Aug. 24—MANISTEE — Manistee senior running back Connor Beaudrie said he’s watched the film on the Chippewas second-round playoff loss to Grayling at least 50 times.
That means he’s watched David Millikin and Hunter Ventline tearing up the field and giving Manistee its second loss of the season, ending it along with it — 50 times over.
“Or more, probably,” Beaudrie said.
With seven starters returning, including its whole offensive line, the team remembered the feeling of defeat in the weight room this summer.
“Since we lost we’ve been grinding in the weight room every day. Every day in conditioning. That’s all we’ve been doing is lifting and conditioning,” Beaudrie said.
It’s shown. head football coach Troy Bytwork said this year’s group is one of the strongest he’s had.
“In the eight years I’ve been here, we were undefeated a couple of years back (2018), this team has the potential to be really really good,” Bytwork said. “They’ve done the necessary work … but we haven’t won anything. Do they have the potential to do that? Certainly.”
That 2018 team accomplished quite a bit, but so did the 2020 team.
Manistee won its first conference championship in school history in 2018, then won a playoff game for the first time last fall against a winless Kalkaska team. All teams qualified for the playoffs last fall because of a shortened season by the COVID-19 pandemic, so Beudarie said the team is hoping for a win with the season back at normal rules.
Quarterback Jeffrey Huber returns for his senior year. He’s joined by Carter Fredericks and Caden Vansickle, returning lineman on both sides of the ball. Beaudrie starts at middle linebacker and running back. Connor Rischel returns at wide receiver.
The average size alone the line weighs in at 290 lbs.
“It’s all up front. Weather you’re running ‘T’ as Kingsley does or pistol veer like we do, you’re going to find success up front,” Bytwork said. “With Fredricks coming back, with Vansickle coming back, with (Ayden) Breland coming back, those guys up front, they’re going to make all the difference in the world if they have the type of year they should have.”
Because Manistee is the only 11-player program in its county, it plays in the Lakes 8 Conference, which includes a regular-season slate of mostly Muskegon-area schools. Then within that conference, Muskegon Orchard View is not fielding a varsity team this fall after winning a state championship in 1999.
In non-conference, Manistee takes a trip to Westland Lutheran in Wayne County along with Mason County Central, Lee, Hesperia and Howard City Tri-County.
“We’re kind of accustomed to driving,” Bytwork said.
Manistee opens the year in Scottville at 7 p.m. Friday.
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