester, who Richardson said will be "something special." Ben Garcia was the team's top receiving threat at camp, but Yetter, Daniel Weber and Tripp should all make an impact, along with Kyle Stallo and Brock Jorgensen at tight end.
Richardson even is excited about his offensive line, with players like Lane Covington, Jacob Hamm, Joel Jensen, Spencer Koch and Ben Bartel in the mix.
"Depth is a real key for us this year," Richardson said. "We feel we're real deep on the line. We're actually trying not to have any of our offensive linemen play on the defensive line this year."
That means guys like Stallo, Kenny Williams, Dan Russell and Ryan Rasmussen will anchor a group that goes five or six deep for new defensive coordinator Darrin Leber, who comes from Sedro-Woolley.
"He wants our guys to sprint and arrive angry, and he wants us to play harder, hit harder and be tougher," Richardson said. "That's what we're going to do on defense this year. I would say the strength of our team is that we have guys that can run. We want 11 guys that can run on defense. That's the whole thing. Hopefully we'll overwhelm some guys, and that will be fun."
Sam Olney returns from injury and should anchor a deep, talented linebacking crew that will include Mac Novak, JD Andrews and Hamm on the inside and Nathan Kamkoff, Bobby Iverson, Ben Russell and Manchester on the outside.
The secondary could be special with Tripp, Hunter, Yetter and both Webers.
"This is a really, really fun group," Richardson said. "I just love being around them. I think if we stay healthy and play with confidence, we're capable of going a long, long ways."
THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
JACOB HAMM
Sr. OL/LB
Hamm is a physical presence that will lead an experienced crew on Squalicum's offensive line and a quick, talented linebacking crew on defense.
LUKE WEBER
Jr. RB/DB
Weber nearly rushed for 1,000 yards last year as the Storm's leading ground gainer. His quickness and experience also will be vital in the secondary.
LANDON TRIPP
Jr. WR/DB
An all-around great athlete, Squalicum looks to use him even more in the passing and return games and to lead a quick, aggressive defense.
THREE KEYS TO THE SEASON
1. Put experience to use
Squalicum graduated only eight seniors last year, and not all of them were starters. That means they got plenty of on-the-job training and should be primed for big things.
2. An angry Storm
New coordinator Darrin Leber wants his defense to "sprint and arrive angry" - whatever it takes to cut down on the 31.9 points per game Squalicum allowed last year.
3. Close strong
Squalicum's four final games of the regular season against Anacortes, Sehome, Burlington and Lynden could determine if the team goes to the postseason or not. Fortunately, all four are at Civic Stadium.
2012 SCHEDULE
Aug. 31 Kingston (at Civic Stadium) 7 p.m.
Sept. 7 at Sedro-Woolley* 7 p.m.
Sept. 14 Bellingham (at Civic Stadium)* 7 p.m.
Sept. 22 Abbottsford Collegiate (B.C.) 1 p.m.
Sept. 28 at Ferndale* 7 p.m.
Oct. 5 Anacortes (at Civic Stadium)* 7 p.m.
Oct. 12 at Sehome (at Civic Stadium)* 7 p.m.
Oct. 19 Burlington-Edison (at Civic Stadium)* 5 p.m.
Oct. 25 Lynden (at Civic Stadium)* 7 p.m.
*NWC 2A/3A game
2011 RESULTS (3-7, 3-6 NWC, 3-4 NWC 2A)
Ferndale L 49-7
at Blaine* L 41-23
Burlington-Edison* L 21-0
at Sedro-Woolley L 27-24, OT
at Anacortes* W 13-12
Lynden* L 49-7
at Sehome* W 38-14
Bellingham* W 31-28
at Mount Baker* L 42-0
at Shorewood L 36-30, OT
*NWC 2A game
2011 STATS LEADERS
RUSHING Att. Yards Avg. TD
Luke Weber* 193 925 4.8 11
Blaze Yetter* 57 396 6.9 1
Luke Portillo 49 238 4.9 2
PASSING Cmp. Att. Yards TD Int.
Clark Hazlett* 64 210 829 4 14
RECEIVING Rec. Yards Avg. TD
David Starkovich 26 321 12.3 0
Landon Tripp* 23 287 12.5 2
Lucas Potes 8 111 13.9 2
*Returning player
2012 ROSTER
No. Player Yr. Ht. Wt. Pos.
1 Ben Garcia Jr. 6-0 150 WR
2 Carter Frere So. 5-9 150 WR/DB
3 Coleman Schwab So. 5-11 140 WR/DB
4 Daniel Weber Jr. 6-0 170 WR/DB
5 Brock Jorgensen Sr. 5-10 175 TE/DE
6 Quinn Carpenter So. 5-9 150 K/P/DB
7 DJ Mitchell So. 5-10 150 RB/DB
8 Ben Tripp So. 6-3 150 WR/LB
9 Luke Weber Jr. 6-0 170 RB/DB
10 Landon Tripp Jr. 6-0 160 WR/DB
11 Clark Hazlett So. 6-3 185 QB
12 Bobby Iverson Jr. 5-9 160 WR/LB
13 Nathan Striggow So. 5-6 120 QB
14 Blaze Yetter Sr. 6-0 160 WR/DB
15 Jordan Wick So. 5-11 150 QB
16 Sam Olney Sr. 5-9 190 LS/LB
18 Cory Brunhaver Sr. 5-6 170 K/P
19 Raja Sidhu So. 6-0 135 WR/DB
20 Trey Hunter Jr. 5-9 145 RB/DB
21 Dennis Kibe Jr. 5-6 160 WR/DB
22 Glenn Dawson So. 5-9 135 WR/DB
23 Mac Novak Sr. 6-3 220 RB/LB
24 Zach Wilson So. 6-1 150 TE/DE
25 Nick Manchester So. 6-1 165 RB/LB
26 Nathan Kamkoff Jr. 5-11 165 LB
27 Phuvadon Thammarat So. 5-8 130 RB/DT
28 Ben Russell Sr. 5-9 150 LB
30 Kyle Stallo Sr. 6-2 220 TE/DE
31 JD Andrews Sr. 6-1 200 LB
32 Josh Ewing Sr. 5-7 155 DT
33 Jordan Campbell So. 5-11 185 OL/RB/LB
34 Brandon Lease So. 5-10 145 RB/LB
35 Torben Goebel Jr. 6-1 150 WR/DB
36 Mac Walker So. 5-9 150 RB/LB
37 Ryan Rasmussen Sr. 6-3 180 DE
38 Eduardo Castillo So. 5-7 135 LB
40 Jonah Jacobson Sr. 6-3 185 TE/DE
41 Alex Aguirre So. 6-2 165 TE/LB
42 Brian Dunphy Jr. 5-11 190 OL/RB/DT
43 Kenny Williams Jr. 6-3 225 TE/DT
44 Kyler Saxton So. 5-10 165 RB/LB
45 Brandon LeDoux Sr. 5-10 190 RB/DT
47 Dan Russell Jr. 5-10 190 RB/DT
52 Jazz Sahota So. 5-11 170 OL/DE
53 Chris Paz So. 6-4 245 OL/DT
54 Lane Covington Sr. 6-0 235 OL
60 Neall Koetje Jr. 6-3 185 OL/DE
62 JR Baldovinos Jr. 5-5 175 OL/DT
63 Jacob Hamm Sr. 6-0 195 OL/LB
65 Jordan Campbell So. 5-11 185 OL/RB/LB
66 Joel Jensen Jr. 6-3 250 OL
67 Spencer Koch Sr. 6-0 240 OL
68 Gage Peterson So. 5-7 175 OL/DT
69 Jordan Smith So. 6-9 275 OL/DT
70 Ben Jabbora So. 6-0 165 OL/DE
71 Ben Bartel Sr. 6-3 285 OL
74 Colin Gray Jr. 5-10 225 OL
76 Ryan Thurston So. 6-1 255 OL
77 Colton Clemens Jr. 5-8 210 OL
78 Jacob Anderson So. 6-5 280 OL/DT
79 Mike Banks So. 6-3 355 OL/DT
80 Taylor Russell Jr. 6-0 170 LB
83 Lars Porras Sr. 5-6 135 WR/DB
84 Michael Wong So. 5-4 115 WR/DB
85 Tanner Griffiths So. 5-9 150 WR/DB
Reach DAVID RASBACH at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2271.
