NOTE: This is the first of two articles previewing the 2021 Owatonna football team as part of exclusive season-long coverage at OwatonnaFootball.com. The following article gives an introduction and previews the offense. The second installment will be published soon and focus on the defense and special teams.

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Traveling to take on a talented Rochester Mayo team to open the 2021 campaign, one could reasonably argue that Owatonna will enter Week 1 as at least a slight underdog for the first time since it hosted Mankato West to kick off the season five years ago.

Similar to what the 2021 group will endure, that 2016 team saw its last few players with any significant Prep Bowl experience graduate in the offseason and was introducing a new starting quarterback, lead tailback and a bevy of first-year linemen, all of which contributed to a 34-19 setback.

But a little more than two months after the loss to the Scarlets, Owatonna was still alive and competing deep in the postseason, preparing to take the field at U.S. Bank Stadium against No. 1-ranked Elk River in the state semifinals.

A little more than 12 months after that, the Huskies were back in Minneapolis, back on the big stage and back on top of the mountain, clutching the Class 5A Prep Bowl championship trophy and celebrating in front of a sea of loyal OHS fans that had just witnessed their team run circles around the reigning state champs for the better part of the previous 48 minutes. The 63-26 rout of the Elks marked the first of what would be consecutive state titles for the Huskies and the program’s third in six years.

Needless to say, Owatonna’s definition of a “transition” year is vastly different than the majority of high school football teams in the state of Minnesota. The Huskies have finished with no more than two losses in 10 of the previous 12 seasons and last posted a sub-.500 record in 2006 when they went 4-5 overall.

And that’s it.

Excluding last last year’s abridged season that was trimmed to just seven games due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Owatonna has averaged 9.2 victories per year since 2007 and has competed in four state championship games since 2012. In fact, the 2021 and 2016 Huskies are the only two OHS teams in the last decade without at least one player on the roster that was on the sideline and dressed for at least one state championship game in Minneapolis.

Despite the vague similarities entering the new season, it would be unrealistic to expect this year’s Huskies to replicate what the 2016 team accomplished. That particular squad — which strung together a memorable eight-game winning streak and, ironically, would have played Mankato West in the state championship game had both teams not been eliminated in the semifinals — was loaded with a transcendent junior class and unveiling a sophomore tailback who would ultimately graduate as one of the most decorated football players in MSHSL history.

“There is probably some harkening back to 2016 when we really had to use those preseason scrimmages to figure things out,” said long-time Owatonna coach Jeff Williams. “We had to use (the scrimmages) as a barometer and find out if kids could play and where to put some other guys, and that’s what it’s going to be like this season. You know, sometimes it works and sometimes you take your lumps, but we just have to work on putting the pieces in place and preparing for Week One.” 

It’s been a long time since OHS has entered mid-August with more questions than answers. Even last year’s team that finished 5-2 was stocked with numerous next-level prospects and had a veteran presence to anchor every position group, including an accomplished quarterback in Brayden Truelson and perhaps the best pure receiver to ever strap on pads for OHS in Payton Beyer.

This year, the Huskies aren’t quite as fortunate. Owatonna lacks significant experience at several key positions, and in some spots, lacks any experience whatsoever. The list of departed athletes speaks for itself: 18 combined starters, seven all-district performers, five offensive linemen, a three-year quarterback, a two-year running back and one record-setting receiver.

But as the coaching staff has preached for years: “Tradition never graduates.”

“That tone is set by the seniors,” Williams said. “Our group last year had some great leaders and they modeled how we operate and that gets passed down to this group. They know our expectations. Do we have to harp on them every so often? Of course, that’s always going to happen. But there is a secret sauce to this whole thing and we don’t know what that is, so we can’t afford to cut corners. Whatever we have been going seems to work, and we just need to go out there are continue to do what we’ve always done.”

Though it might be easier to identify what OHS doesn’t have entering the new season, that shouldn’t overshadow what they do have. In the end, it’s still Owatonna. It’s still the same program that has built a reputation for stockpiling and developing talent as well as any in Class 5A.

The Huskies are never truly void of difference-making athletes, and Williams views the numerous open position battles as just that, battles. It’s this daily competition that reveals the best in each player and offers an interesting challenge for the coaching staff.

“Part of that is exciting,” Williams said. “There are so many jobs to be won this year. We don’t know what the receivers are going to look like and we don’t know the defensive back situation, but what we do know is that we have great numbers and a lot of guys very capable of competing. I think there has been a sense of urgency after the first week.”

A look at the offense: Open competition at every level

Recognized as one of the state’s top linebackers for the Class of 2022 by Minnesota’s Prep Redzone online college recruiting database, 6-foot-2, 205-pound reigning all-district linebacker, Grant Achterkirch, is an instinctual player with a burgeoning physical skillset. In the offseason, he gained more than 15 pounds of muscle and emerged as a legitimate scholarship-level college prospect.

However, Achterkirch will have just as profound of an impact on how things materialize on offense for Owatonna in 2021 as he will on defense.

Here’s the deal: Elevating through the junior high and sub-varsity ranks, Achterkirch solidified himself as the top quarterback at his grade level before transitioning to a full-time defensive starter in 2020. Yet despite not taking an offensive snap since his sophomore year, he retains the most experience of any quarterback on the current roster.

And that’s where things get interesting.

Owatonna hasn’t asked its starting quarterback to absorb any sort of defensive responsibilities in a long, long time. In fact, it’s probably been at least 15 years. Playing the position in the Huskies’ fast-paced offensive system is a demanding job with a number of critical responsibilities — and considering the inherent physical nature of Achterkirch’s position on defense — pulling double-duty is an especially strenuous proposition.

But that doesn’t mean Achterkirch won’t be the starting quarterback, either. In fact, it would be safe to assume that the senior captain is the leading candidate to begin Week 1 with the first-team offense while retaining his normal defensive responsibilities.

“If Grant proves to be the best quarterback on our team, Grant will be our quarterback,” Williams said. “It’s pretty much that simple.”

Ultimately, though, the coaching staff will consider all their options and the situation could evolve even throughout the regular season. Taylor Bogen (6-3, 210) has impressed the staff during two-a-days and is trending toward earning regular playing time as part of a true dual-quarterback rotation, not unlike the situation in 2018 and 2019 when Truelson and Sol Havelka shared duties. Bogen probably possesses the best pure arm strength of the current QB group and has a great physical frame, but was injured for part of last season and hasn’t logged consistent playing time since his B-squad days two years ago. In limited action last season, he completed 1 of 2 passes for 15 yards.

“Taylor has stepped up in practice and he’s vying to be the guy,” Williams said. “The only thing with Taylor is he doesn’t have the reps. He doesn’t have that experience playing the under fire and forced to make those tough throws in game-time situations. It might take a while, but there’s a lot to like about Taylor.”

As always, the fortune of the quarterback — whether it be Achterkirch, Bogen or a combination of the two — is tethered to the performance and durability of the offensive line. In Owatonna’s case, the unit will feature five new starters and rely heavily on a few two-way players, the most accomplished of which is Eli Spurgeon.

After earning all-league honorable mention status on the other side of the ball at defensive tackle last season, Spurgeon — who stands around 5-11 and weighs north of 240 pounds — will shift to offense and assume command at center. Like quarterback and middle linebacker, the position requires a number of pre-snap duties and the capacity to quickly diagnose the opponents’ formation. The coaching staff prefers to plug-in a second-year player whenever possible and reserves the spot for only the best and brightest linemen in the program. In fact, every starting center since 2011 has earned all-conference or all-district honors at least once and has featured some of the best blockers to ever come through the Owatonna system.

“When Eli was on the field for us on offense last year it really amplified what we were able to do both running and passing the football,” Williams said.

As for the rest of the offensive linemen, it will consist of exclusively first-year starters and won’t have the universal size of a “typical” Owatonna line, but the stable of newcomers boasts a few athletes with some intriguing, albeit unrefined, potential. Senior Alec Jarvis (5-11, 225) is a versatile blocker and will be joined in the rotation by a combination of senior Ryley Glassmaker (6-1, 190), sophomore Grant Lower (6-2, 285), junior Mikah Elstad (6-0, 195), senior Reid Stauffer (6-0, 180) and senior Aiden Stowe (6-0, 220).

As for the players that will be running behind the big boys up front, Dylan Maas and Conner Grems are the chief candidates to absorb the bulk of the carries vacated by two-year starter Tanner Hall. The pair combined for 255 yards on 32 attempts for an enticing 7.9 YPC last season, suggesting the Huskies might possess an explosive component to their running attack that was lacking in 2020. Considering where he started on the depth chart prior to his junior season, Hall was a genuine success story and a two-time all-district performer, but dipped from 7.1 yards-per-carry in 2019 to 4.6 YPC in 2020.

“It’s basically Dylan and Conner at tailback at this point,” Williams said. “We don’t have a lot behind them, but we are really excited about what those two bring to the table. Maas is a little more straight-ahead runner than Tanner, but if he breaks a couple tackles, he’s gone. Grems is a very strong kid and runs low to the ground. If he gets out there, he can out-distance some people as well.”

The final offensive group, the pass-catchers, will essentially be starting from scratch. Beyer was a transcendent talent and accounted for the majority of the team’s total receiving yardage last season, 68% to be exact. Additionally, the Huskies’ second and third leading receivers — Hall and Connor Budach — also graduated, leaving OHS with just one player on the current roster with more than 100 career receiving yards, Nick Williams.

Thrust into an expanded role after starter Matt Seykora suffered a season-ending injury in Week 4, Williams — who has the versatility to line up at fullback one play and split out wide the next — finished with 113 yards and three total touchdowns (2 receiving, 1 rushing) last season. He performed well during the 7-on-7 circuit this past summer and is one of three team-elected captains along with Achterkirch and Spurgeon.

“Nick increased his speed this offseason and has the best hands on the team,” Jeff Williams said. “We are going to use him in the backfield, maybe a little tight end and at both receiver positions. We like what he brings to the table.”

Senior Caleb Vereide started strong with three key receptions for 35 yards against Rochester Mayo in Week 1 last year, but his offensive responsibilities faded in the second half of the season. In Owatonna’s system, the slot position has the potential to flourish — see Sam Fenske, Noah Budach and Ethan Walter — and is fed the ball in a multitude of ways, particularly via lateral screens and sweeps. The staff typically awards the spot to athletes with a quick-twitch mentality and sometimes dips into the running back pool to find the best candidate.

With 2020 regular starter Ty Creger having elected not to play football this season, the staff will have to dig a little deeper than perhaps expected to fill the depth chart, particularly out wide. Guys like juniors Collin Vick, Carter Johnson and Ayden Walter, and even sophomores Owen Beyer and Caleb Hullopeter, will all be in the mix at a variety of spots. Starting defensive back, Lane Wagner, could also slide into the rotation, if needed.

“We will be a committee at receiver until someone steps up and proves they can be the next Payton Beyer-type player,” Williams said.