Offensive line, more balanced attack focuses for Arcadia football this fall

Could another year of growth bring more wins for a young Arcadia High School football team this fall?

That’s the hope for the Raiders, a group coach Derek Updike believes has shown improvement from a year ago.

Arcadia finished 2022 with a 3-6 record, including a 2-5 run in a strong Coulee Conference.

“As we come into this year it feels like the players have gotten a little bigger, more physical and they’ve been in the weight room. It seems like we’re playing faster, and we have to get back to having some swagger and being confident that we should be competitive,” Updike said.

“This is a team that I think from week one to week nine is going to improve a lot.”

One area the Raiders hope to improve upon in 2023 is the run game — Arcadia found the end zone only four times on the ground last fall, and their top rusher was Cam Boland with just over 100 yards for the year.

It’s early in the offensive game-plan, but Updike said he wants to see more balance on offense this year between the run and pass game.

Junior Quarterback Kaiden Rotering could be on the move more this year, and the team has height at the wide receiver position with four players over six foot, three inches tall.

“Our run game was atrocious last year and we knew that, so we put a lot of effort into trying to change that this coming season. … our approach is just going to be try to get first downs and try to do it however we can,” Updike said.

Rotering and the Raiders will operate under center more on offense in 2023 when compared to last year’s offensive approach that saw more shotgun packages.

Rotering finished last season with 666 yards passing to go with six touchdowns and six interceptions while completing around 45-percent of his throws.

“We decided to go a little more under center this year, and part of the reason is giving Kaiden the opportunity to be able to keep his eyes on the field and take one element out of the snap,” Updike said. “We just feel like he’s growing into that comfort zone and looks really good in the first week and throwing a nice ball.”

The Raiders will have to replace a trio of longtime playmakers on defense in Egan Pauly, Cam Boland and Caleb Glenzinski.

They return, though, both of their starting linebackers in sophomore Max Blaschko and junior Max Sobotta to anchor their defense.

Sobotta led Arcadia with 63 tackles in 2022.

“They have a year under their belt, and they’re ready to go, and I think we’re going to have some athleticism on the edge there. We’ll have to work on our tackling and finishing and making sure we don’t miss assignments, but if we can get sound and get better each week our defense can run and we can compete,” Updike said.

If Arcadia can shore up its offensive line, they could surprise some teams, their coach thinks.

“Are we able to hold up in the Coulee and compete at the level we’re going to need to so that we can be successful and move the ball? If our offensive line can get better, keep working at it and stay focused,” Updike said, “I think we can make some strides.”

Some years you can look at a schedule and know that certain games are going to be an uphill battle to win before you take the field, Updike said.

Westby, Aquinas, G-E-T and West Salem all figure to have a chance at the conference crown again in the Coulee, which should be as competitive top to bottom as it has been in recent memory, Arcadia’s coach told the Times last week.

“Now we look at it and say, if we’re healthy, if we play together as a team, if we get better, if we work hard and do all the things we’re supposed to do, there’s really not a game we can’t compete in. I’m not saying we’re a 9-0 team, I didn’t say that. I’m just saying that we could have a chance at any of the nine games,” Updike said.

“We have a goal to be a team that’s going to be a playoff team. Each week we’re going to try to be impactful and add value to the team as individuals. … if everyone is at value, we’ve got a chance to beat anybody and that’s what our sell is right now.”