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Posted on Thu, Aug 26, 2010 : 7:03 a.m.

A team-by-team glance at the SEC White Division

By Rich Rezler

The Chelsea High School football team lost three games in 2009 -- one against Adrian that ultimately cost them a shot at an SEC White Division title, and again in the Division 3 playoffs.

Meanwhile, the other Washtenaw County teams in the White Division -- Dexter, Lincoln and Ypsilanti -- won six games between them.

Will Chelsea compete for the title again? Will one of the other teams sneak up on the pack? We break down each team here.

CHELSEA BULLDOGS

Coach: Brad Bush (14th year)

Last season: 8-3 overall, 4-1 SEC White, beat Carleton Airport in a pre-district playoff game, lost to Adrian in a district final.

Key returners: Brian Paulsen (sr., QB), Chris Ballow (sr., HB), Nathan Borders (sr., WR), Conor Tait (sr., OT), Logan Kelly (sr., DT), Cal Bauer (sr., LB), Spencer Mykala (sr., FS).

Key newcomers: Conor Townsend (sr., DE), Ray Zielinski (sr., DT), Andrew Koch (sr., ILB), Logan Yordanich (sr., OLB), Truman Hadley (sr., LB).

Strength: An experienced and talented front seven on defense and the dependable kicking game of senior Charlie Hess.

Weakness: Besides Tait, the offensive line is inexperienced.

Outlook: Getting the obvious out of the way first, there’s no Nick Hill at Chelsea. After playing 47 varsity football games for the Bulldogs - amassing 6,810 rushing yards and 96 touchdowns, both fifth most in MHSAA history - Hill is now at Michigan State, leaving a gaping hole in the lineup that coach Brad Bush hasn’t needed to worry about for four seasons.

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Brian Paulsen

So what’ll Bush and Co. do? They’ll simply go back to the pre-Hill days when they were already one of the county’s most successful programs by spreading the ball around the field.

“We need to be a lot like we used to be, real balanced on offense,” Bush says. “Nick Hill’s not sitting back there anymore, but the positive is that we have an experienced quarterback and experienced receivers. And we have two good guys at tailback that don’t need to be Nick, they just need to do what they do.”

Brian Paulsen is one of only two quarterbacks in the county returning after starting the bulk of his teams’ games as a junior (Willow Run’s Jalen Griffin is the other). Halfback Chris Ballow is a dangerous weapon while senior Joey Newland and sophomore Berkley Edwards will share the tailback position. Edwards is the younger brother of Braylon Edwards and son of Stanley Edwardrs, both former University of Michigan standouts.

Conor Tait is back to anchor an otherwise green offensive line, but the big guys up front on defense - led by Conor Townsend and Ray Zielinski - should be a team strength.

Even without the most prolific running back in Washtenaw County history, the Bulldogs have the same old goals.

“Nothing changes. Eleven years in a row we’ve been in the playoffs and our goal once again is to get in the playoffs and win the SEC White,” Bush said. “Anything short of that, our guys feel disappointed.”

DEXTER DREADNAUGHTS

Coach: Tom Barbieri (10th year)

Last season: 3-6 overall, 1-4 SEC White

Key returners: Sequoyah Burke-Combs (sr., RB/LB/S), Josh Cash (sr., OL/DL), Tucker Whitley (jr., C/DL), Jay Lewis (jr., WR/DB), Noah Hiser (sr., DB/WR), Mike Mioduszewski (jr., QB), Jacob Haviland (jr., LB/TE), Brandon Hart (sr., OL/DL), Kyle Karagitz (sr., K/P), Travis Chaffee (sr., WB/DB), Charlie Sleder (jr., OL/DL)

Key newcomers: Nate Kotsones (sr., OL/DL), Marshall Kellenberger (sr., LB), Spencer Bussineau (sr., LB), Anthony Kurcz (jr., DL), Ryan Hodgman (sr., LB), Jacob Ball (sr., DL), Ryan Kimball (jr., LB/TE), Jacob VanHoof (jr., WR/DB), Jeff Baldus (jr., LB/DB), A.J. Kortee (jr., DB), Erik Skiver (jr., DB/WB), Drew Barnes (jr., LB/NG/RB).

Strength: Game experience.

Weakness: Lack of depth. Barbieri is comfortable with his starters, but says his backups need to get ready to step in when necessary.

Outlook: When Tom Barbieri decided to invite six sophomores to join his varsity team last year, it was “by far and away” the most underclassmen the coach has had on his roster since he’s been at Dexter.

And the veteran coach thinks it’s about to pay off.

“We were young last year, so now we have a little more experience,” said Barbieri, who features nine returning starters on offense and five on defense. “We do have high expectations. We think if we can come together as a team, we can do some great things.”

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Sequoyah Burke-Combs

Another sophomore made a big statement late last season. Quarterback Mike Mioduszewski threw for 644 yards in three games after being called up from the junior varsity following an injury to senior Alex McMurray. That included a 368-yard, four touchdown performance in a loss to Monroe.

He’s back under center for an offense that also includes Sequoyah Burke-Combs, who was among the county’s top 20 players in rushing yards and receptions in 2009. The nine returning starters on offense also allows Barbieri “to do some new things, take what we had last year and add a little bit to it.”

Barbieri also thinks the defense will be improved from 2009. It’ll have to be after allowing more than 36 points per game following a season-opening shutout of Garden City.

LINCOLN RAILSPLITTERS

Coach: Chris Westfall (4th year)

Last season: 2-7 overall, 2-3 SEC White

Key returners: George Miller (jr., RB/), Dontrell Lemon (sr., OL/DL), Kendall Thompson (jr., WR), Tanner Brewer (jr., DL), Jon Stewart (sr., LB).

Key newcomers: T.J. O’Bryan (jr., QB), Deionte Bruton (so., FS), Johntae Pittman (jr., SS), Charles Howell (sr., CB).

Strength: A fast and athletic defense.

Weakness: The offensive line will be a work in progress early in the season.

Outlook: When a 2-7 record continues an upward trend for a program, you know things were rough. That’s the place Chris Westfall and his staff at Lincoln are currently … and Westfall thinks that upward trend will continue.

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Kendall Thompson

Last year’s 2-7 season was the most wins for the Railsplitters since 2001, so when Westfall starts talking about the playoffs in 2010, he quickly adds “but we’re still very much one-game-at-a-time.”

“With our team, seven wins is possible and so is two,” Westfall said. “It’s all about how we react. If we have the year we could have, we win seven games and make the playoffs. If not, it won’t get measurably better. I know it’s coach platitude stuff, but it’s true.”

Giving the Railsplitters a chance is a defense that Westfall says is “the best since I’ve been at Lincoln, there’s no doubt about that.” He said the defensive front - led by Dontrell Lemon and Tanner Brewer - is “fantastic.” Jon Stewart is a three-year starter at linebacker.

Offensively, junior T.J. O’Bryan steps in at quarterback for four-year starter Andrew Dillon. O’Bryan threw for 1,800 yards at the junior varsity level and, like Dillon, is a three-sport athlete who can run and throw.

O’Bryan will have returning leading rusher George Miller and leading receiver Kendall Thompson to ease the burden offensively. Thompson caught 37 passes last season despite being hindered by a broken hand for much of the year.

YPSILANTI PHOENIX

Coach: Jason Malloy (1st year)

Last season: 1-8 overall, 1-4 SEC White

Key returners: Marquez Gollman (sr., WR/LB), Trey Sweeney (sr., LB/C), Marc Miles (jr., WR/DB), Davon Thompson (jr., WR/S).

Key newcomers: Ryan Griffin (sr., RB/CB), Austin Sanders (jr., RB), Andrew Hunt (sr., WR/FS).

Strength: Speed and quickness.

Weakness: Lack of experience.

Outlook: Ypsilanti’s inaugural season in the Southeastern Conference didn’t include a lot of highlights, but coach Jason Malloy points to the second half of the season as a sign that his program is coming around.

The Phoenix’s one win (over Lincoln) came in the midst of a string of games that saw Ypsilanti lose by one point to Dexter, by four to Saline and by six to Huron.

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Jason Malloy

“The kids are learning how to play in this conference. Every team we play is technically sound and ready to play,” said Malloy, who took over the program midway through last season following Dave Poole’s resignation.

“I’m really proud of how we finished the last four games and I told those seniors as they left that they helped lay a foundation for what our program will become. Hopefully we can get over the hump and not just compete, but be in a position to win football games.”

Among those seniors Malloy thanked was three-year starting quarterback and defensive back Terrance Moore. There was still a three-way battle for his quarterback position going on in the final week of practice, but the addition of Pioneer transfer Ryan Griffin to the defensive secondary should help make up for his missing defensive leadership.

Senior Marquez Gollman leads the defensive unit alongside fellow returning linebacker Trey Sweeney.

“The old saying is offense sells tickets and defense wins championships. However many times you score, you gotta stop somebody,” Malloy said. “We’re trying to build this program on being fast, physical and smart. If we do those things defensively, we’ll be pretty competitive with the kids we have and their skill set.”

MORE SEC WHITE COVERAGE

The Adrian Daily Telegram previewed the Adrian Maples and Tecumseh Indians on Wednesday.