Gauchos treating every ?game as ‘championship’

Much new with Casa Grande football this season, including the coach.|

Casa Grande High School football coach Denis Brunk expects to continue building the Big House football program game by game after laying the foundation during the summer and throughout fall practice.

Brunk is in his first season as Casa Grande head coach after the controversial leaving of Trent Herzog last winter. He comes to Casa after two years at Santa Rosa High School, where he took over a foundering program and turned the Panthers into a North Coast playoff team.

He acknowledges that he began at Casa Grande without knowing much about his players, but there are some advantages to being new, he said.

“I don’t have any pre-determined ideas,” he explained. “I like that I can see the players with my own eyes and make my own evaluations.”

So far, those evaluations have been good.

“Overall, our competitiveness has been extraordinary,” he said. “The players have reached the point where they are expecting more out of their fellow players. Athletes are holding other players accountable. That’s a good thing.”

Brunk also has been impressed with the work ethic shown by his team.

“The physicality of the players and their willingness to work has been very good,” he said. “They are grinding hard.”

Brunk plans to run a spread offense and two quarterbacks are vying to run the attack. Jance Offermann and Jadon Bosarge are juniors with talent but limited experience. Both were brought up to the varsity at the end of last season, and Bosarge was pressed into service at quarterback when both senior starters were injured. In four games, he completed eight of 14 passes for 73 yards.

Brunk acknowledged there is a lot of pressure on the quarterback in his offense. “They not only need to make pre-snap decisions, but they need to make good decisions during the play,” he explained.

Casa Grande has a potentially outstanding running back in senior Kenneth Fitzgerald, who is 6-1, 235 pounds and has excellent speed. Bureaucratic transfer troubles limited him to one game last season, but in that one game, a playoff contest against Redwood, he gained 114 yards.

Senior Brandon Cota and junior Jordan Gramajo also will get playing time. Cota played for the varsity last season, showing well in limited rushing opportunities.

Playing in the slot and at times in the backfield will be varsity veteran Jack Leonetti and impressive sophomore Dominic Mchale. Although injuries limited him to six games, speedster Leonetti rushed for 158 yards and gained five more yards as a receiver last season.

Carson Kerrigan and Jeremy Bonner also will get playing time at those positions.

Isiah Cappelen and Cole Shimek are in strong competition for the split end, wide receiver position. Shimek could also be in the mix at quarterback. “He will be on the field,” said Brunk.

Josh Grayson, Nate Busse and Josh Garcia are in contention for playing time at one of the wide receiver positions. Clay Smedshammer, who caught 15 passes last season, also returns.

Senior Mathew Hart is expected to be the voice of the offensive line at center or guard. Justin Naugle is competing for the center position.

There is good size on the Casa Grande offensive front, with Breadon Chadwick (255 pounds), Alex Azanon (280), Matthew Murphy (295) and brothers Zach Odetto and Max Odetto, who both go over 340 pounds.

Hart and Chadwick at tackles, Jonathan Bland and Ian Misfud at end have looked good on the defensive line, along with Sebastian Reyes, Azanon, Murphy and Chadwick.

The linebackers will include Jack Green and Adam Lopez inside, along with Fitzgerald, Gramajo and Zian Kovach outside. The talented Fitzgerald also will play some at safety.

There is real competition for playing time in the defensive backfield, with Offermann, Bonner, Josh Grayson, Shimek, Cappelen and Leonetti all in the mix.

Brunk has been especially impressed with Leonetti on both sides of the football. “He has been showing big leadership skills,” the coach said. “He’s the guy the others will follow.”

Cota and Misfud have been handling the kicking duties.

Brunk sees the North Bay League as being good, as always, but says the Gauchos won’t overlook anyone.

“Cardinal Newman, as always, will be tough,” he said, “but we’re going to play every week as if we are playing our championship game.”

The first of those “championship games” comes Sept. 2 when the Gauchos make the long trek to Eureka to open their season against St. Bernard’s Crusaders.

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