West Catholic Eyes a State Championship

With West Catholic’s offseason, I feel it’s evident that everyone from the players, coaches, and administration eye a state championship. One of the most intriguing teams this season, West Catholic comes in with supreme talent for a D5 team and a new Head Coach with Landon Grove. This team preview will outline West Catholic’s recent history, discuss a few of their best players, note a few hurdles they need to jump and discuss key games on their schedule. <strong>Last 5 Seasons</strong> 2017: 11-3, State-Championship W over Swan Valley 2018: 5-5, 1st-Round L vs. Unity Christian 2019: 1-8 2020: 6-3, 2nd-Round L vs. Portland 2021: 9-2, 2nd-Round L vs. GR Catholic Central <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Players to Watch</span></strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="159621" first="Timmy" last="Kloska"]</strong> Kloska is the life of the offense, and much of the team’s success will be placed on his shoulders. Timmy is the best running back in Division 5, and it’s not even close. The sheer power this man brings is incredible for a high schooler, and it’s almost a given that he’ll tear through the OK-Blue once again. <strong><a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13246188">[player_tooltip player_id="286466" first="Caleb" last="Clinger"]</a></strong> As I’m writing this (May), [player_tooltip player_id="286466" first="Caleb" last="Clinger"] has been subject to lots of offseason praise, and he’s been putting in some great work. The DB/WR missed much of last season due to injury, but Caleb seems to be full-go now. If Caleb can live up to his potential on both sides of the ball, he’ll be a tremendous help to his team in the long run. <strong><a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15015210">[player_tooltip player_id="253301" first="Chaz" last="Vida"]</a></strong> Another player coming off an injury, Vida, was a standout WR prospect getting his chance a year later than anybody would have liked. Vida is primarily a question mark due to last year’s torn ACL, but he’ll help provide West Catholic with a balanced offense if he can be great. I like his route-running, and I especially like his hands. On hudl, he’s listed at 6’0 150, which is a bit light for any position, so I hope he’s gained some muscle. <strong>Other Players:</strong> <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13245951">[player_tooltip player_id="286463" first="Joseph" last="Debski"], </a><a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15025813">Nolan Rinehart, </a><a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13246007">[player_tooltip player_id="286460" first="Elliot" last="Zainea"]</a>, <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/16247145">David Britenfeld</a>, <a class="uni-link--implied" href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/16247225">Gabriel Schwieters</a> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Hurdles to Jump </strong></span> <strong>Unity Christian </strong> Yes, Unity Chrisitan hasn’t always been in the OK-Blue, but still. West Catholic hasn’t beaten Unity Christian since 2015. This is a significant hurdle that West Catholic needs to jump to win the OK-Blue and gain massive confidence heading into the playoffs. With Unity Christian’s massive 2022 class, West Catholic stands a great chance this season. <strong>Playoffs </strong> Once upon a time, West Catholic was one of the best &amp; most dominant teams in the entire state. Admittedly, they aren’t the team they used to be, but they’ve shown promise over the past few seasons. In their last three playoff appearances, they haven’t been able to make it past the 2nd round. They’ll likely meet a championship contender again in the 2nd-round, but West Catholic needs to capitalize on the moment this time. <strong>Balance </strong> West Catholic needs to be balanced to win a State Championship. Offensively, [player_tooltip player_id="159621" first="Timmy" last="Kloska"] dominated last season, but once they met great front 7’s with Unity Christian &amp; Catholic Central, their one-dimensional nature was exposed. Defensively, they struggled against Unity Christian, a dominant run team, and Catholic Central, an extremely balanced team. Not only does West Catholic’s defense need to be balanced, but they also need to be dominant. <strong>Important Matchups</strong> <strong>Week 1 @ Edwardsburg</strong> Edwardsburg was a state-championship contender at the D4 level last season, and I believe this to be a perfect measuring-stick matchup for both teams. Edwardsburg still looks extremely talented, but they, like West Catholic, have some key losses. It’s going to be interesting to see how both teams reload. <strong>Week 9 vs. Unity Christian </strong> As stated above, Unity Christian has been a big hurdle for West Catholic. They’re a well-coached, strong team that broke MHSAA records last reason. This is going to be a good game. <strong>Postseason </strong> West Catholic will make the playoffs. When they do, they’ll inevitably face a championship contender, likely Catholic Central, who has won 5 State Championships in the past six years.