ONALASKA — Aquinas High School football coach Tom Lee loves talking about his linemen.
Discussing growth — both of the physical form and within the game itself — always brings a smile to his face, and he understands how fortunate his Blugolds have been able to maintain such consistency in the trenches.
Dedication is what landed former players Shane Willenbring and Will Flottmeyer spots on FCS rosters at South Dakota State and North Dakota, respectively.
Chase Schams and Will Horihan are two players who have lived in that lineman bubble with Willenbring and Flottmeyer and seek to join them in the college ranks.
Both were all-conference performers in the Coulee Conference as juniors, and they and senior teammates Charlie Kirschner and Joe Korger — two more experienced linemen — will have plenty to say about whether or not the Blugolds can win another conference championship or continue a WIAA postseason run that has included 23 victories and three state titles since 2019.
“Any good team has to be able to run the ball, and we think we have the ponies, for sure, up front,” Lee said during a joint practice with Onalaska. “We have four guys who played a lot of snaps, and we will rely on them.
“They have college football aspirations, rightly, but they have real high school football aspirations right now, too.”
The first step of those aspirations is providing time for some new faces to adapt to new or altered skill roles behind them.
Four big playmakers no longer with the team due to graduation are quarterback Ryan Johnson, running back Marcus Klar and wide receivers Logan Becker and Waylon Hargrove.
Johnson passed for 1,848 yards and 24 touchdowns, and Klar led a rotational backfield in carries (58), yards (326) and rushing touchdowns (7).
Becker caught 35 passes for 585 yards and seven touchdowns, and Hargrove had 19 receptions for 381 yards and four touchdowns.
“I don’t think the pressure is on us because we’ve been playing together for years,” Schams said. “We’re so used to each other, and the new guys are coming right in and picking everything up.
“I know we’re going to do good this year.”
Schams, who will list at 6-foot-3 and 290 pounds this season, said he made a point of learning everything he could from the classes ahead of him. He said he used to seek advice and talk to the Aquinas linemen when he was in middle school.
“They gave me so much insight and helped me improve,” Schams said. “I even got reps against starters, and now I’m out there against the best guys, and all that does is make you better.”
Lee saw quick improvement from Schams before he transitioned from a rotational player into a starter. Strength has been a key asset.
“He’s our strongest guy in terms of moving weight around,” Lee said. “He was a stiff and kind of roly-poly freshman, and he has stayed in that weight room and worked on his speed stuff.
“He’s never gonna run the 100-meter dash at the WIAA state track meet, but he moves well for a big boy.”
Schams also learned about work ethic from current South Dakota State freshman Tyson Martin. Martin, a WIAA Division 3 state wrestling champion, worked with Schams on the mat and on the football field.
Lee likes the way Horihan moves, changes direction and a similar learning curve over the past couple of seasons.
“He definitely took his lumps as a sophomore,” Lee said of Horihan. “That’s hard. We threw a sophomore out there in the deep end, which he thought was 10 feet and it was actually 800 feet.
“But that experience paid dividends.”
Horihan is preparing for a full-time role with the offensive unit and as a part-time helper on the defensive line.
“Our experience and coaching will make a difference for us,” Horihan said with specific reference to the offensive line. “During offensive line drills, we are always reminded of what we need to work on.
“We always have a good understanding of what our strengths are and what we need to get better at.”
