Adams-Friendship vs Mauston: Recap & Prospects of the Game

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Use code Johnson30 for 30% off a new subscription!</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wow! Just like that, the 2023 regular season is in the books. Conference champions have been crowned, playoff seeding has been set, and we are ready to get into the second season. For my live coverage of Week 9 I wanted to find a game with high stakes. That is what I found in Mauston, WI. It was Homecoming Week for Mauston, and to make the stakes even higher, the winner between Adams- Friendship and Mauston was going to be the sole champion of their conference. The weather seemed to know how high the stakes were too, and made sure to make itself a big focal point of the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We kicked off the game with a steady, heavy mist falling consistently. Strong gusts of winds seemed to turn it into massive sheets of rain, making it even worse. The rainfall didn't seem to effect the pass heavy Mauston offense early on though. <strong>WR [player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']</strong> set up the offense with a solid opening kickoff return and a long catch and run on 3rd &amp; long. From there, junior<strong> RB Hayden Gyllin</strong> punched it in from 9 yards out for the early 1 score lead. The rest of the 1st quarter saw the defenses making plays.<strong> A-F's Tyler Erickson</strong> picked off a Mauston 4th down pass. Then <strong>WR/S [player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']</strong> of Mauston tipped a A-F pass that was corralled by <strong>Alex Suhr</strong> for the INT. Mauston used that momentum to push their lead to 14-0 when <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']</strong> moved inside to QB, took the snap and punched it in from near the goal line. The interceptions continued to come in after the score. Adams- Friendship's<strong> Ian Cole</strong> caught an overthrow, and returned it all the way for the score cutting the lead to Mauston 14-8. Mauston didn't let momentum stay on the side of A-F for long, though. They drove down in the final minutes of the half. With only a few seconds left, <strong>QB Tyler Link</strong> lofted one up to the corner of the endzone to <strong>WR [player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']</strong>, who made a great toe-tapping catch to secure the TD, and 21-8 halftime lead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Going into the half, it did feel like Mauston was in control. A-F just couldn't figure out how to put together a consistent drive. However, during halftime the rain increased a lot, and the field started become even more of a mud pit as the game went on. That seemed to play right into the hands of Adams-Friendship. They started with a passing TD to <strong>Ian Cole</strong>, who now had an offensive and defensive TD on the day. From there, A-F leaned on their big boys up front. Led by senior <strong>OL [player_tooltip player_id='634810' first='Jake' last='Long']</strong> and junior<strong> OL Jayce Wikman</strong>, the Green Devils pounded the rock, and overpowered the Mauston defense. First it was<strong> QB Lincoln Smith</strong> who punched it in on the goal line. Then <strong>RB Johnny Drankiewicz </strong>took over on the ground. He broke through the defense and made a long scoring TD to push the comeback and lead to A-F 32-21. The big, bruising back wasn't done there. He put a cap on the victory with another long rushing TD late in the 4th quarter to give Adams- Friendship the 40-21 comeback victory, and conference championship!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Congrats, to the Green Devils on their conference title, and good luck to both teams as they continue their seasons into Level 1 of the WIAA State Playoffs!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Prospects of the Game</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["634810"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"This was the senior that I was most looking forward to seeing. He lived up to my expectations. Jake dominated the game. He is a huge, overpowering OT at 6'3u0022 300 lbs. Especially when the weather reached its peak, Jake was the leader of an OL that completely took over the game. He and his teammates owned the trenches. His power was a huge mismatch and allowed him to completely remove DL from the trenches and control where they went. His heavy hands delivered devastating punches, and his feet were light enough to give him the ability to not only position himself to have the leverage, but also get himself up to LBs. Also worth noting, his power was a huge advantage towards A-F's ability to shut down the inside run game.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c24f44"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Johnny Drankiewicz","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'0u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Adams- Friendship","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cemu003eStats: 27 Carries, 276 Yards, 3 TDsu003c/emu003ernrnThe bellcow RB behind the dominant OL play was senior Johnny Drankiewicz. Johnny's play style perfectly fits his 6' 215 lbs frame. In the second half when they made their comeback, it was Johnny who churned out the yards. He is a hard nosed runner. Someone who runs behind his shoulder pads, and will choose to make a hole himself instead of going to look for one. It was very impressive to watch the senior get stronger as the game went on. He ran over defenders in the front seven, and punished DBs who tried to chase him down in the open field. Johnny also played LB the same way. An aggressive, hard hitting, downhill athlete who roamed the tackle box.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c24ffc"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Ian Cole","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Adams- Friendship","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cemu003eStats: 2 Receptions, 46 Yards, 1 TD, 5 Tackles, 1 Pick Sixu003c/emu003ernrnIan was a senior who I didn't know about coming into the game, but the WR/DB caught my eyes on multiple occasions. He was the athlete who gave Adams- Friendship their first few big plays. He was able to go up and get an overthrown pass, intercept it, and return it for the first score for A-F. Then he started the offensive outburst in the second half with a receiving TD. The senior was elusive after the catch on both occasions, and showed off some good balance, body control, and footwork along the sideline to stay in bounds and finish the plays into the endzone. Cole has 7 INTs on the season. Definitely an under the radar prospect with high quality production.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c250b2"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Jayce Wikman","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'7u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2405","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Adams- Friendship","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"The other key piece on a talented Adams- Friendship OL was the junior OT Jayce Wikman. Wikman checks in at an eye-catching 6'7u0022 340 lbs. Similar to senior [player_tooltip player_id='634810' first='Jake' last='Long'], Jayce proved to be a major mismatch for the Mauston DL. Especially when the rain started really pouring. The big man was able to swallow up DL with his long, strong arms and heavy hands. He got positive movement in the sloppy trench conditions. His feet were able to move him around pretty smoothly, and get him in position to maintain his blocks. There is a lot of room to further develop the athletic parts of his game like flexibility and footwork. I'm very excited for his future and potential. Keep an eye on him.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c25141"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'3u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Mauston","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cemu003eStats: 3 Receptions, 72 Yards, 1 TD, 6 Carries, 18 Yards, 1 TD, 6 Tacklesu003c/emu003ernrnThe top Mauston prospect was senior [player_tooltip player_id='1185576' first='Brock' last='Massey']. The 6'3u0022 190 lbs athlete fits on either side of the ball at the next level. On offense, Brock has the speed to threaten a defense before the catch and after it. He showed good footwork to navigate his routes despite the slippery conditions. After the catch Massey was a physical runner. On defense, Massey showed off the range and speed needed to play in the secondary. He could line up over a WR in man coverage or fly downhill and make a good tackle against the run game. Brock is a versatile, athletic, strong, productive senior who definitely should be on the radar of the next level. I have to believe some offers start to roll in for him soon.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c251ce"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Hayden Gyllin","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'0u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Mauston","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"u003cemu003eStats: 17 Carries, 98 Yards, 1 TD, 8 Tackles, 1 INTu003c/emu003ernrnMauston also fielded a strong, physical athlete in the offensive backfield. That is junior RB/LB Hayden Gyllin. Hayden actually proved to be a standout on both sides of the ball, just like the others in this list. On offense the junior pounded the rock as a north-south runner. He ran behind his pads but also showed some lateral agility to be able to adjust or make defenders miss in space. On defense, Hayden was all over the front seven making tackles. He delivered multiple big shots on RBs. The junior also showed off three down versatility by dropping into a zone, reading the QB, and picking off a pass. I'll be keeping an eye on him over the next year.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-652c275c25259"} /-->