Search
Graduation created some tough holes to fill for the Brandon-Evansville football team, including the loss of All-State selection Tyler Bitzan, and Head Coach Dan Johnson is aware of the challenges his team faces. “Overall depth is going to be an issue this season,” reported Johnson. “We’re not going to hide behind this issue as an excuse, but our players will need to improve their conditioning and our staff will need to be creative with how we use our roster. Our team does have good overall speed at each of our starting positions and I have been impressed with our work ethic to this point.”
Returning starters include seniors Aaron Gillespie (OL/DL) and Ryland Yeats (RB/DB), and juniors Lucas Fuller (WR/DB), Logan Haburn (RB/LB), Stephen Hamilton (TE/LB) and Ben Seifert (OL/DL). Other returning letter winners are juniors Solomon Wales (WR/LB) and Carter White (WR/DB), and freshman William Englund (OL/DL).
Coach Johnson will be looking to seniors Kayla Bitzan-Anderson (TE/Dl) and Brady Perleberg (WR/DB), and sophomores Micah Fuller (QB/DB), Dustin Gillespie (OL/DL), Jaxon Gackle (WR/DB) and Hudson Saxton (OL/DL) to contribute at the varsity level.
Adam Wagner, Kellen Traphagen, Tom Gasser and CJ Marotto will assist Coach Johnson, with Chad Knapp and Chris Vanderweyst working with the junior high.
Johnson says Wheaton/Herman-Norcross appears to be the top team in Section 4 9-Man with Verndale and Hancock also competing for top spots. He also feels that Bertha-Hewitt should be an improved team.
“We are going to focus on leadership development within our program and the development of a growth mindset among our players,” added Coach Johnson. “Our success depends on how well these pillars guide us through the adversity that is typical in a season.”