WAYNESFIELD – When Shane Wireman took over for Waynesfield-Goshen seven years ago, the Tigers were struggling to compete and had endured a 24-game losing streak.
That is no longer the case. Over that span, the Tigers have developed into a winning program that has set a new level of expectations and that is winning.
The Tigers have not had a losing season in five years and last year went 9-2 with a berth in the playoffs and a postseason win over Mohawk in 2021.
“The different feel is that there are expectations,” Wireman said. “When I took over we were so bad. We were struggling and our numbers were down. Now we are on the flip side of that for a small school we got the numbers up but there is more chirping like ‘you guys did good last year; what are you going to do this year?’
“That is a different expectation on the players. They had a little taste of success for a school our size last year but I hope they are coming in with higher expectations. We don’t want to win just one playoff game. Maybe we can win two and just keep building on what we did last year.”
Wireman adds that the issues now for the team are the fears of becoming complacent and thinking that last year’s success means victories this year.
“We are projecting to be 35-plus kids,” Wireman said. “We have nine seniors and all these guys have been playing three or four years so we have a lot of experience. With that being said, some of them have like your No. 2s who have been stuck behind good players and they have the ability to do things and the confidence.”
Wireman added that one of the positive side effects of being successful and having numbers is competition for positions and the Tiger head coach pointed out that no one is guaranteed to be the starter. With that being said. Wireman adds that some starters are set.
On offense, the Tigers feature two senior running backs to highlight the team’s ground game.
Even though they lost Blake Barnes to graduation, the Tigers return Aiden Biederman and Hunter Craig at fullback.
Wireman said Biederman is a big kid with speed with room to grow.
Backing them up are a pair of sophomores, Grant Breitigam and Carson Barnes.
“We have some depth and they are young and unproven,” Wireman said. “But I think they want to go out and make a name for themselves.”
Also a position that features experience and depth up front. The Tigers will play three seniors and two juniors on the offensive line.
The line boasts a lot of size with seniors Hayden Fox and Logan Webb anchoring the line with Roman James and Chase Dunson and junior Drew Cook who started last year on the line.
“We are juniors and seniors where we have good size and good knowledge,” Wireman said. “They should be able to do some things if they work as a unit. I am excited about that.”
One position that will see a new face is behind the center as Drew Breitigam takes over as quarterback and replaces Cooper Roberts, a four-year starter and all-NWCC selection.
“That is the biggest one,” Wireman said about the changes on offense. “Drew is a kid we have kind of developing behind him (Roberts). He has some experience but he has been stuck behind Cooper so he has big shoes to fill and is a little bit of a different type of quarterback.”
Being a little smaller in stature than his predecessor, Wireman said he expects to move the pocket around to give Breitigam some better reads and options.
“He is not probably sit in the pocket as much,” Wireman said. “He is going to move around and get him outside and even use him as a run threat and if there is some green grass he can take up some yards. I think he is going to do a good job this year.”
Wireman points out that having experience at other positions is going to allow Breitigam to grow into the position.
“We are built for running the game,” Wireman said. “We want to control it and get first downs. But we also want to make sure we are not one-dimensional, so I want to make sure we keep that balance with our passing game.
“I think Drew is going to do the job of moving the chains,” Wireman said. “I don’t know if we have the receiver who is going to be the big play guy but we have a lot of guys who can move the chains and work in space.
Leading up the receivers is senior Jayden Elliott, who Wireman said is good in space, and makes small plays into big plays.
Like the offense, the defense boasts a number of returns and depth. Not unusual for a small school where most players see time on offense and defense. Eight starters are back for the Tigers defense.
“I think we are going to be really strong on defense,” Wireman said. “We are going to stop the run and we threw some new coverages in to advance our stuff. We are excited to see how that plays out. We really think we can hang our hat on our defense this year.”
Wireman adds that four seniors will be up front on the defensive line with sophomores and juniors looking to earn some playing time.
The linebacking crew is one area that Wireman said they need to see the most development out of this year. Hunter Craig is back as a starter and two sophomores, Grant Breitigam and Carson Barnes are expected to man the other two spots.
“Grant and Carson have the potential to be the best linebackers I have coached,” Wireman said. “They, as sophomores, could be the real deal in our conference. They are going to be real nice pieces as they develop and both have worked hard in the offseason and they don’t look like sophomores right now.”
With experience, size and success in the last five years, the expectations are high again this year.
“I got no lies to tell,” Wireman said. “We are pushing for a league championship. That is our main goal. We know it is clichéd but it is one game at a time and not look past anybody. In our conference, a lot of teams can win.
“I think the thing we need to see is more leadership from our guys,” Wireman said. “Even though we have nine seniors, a lot of them are not your vocal type leaders. They work hard. They have great attendance. They study and do everything right but just having that voice of reason I am looking at seeing who is going to step up as leader, and it does not have to be a senior.”
WAYNESFIELD-GOSHEN
Coach: Shane Wireman
Years at School, record: 7th (27-32)
Last year’s record: 9-3
Division: VII
Returning Letterwinners: Brody Barrington (Sr.), Aiden Biederman (Sr.), Hunter Craig (Sr.), Chase Dunson (Sr.), Avery Durham (Sr.), Jayden Elliott (Sr.), Hayden Fox (Sr.), Roman James (Sr.), Logan Webb (Sr.), David Born (Jr.), Drew Breitigam (Jr.), Jay Carter (Jr.), Drew Cook (Jr.), Landin DeWitt (Jr.), Dalton Jordan (Jr.), Devon Klenke (Jr.), Carson Barnes (Soph.), Grant Breitigam (Soph.), Layden Porter (Soph.), Gage Steineke (Soph.), Jayce Turner (Soph.)
Season Outlook: I look for us to be very competitive in every game we play this year. We have an experienced roster is some places as well as some unproven guys who we are looking for to step up and fill out the voids that are left from last year’s seniors. We fully understand that we have a lot of work to do in order to achieve our goals that we have as a team and as individuals. I am excited to see what the 2022 W-G football team can do.
SCHEDULE
August 19 – Ada
August 26 – Arcadia
September 2 – Lehman Catholic
September 9 – at Upper Scioto Valley
September 16 – Elgin
September 23 – at Ridgemont
September 30 – Crestline
October 7 – at Perry
October 14 – Ridgedale
October 21 – Hardin Northern
All games start at 7 p.m
