<strong>2011</strong> Football <strong>Preview</strong> 12 Thursday, September 1, <strong>2011</strong> <strong>The</strong> <strong>Hutchinson</strong> <strong>News</strong> Buhler duo heads Preseason Elite 11 squad BY PAT SANGIMINO <strong>The</strong> <strong>Hutchinson</strong> <strong>News</strong> psangimino@hutchnews.com Tanner Fisher led the state by rushing for 2,360 yards and 40 touchdowns last season. Topping that might be tough for the Buhler High senior, but he’s going to try. “I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t care about my stats,” says Fisher, who prepared for his final season of high school football by adding 12 pounds of muscle. “I want to follow up last season. I want to be just as good. “But realistically, I don’t know if that can happen.” Fisher is up to 185 pounds – more than thick enough to handle the rigors of being the guy who touches the ball upwards of 30 times a game – but he hasn’t lost any of the quickness that allowed him to get through the holes and tear off huge gainers. Fisher headlines <strong>The</strong> <strong>Hutchinson</strong> <strong>News</strong>’ Preseason Elite 11, which also includes Buhler teammate JP Lohrentz after he intercepted 11 passes last year to earn <strong>The</strong> <strong>News</strong>’ area defensive player of the year award. He added 36 receptions for a schoolrecord 934 yards and 11 touchdowns. Posting those kinds of numbers could be a challenge for a Buhler team that will replace three of its offensive linemen from a year ago. But coach Steve Warner said the unit is making strides. “<strong>The</strong>y just need some game experience,” he says. Here is the rest of the Preseason Elite 11: l Trey Hallman, Dodge City – Hallman is the top returning receiver from an offense that lit up the scoreboard with its spread formation and came within a Hail Mary of advancing to the Class 6A title game. He averaged nearly 50 yards per game in receptions last year and will be a security blanket for new starting quarterback Brandon Blankman. l Tyler Matthews, McPherson – <strong>The</strong> TCU-bound quarterback enters his senior season as the No. 5 pro-style quarterback in the country, according to one scouting service. Last year, he completed 74 percent of his passes for more than 2,600 yards and 30 touchdowns. He was intercepted just three times. l Justin McPhail, Liberal – <strong>The</strong> senior rushed for more than 400 yards last year but PRESEASON ELITE 11 Colborn Couchman, Scott City, sr., RB-DE Tanner Fisher, Buhler, sr., RB Trey Hallman, Dodge City, sr., WR-DB Josh Jarnigan, Ulysses, sr., RB-DB Weston Kroth, Meade, sr., OL-DT JP Lohrentz, Buhler, sr., WR-DB Tyler Matthews, McPherson, sr., QB Justin McPhail, Liberal, sr., RB-LB Joe Schrock, Trinity Catholic, sr., OL-DL Tayler Stull, La Crosse, sr., QB-S Jess Westmoreland, <strong>Hutchinson</strong>, sr., OT made his biggest impact on the defensive side of the ball. He was in on 128 tackles, recorded nine sacks, forced two fumbles, had an interception and a fumble recovery from his outside linebacker position. l Jess Westmoreland, <strong>Hutchinson</strong> – At 6foot-2, 268 pounds, Westmoreland has the size to dominate up front for the Salthawks, who have had 2,000-yard rushers (Josh Smith in 2009 and Ben Heeney last year) in each of the last two seasons. l JP Lohrentz, Buhler – <strong>The</strong> most enduring image from a magical junior season for Lohrentz came in the rain in Topeka, when he jumped an out route, intercepted the pass – his 11th of the season – and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown that was the biggest play in Buhler’s 21-0 state-playoff thumping of Hayden. l Josh Jarnigan, Ulysses – <strong>The</strong> senior running back is the heart of a team that has a reputation for playing a full 48 minutes each night. Jarnigan earned all-state honors by rushing for more than 1,500 yards and leading the Tigers to a lengthy playoff run. l Colborn Couchman, Scott City – On offense, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound senior rushed for 508 yards and nine touchdowns for the Beavers. On defense, he was in on 90 tackles Buhler’s Tanner Fisher (3) runs ahead of Mulvane’s Jaman Rogers on his way to a touchdown last season. Fisher returns this season after rushing for 2,360 yards and 40 touchdowns as a junior. Lindsey Bauman/<strong>The</strong> <strong>Hutchinson</strong> <strong>News</strong> in helping Scott City be one of the state’s dominant 3A teams. l Joe Schrock, Trinity Catholic – Schrock, a senior, will be a two-way starter on the line for the Celtics – one of the mainstays on an offensive line that graduated three seniors and the team’s leading tackler with more than 100 stops a year ago. l Tayler Stull, La Crosse – <strong>The</strong> senior quarterback threw for 842 yards and 16 touchdowns on just 88 attempts last season, while rushing for 949 yards and 14 touchdowns. He’s one of the area’s best dualthreat quarterbacks. l Weston Kroth, Meade – Kroth is the leader of a unit that was dominant in its run to a state Class 2-1A crown a year ago. <strong>The</strong> 6-foot, 260-yard lineman was an all-state performer this year and figures to dominate again, considering the Buffs return eight players on defense.
<strong>2011</strong> Football <strong>Preview</strong> <strong>The</strong> <strong>Hutchinson</strong> <strong>News</strong> Thursday, September 1, <strong>2011</strong> 13
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