Holdingford Competing In Deep Football Conference

(KNSI) – The Holdingford High School Varsity Football Team is looking to get off to a fast start, something that was missing in a 3-6 campaign last year. Head Coach Luke Mitchell says the quality of competition played a big part in losing the first three games while managing just seven points.

“We had a smaller senior class last year. So, just getting a feel and playing a lot of young guys and getting them some experience early in the season, and getting them some confidence. But, yeah, we had a tough sled early in the go.”

The three squads the Huskers faced in that brutal early season stretch were Pierz, Royalton, and Eden Valley-Watkins. They get the same gauntlet to open 2022. Mitchell says several teams will have veteran rosters.

“We have a really talented district. The teams in our district played a lot of underclassmen last year. Royalton will return a really strong team, their senior class is really good. Eden Valley’s very talented. Paynesville always — the last 10-15 years has been really a talented football team. They’re always well-coached and great schemes and I know Sauk Centre returned a lot of kids from last year. They have a really good senior class too.”

Competing in the Mid State – White means all of those teams are in the same division as Holdingford.

Mitchell runs through some of the Husker’s biggest playmakers.

“One is senior Ryder Peterson, running back and linebacker for us. Another one is Connor Patrick, a senior running back and defensive back for us. And then Luke Bieniek, a sophomore running back/defensive back for us.”

Mitchell says his team will see a variety of philosophies throughout the season. Most squads had a power football scheme until the early 2000s. Then the rise of the spread college offense and the run-pass option (RPO) concept trickled down to the high school level. Mitchell says Elk River has had so much success with the full-house backfield that ground and pound is back in vogue.

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