Waynesboro

By Shawn Michael

smichael@GameTimePA.com

@ShawnCMichael on Twitter

WAYNESBORO >> If you watched the Waynesboro football team in the first weeks of the preseason, you would have no idea that the Indians have a long history of losing.

There is a sense of confidence and swagger in Waynesboro these days, and that is exactly what new head coach Brennan Marion was trying to accomplish when he took over the team.

“Waynesboro is on a long stretch of losing and accepting mediocrity,” he said, “but I went back and looked at the team’s past, and there is a lot of great history of winning here.”

And that is exactly what the Indians are trying to do this season, win. They finished 0-10 last season — including 0-7 in the Mid Penn Colonial Division — and haven’t had a winning season since 1992, but the “Boro Boyz” started as early as possible to help reverse the trend, including staying together as a team at the local YMCA during the first week of practice.

“We were out on the practice field at 12:01 a.m. the Monday practices started,” Marion said. “We had a few Marines come to our practice, and they were very impressed with our conditioning.”

But Waynesboro has already hit a snag. Last year’s leading rusher, Brett Mohn (615 yards), will be out for the season after suffering a non-contact leg injury in the first week of practice.

“That was a big blow for us,” Marion said. “He’s a tough guy to lose, but other than that we’re healthy and have a lot of new additions.”

But the Indians don’t plan to let one injury slow down their new-look offense. Marion, who joked that his plan on offense is to go with five receivers and throw the ball 100 times a game, knows he will need to adjust to his players in order to get the most out of his offense.

“We’re going to take some shots down the field, but we’re also going to dink and dunk when we need to,” he said. “We’ll do whatever it takes to win, which means we have to make adjustments and be versatile.”

With the way the offense looks now, that shouldn’t be a problem. Marion’s brother Justin Marion (6 feet, 185 pounds) will start at running back, while Connor Fetterhoff (6-0, 175) will return at quarterback after taking a year off. Also, junior Matt Peck (5-10, 175) is back at receiver after leading the Indians with 410 receiving yards in 2013.

“When I look at this offense, I see a bunch of playmakers,” Fetterhoff said, “and that’s why this team will be hard to stop. Defenses aren’t going to be able to key on just one guy,”

Justin Marion said, “We have big goals for our offense. Our ability to stretch the field and make big plays will be tough for defenses to handle.”

Outside of Waynesboro’s big play-ability, the pace of its offense may also give defenses fits.

Justin Marion said, “We want to snap the ball every 10-12 seconds, and that could wear defenses down the later the game gets. We just have to make sure we are in shape and ready to play for a full game.”

With all of the hype the offense is getting, the defense has mainly flown under the radar. But with so many big bodies on the defensive line, it may not stay hidden for long.

Tyrelle White (6-0, 305) will anchor both the defensive and offensive lines, and Trevor Biller (6-5, 295), Brad Lark and Kody Brown (6-0, 240) will also be key pieces to the Indian defensive front.

“We have a lot of size up front and we are athletic,” Brennan Marion said. “I think people will be surprised with our D-line.”

Patrick Wade (6-0, 215), who Brennan Marion says is a “natural leader,” will be expected to take charge at linebacker, while Todd Riddell (5-10, 165), Brandon Baer (5-10, 165), Austin Kassman (5-9, 165) and Justin Marion will handle duties in the defensive backfield. The group will look to build off a strong showing at 7-on-7s over the summer.

“We know we are able to stop the pass when we know it’s coming, but now we have to be disciplined,” Marion said. “Teams in this area run a lot of waggle plays, so we have to be ready for it.”

But if there’s one thing Marion has stressed more than any other, it’s being physical on both sides of the ball.

He said, “When I look at last year’s team, they didn’t necessarily lack talent, they just weren’t as physical. That’s what we need to be on both sides of the ball.”

Waynesboro’s theme of “Hershey Dreams” may be a reach for a team with a new coach and a new system, but Marion doesn’t believe on putting a cap on his players’ potential.

“We’re just going to go one game at a time,” he said. “We have a good schedule that will challenge us, and if we get focused and stay tough, I think we can do great things.”

Justin Marion said, “I wasn’t here last year, but I think the feel of this team and the morale is completely different. Everyone is focused, we’re all-in and ready to go.

“People look at us, they doubt us and don’t believe us, but we have a lot of talent on this team. We’re ready to roll.”