Northrop Football Preview
Northrop always seems like one of those schools that gets overlooked for no reason. They are in the heart of the state and in the most competitive division around. They’re always competitive and making every game a battle. They may…
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Continue ReadingNorthrop always seems like one of those schools that gets overlooked for no reason. They are in the heart of the state and in the most competitive division around. They’re always competitive and making every game a battle. They may not always win, but when the Bruins are coming to town opposing teams know it’s going to be a long week of preparation.
The Bruins are led by Head Coach Jason Doerffler. Doerffler is a teacher for Northrop so he’s always on top of that in school recruitment. He gets his guys excited to play for him and it translates to the football field. Doerffler has done a great job of building up the organization and putting Northrop on the map. He’s active on social media helping his players get seen and making the Bruins a spot for college coaches to come look.
Last year, under Doerffler, the Bruins fell to a 4-6 season. It’s not the season they expected to have but Covid threw a wrench into their plans. The Bruins couldn’t get it done on the road. They were 3-1 at home but just 1-5 on the road. They had 2 games on the road where they just got beat down badly and got shut out. They lost 44-0 to Fort Wayne Snider and 41-0 to Bishop Dwenger. Both of those games were on the road and got out of hand quickly. Things didn’t go the Bruins way and the next thing you knew they were down 20+ points and it continued to snowball. They never bounced back from that loss against Bishop Dwenger as the next week they lost to North Side by 21 in the playoffs.
The Bruins lost a bunch of key players due to graduation and now some guys are going to have to step up. First off, we’re going to look at Roosevelt Norfleet III. He’s been working his entire offseason to take over at QB now that the spot could be wide open for the taking. He’s raw and doesn’t have a very big arm but he likes to work. Time will tell because they are getting ready to start camp, if they haven’t already, and we will know by week 1 if he wins the starting gig.
Amarion Collins is going to be a senior and the Bruins will need him to step up big too. The senior plays on both sides of the ball at RB and LB. He’ll be a key rotational piece on both sides of the ball for them. He’s got the speed to take the ball to the house any time he touches it. He’s a decent tackler on the defensive end. He’s not the biggest and fastest athlete but he’s competitive and will give you all he’s got.
Dane Kilby could also push for the QB spot if he wants it. However, he spent his summer at camps working as a WR. He was at the Midwest Exposure Camp this spring and hopefully, he took a lot with him. He’s a lengthy kid and has a relatively light frame. He likes to use his hands and will get caught sometimes with his arms way off of his body. He’s also just a raw football player but he’s spent the time working this offseason. Who knows, maybe he and Norfleet can build a special connection.
The season is rapidly coming and the Bruins are starting their season on the 20th of this month. That game is at home for them at 7 PM against Homestead who we just recently covered. They bounce back and forth all season between home and away games before they finish their season at home against Bishop Dwenger on October 15th. By then, we will know who the Bruins are in the 2021 season. Hopefully, this round against Bishop Dwenger is much more competitive than the last time.