ADA – When Ada head coach Bob Olwin is asked what it will take for the Bulldogs to be successful in 2016, the coach said score one more point than the other team.
And while he is joking, relatively speaking, Olwin expects his offense to score more points and garner more close game wins, something it failed to do last year.
And with nine starters back on both offense and defense, Olwin said this team has matured and learned a lot in last year’s roller coaster season.
“We have to improve in all aspects of the game,” Olwin said. “We can’t give up 95-yard drives to LCC like we did last year. We also had a lot of penalties. We have to clean those up and be a little more disciplined. The mental mistakes have to be a thing of the past.”
The Bulldogs, who made the playoffs, recorded a 6-5 overall record and had a 4-3 record in the Northwest Conference, had trouble scoring points in their last two regular season games and then scored just seven points in their opening playoff loss to Riverside. In those three games, the Bulldogs were outscored 124-20.
Ada led the NWC with a 242.4 passing yards per game average, and should improve on this with a number of starters returning on the offensive side of the ball.
Quarterback Seth Conley (6-1, 175), who was hurt in week four last year, returns to be the Bulldogs signal caller. As a freshman, Conley passed for more than 2,400 yards and 24 touchdowns.
Olwin said he saw glimpses of what the offense can accomplish over the summer in 7-on-7 competitions. Olwin said the team looked sharp and he expects that to continue into the season.
“Our offensive line will be young but we just have not gotten enough reps for them just yet,” Olwin said. “We really meshed well at the state 7-on-7. We played very well down there and ended up top four playing against some Division I schools.
Olwin said he has seen a big difference in Conley this year from a mental standpoint as well knowing the offense better.
“We want to put up more points when we are in the red zone,” Olwin said. “We are looking forward to that. We have stumbled a lot the last two years down in the red zone by not executing the plays. I don’t see that this year.”
The Bulldog receiving corps is littered with talent. Ada features four-year starters Owen Conley, Trent Jolliff and Jordan Bailey, along with Jackson Conrad. Also looking to make an impact at the varsity level will be Aaron Everhart.
“We have some kids that can really catch the ball,” Olwin said. “It is there time to shine and get a little more reps.”
With the Ada offense ready to take off again and recapture some of their past glory, the Bulldogs defense returns a number of players and could prove to be one of their best assets this year.
Three out of the four starters in the defensive backfield return, including junior Chase Sumner, a first-team All-NWC selection. Along with Sumner, who recorded 82 tackles and seven interceptions, will be Jolliff and Jackson Conrad are also returning.
“We might rearrange some people at the linebacker position, but our line has some veteran kids on it,” Olwin said.
Jordan Bailey, a senior returns as a linebacker. Other returners on defense are Noah Mattson, Hunter Pury, Mason Kingler, Ethan Swaney, Aaron Everhart and Jakob Hoschak.
Olwin said the team has a lot of confidence coming into preseason practice and he said there is a fine line between too confident and not confident enough.
“Hopefully the stage is not too big now for these kids. In the past we lost our concentration and made mistakes,” Olwin said. “I don’t see that in these kids now.
.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}
