Wolverines see plenty of good things, others that need work, typical of a scrimmage with a young team
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – The quarterback competition in Woodstown’s preseason camp might be “still close” after Tuesday night’s scrimmage with Audubon, but with just nine days before the season opener the young Wolverines may have found their running back.
Sophomore Brayden Hall showed the speed, power and agility required of a lead back against the Green Wave. He rushed for 80 yards and two touchdowns and accounted for 114 yards of offense in an exercise the Wolverines won 22-13.
“I think Brayden is a very special athlete,” Woodstown coach Frank Trautz said. “I think him and Cole (Ware), they’re going to be a really, really dangerous duo for us for the next three years. Both are really great kids, great athletes. Those are two of the most I’m excited to see.
“To speak on Brayden’s behalf, he’s a special athlete. He can do some things not a lot of kids can do.”
Trautz has been anticipating having Hall, Ware and the rest in the program since their not-too-long-ago days in youth football. Hall intended to play last year alongside his senior brother, but didn’t last the season. Tuesday night against the Green Wave he didn’t look like a player who hadn’t carried the ball in two years.
It didn’t start sharp. He was stopped for no gain on his first carry and lost four yards on a shovel pass the next time he got it. Trautz called the whole team out to midfield about that time to settle them down and it did the trick.
Hall accounted for 18 yards the next two times he touched the ball. He scored the first touchdown of the scrimmage on a 15-yard run 3:30 before the end of the varsity half and later on a 2-yard walk-in during the overtime drill. His 15-yard TD run came with a stutter step that froze the defenders. He also caught a 23-yard pass on fourth down to keep that OT drill touchdown drive alive.
“I just wanted to really get comfortable back there on the high school level, bigger kids, just get comfortable,” he said. “It’s a big step from Little League to up here. It’s a lot more competitive, a lot more heavy – heavy hitters, bigger people. There’s more speed. It’s more of a competition that you’ve got to get the job done when you’ve got to get it done.”
Going into the scrimmage Trautz was starting to get an idea who would be his starting quarterback on Opening Night against Pitman. When it ended he had a few more things to think about.
It’s been a tight battle between freshman Frankie Hoerst and sophomore Mason Middlemiss. They bring two different styles and a lot of upside to the game. Both did some good things in the scrimmage, but Middlemiss may have gotten the best of it.
Hoerst, a strong passer who already holds an offer from Syracuse, hit on nine of 10 passes for 91 yards and led a touchdown drive in the OT drill. He was 4-for-4 for 47 yards and had a 9-yard run to get inside the 10 in the two-minute drill at the end of the varsity half, but ran out of time before getting a shot at the end zone. He directed the offense to 150 net yards on 27 snaps.
Middlemiss, the runner who played last season at Absegami, produced 205 yards of offense on 32 snaps and directed a pair of 11-play touchdown drives. He was 3-for-3 for 68 yards passing in the JV third quarter and rushed for 57 yards total.
“I think it’s still close,” Trautz said of the race. “They both showed signs of doing things really well. They’re two different styles of quarterbacks, so I was happy with things they both did. It’s going to be one of those (situations) where we’re going to go look at the film and we’re going to have to have a discussion as a coaching staff because we’ve got to get ready to play a game next Thursday.”
He expects to have a better idea about the starter once Pitman makes its scrimmage film available and the Wolverines can start game planning for their August 28 opener. Both quarterbacks are expected to play in the game.
“We’re two different type players so it’s hard to decide as a coach and it’s very understandable,” Middlemiss said. “As a mobile quarterback, I can run. Frankie has a big arm. But we’re two good quarterbacks who could mix in the offense and it’d be harder for a defense to figure out what they’re going to do against us.”
Defensively, the Wolverines gave up only two touchdowns, both on plays they were milliseconds from stopping. The first came on a 71-yard fourth-down pass to an open receiver in the middle of the field with Bradley Snitcher bearing down on the quarterback. The second came in the OT drill when the Green Wave slipped past Woodstown sophomore Antonio Merendino’s potential fifth sack of the scrimmage, fourth of the drill and second of the series.
“Our defense over the years has always been a staple here; I see that continuing,” Trautz said. “We want to play an aggressive style of football, physical; that’s what Woodstown football is known for. Now it’s these kids’ turn to embrace that and continue that legacy here.”
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