The Melrose-Mindoro High School football team has been a WIAA playoff participant in 15 of the past 17 seasons.
It just so happens that the Mustangs didn’t qualify for the postseason a year ago, so coach Tory Lockington said that has led to some changes on how the coaching staff works with athletes in the quest to return to familiar territory.
“The coaches got together a couple of times each month making changes to the playbook and kind of simplifying things,” Lockington said. “Everybody learns differently, so we’ve put some things online for the kids to see, then done some walk-throughs in practice and then gone full speed in practice.”
Tapping into a teen community that embraces technology has required Lockington to do the same, so the experiment is on.
While Melrose-Mindoro played its way to a 3-6 overall record and sixth-place finish in the eight-team Dairyland Conference, there are reasons to believe that a nice forward step can be taken this fall.
Lockington is happiest right now with what he has seen defensively during practices and Saturday’s scrimmage.
Senior defensive end Eric Herzberg, junior defensive tackle Aaron Dunigan and senior defensive back Brett Peterson are returning all-conference talents who are expected to lead on that side of the ball.
“Eric is a good kid, a smart kid, and he knows what’s going on and where to be,” Lockington said. “We’re looking for good things from him.”
Herzberg, a 6-foot, 230-pounder, led the Mustangs with 61 total tackles last season. He also topped the team in sacks (4) and tackles for loss (9) while forcing a fumble and recovering a fumble.
Dunigan, a 6-1, 220-popund tackle, had 53 total tackles and 8 stops behind the line of scrimmage. He also had 2 sacks and recovered a fumble.
“As a defensive tackle, he can change a game,” Lockington said of Dunigan, also a state-qualifying wrestler. “Pepin/Alma had a great (offensive) lineman last year, and we told Aaron as a sophomore that we wanted him to follow him and hit him. We lined him up for that, and he went out and did a great job.”
If Herzberg and Dunigan are as impactful as expected, that creates more opportunities for Peterson — he had an interception, a forced fumble and a recovered fumble as a junior — and junior linebacker Brewer Schlifer, who had 58 tackles and made 5 stops for negative yards as a sophomore.
Junior quarterback Brady Blaken has already played in 17 games and will lead what Lockington hopes to be a balanced offense after passing for 905 yards and rushing for 6 touchdowns as a sophomore.
“I’ve always been a pass guy, but we’ve had some trouble catching it ot getting the time to throw it,” Lockington said. “I’d love to pass 40 percent of the time and run 60 or go 50-50.
“That will depend on our guys up front and us catching the ball.”
Herzberg and Dunigan anchor that offensive line, and Lockington hopes Peterson and others can be established as consistent targets for Blaken.
If not, more pressure falls to running backs Jayce Stetzer and Isaiah Kleinsmith. Lockington likes what the duo has to offer in the backfield and the fact that both can also factor into the passing game.
Stetzer, a senior, led the Mustangs with 433 rushing yards. Kleinsmith, a junior, didn’t carry the ball nearly as much but finished with 77 yards and a touchdown.
“Jayce is not afraid to get his nose in there, and he’s patient when he needs to be,” Lockington said. “Zay brings more speed.”
The Mustangs start their season with nonconference games at Bangor and at home against Necedah before hitting the Dairyland schedule by hosting Eleva-Strum on Sept. 5.
2025 SCHEDULE
(7 p.m. unless noted)
x-August 21: at Bangor
x-August 29: vs. Necedah
September 5: vs. Eleva-Strum
September 12: at Independence/Gilmanton
September 19: vs. Pepin/Alma
September 26: vs. Whitehall
October 3: at Augusta
October 10: vs. Blair-Taylor
October 17: at Cochrane-Fountain City
x-nonconference
