The Logan High School football team didn’t have to work very hard to identify potential problems as they relate to Green Bay Notre Dame.
The Tritons are big. They are very big, and that’s going to be a point of contention for the Rangers as they prepare to play them in a WIAA Division 3 state semifinal Friday night in Wisconsin Rapids.
“We took a 4-inch box outside (to practice) and had (6-foot-6) Jacob (Hackbarth) stand on it,” Logan coach Casey Knoble said. “Then we had one of our D-linemen look up at him.
“Guys, this is what the left tackle looks like.”
That would be senior Andrew Rader, a Minnesota-Duluth basketball commit. Notre Dame also has 6-5 Asa Poister up front with 6-6 tight end James Flanigan another obstacle.
The Rangers (10-2) had trouble stopping Medford last week in a 51-48 victory that gave them a sectional championship, and this task is of another nature.
“Our big concern is stopping them,” Logan senior offensive and defensive lineman Christian Parcher said. “That O-line is pretty big.
“With their height, we have to play lower than them. We have to stay low and take up our gaps.”
Flanigan’s father, Jim, spent 10 seasons as a defensive tackle in the NFL and ad 46 sacks. Seven of those seasons were spent with the Chicago Bears, and he started eight games while playing all 16 for the Green Bay Packers in 2001.
His son is following his footsteps and playing at the University of Notre Dame. Flanigan has just 23 catches, but 11 of them have gone for touchdowns, and the plays have covered 532 yards — 23.1 per catch.
“He’s a huge, strong tight end,” Knoble said of Flanigan, who has 28 career touchdown catches. “He can run, and he’s a fun, tremendous athlete to watch on film. He’s that good.”
The Tritons (12-0) have scored at least 50 points four times this season, and Flanigan has helped make the running game a huge part of that attack.
Senior Christian Collins missed two games this season but has rushed for 2,337 yards and 32 touchdowns. Logan needs to find some kind of solution after allowing Medford to rush for 351 yards last week.
Collins carried 42 times for 322 yards and three touchdowns in last week’s 28-6 victory over Grafton and has 853 yards and 11 TDs this postseason.
Like the Tritons, the Rangers are capable of producing numbers reserved for video games.
Senior Bradley Check has rushed for 2,032 yards and 33 touchdowns to go with 1,406 passing yards and 15 more touchdowns. He completed a 13-yard TD pass from Maxim Roberts with 21 seconds on the clock to win last week’s game.
“In the livestreams of games, they’ve started calling him ‘Superman,’ and it’s an inside joke that we call him ‘Superman’ now, but look at what he does,” Parcher said. “What he does on defense and on offense is amazing.
“Our O-line is pretty good, but he’s breaking three or four tackles on those 70-yard runs he has. It’s insane.”
The success seen by Check, Roberts (851 rushing yards, 9 total TDs) and Hackbarth (638 receiving yards, 5 TDs) lends itself to some confidence with the ball.
“We’ve put up a lot of points the last three games, and I’m confident that we can come out and hit them first,” Check said. “Hopefully, we can get a lead and keep everything going.”
Check has rushed for 700 yards and 11 touchdowns and has passed for five more scores in the postseason. With 48 touchdown runs and passes this season, he has been the source an exciting run for both the athletic program and entire school. The Rangers are in the state semifinals for the first time since 2013.
“Our school needs this so much right now,” Knoble said. “For us to have this kind of season and create this positivity throughout the school has given a boost to everyone.
