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The 2023 Chadron High School football season will be different in many ways.
The Cardinals have a new head coach, with well-regarded social studies teacher and long-time assistant coach Michael Sandstrom replacing Mike Lecher.
Lecher is also a well-respected teacher who served as Grid’s lead instructor for the past 16 years before deciding to step down from the top job, but now continues as an assistant to help with the transition.
What happened was unusual. This can be called a “one-man show.” Quinn Bailey was the first Chadron High running back to rush for 1,000 yards as a sophomore, having been the first to rush for 1,000 yards the year before. His ball holding rate is as high as 75%. In some games, he seemed to carry it every game.
No one seems to dispute this strategy. This was the best way for the Cardinals to realize their potential, and it produced some amazing results.
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The Redbirds didn’t win every game though. They finished the regular season with a 6-3 record and advanced to the Class C-1 playoffs, which usually means a team is a quality team.
Victories included a 22-16 win over a strong Green team, a 28-20 Cards win over Gothenburg, dubbed an “upset” by multiple media outlets, and a 28-21 victory over perennial powerhouse McNair in the season finale. Team Cook. Defeated the previously undefeated Adams Central team and entered the playoffs for the 20th consecutive year.
All losses were to larger teams with a larger arsenal of weapons. In some cases, the opponent’s smallest linemen were bigger than the Cardinals’ largest linemen. Two of them – Mitchell and Sidney – have the best teams in years, and this year’s Ogallala team isn’t far behind.
All made the playoffs.
After a hard-fought game, the Cards defeated McCook and qualified for the playoffs. Their opponent was an Ashland-Greenwood team ranked third in the state, made up of outstanding athletes at every position, and all were C-! Semifinalist. These include several college graduates and students from across the state.
“I think our defense has improved and has been able to hold up well against some of the toughest rushing attacks Western Nebraska has had in recent years,” Sandstrom said. “Our linebacker group is very solid, Gage. · Wilder, Quinn Bailey and Kaden Buskirk made a lot of tackles. The defensive line and backline seem to be improving every game. A lot of players gave us great performances.
“Obviously, we relied a lot on our running game and we were very successful,” the coach continued. “We did some good things, too. Our senior quarterback (Brock Berry) threw passes to a variety of receivers and scored some big touchdowns and key first downs.”
The rushing game gained 2,430 yards, much more than usual. Bailey set a school record with 1,997 of them. The previous record was 1,590, set in 1985 by Jeff Muller, now a Colorado resident, who came to the Cardinals’ final home game and presented Quinn with a medal in recognition of his achievements.
Muller carried the ball 270 times during his stellar season, while Bailey rushed the ball 274 times this season. With Bailey averaging 7.3 yards per carry, one more rush would undoubtedly push him over the 2,000-yard mark. Now, he will have a special goal in mind for his senior season next fall.
Bailey also set the Cardinals’ single-game rushing record, rushing for 346 yards on 25 carries against Union, averaging 13.8 yards. The old single-game record of 287 yards was set 42 years ago in 1981 by Rex Stahla in a game Chadron lost.
Bailey rushed for 93 yards from the 7-yard line, tying Travis Reeves’ record for most touchdowns from scrimmage set in 2006 against Torrington. The total score has been significantly improved. The Cardinals’ No. 21 also played in three games this fall, when he rushed for over 200 yards. They faced off against 257 Gordon Rushville (sixth all-time), 245 vs. Jaylin (eighth) and 206 vs. Ogallala (17th).
Mueller, Reeves, Jackson Dixon, Jack Lemmon and Logan Tienswold made the list twice, but Bailey was the first to do it. He rushed for at least 140 yards in every other game except for Mitchell, who rushed for 91 yards and averaged 5.1 yards.
His other records at Chadron High include the most touchdowns in a season with 30, all but one of which came at the line of scrimmage, except for his 80-yard kickoff return against Alliance. The old record of 23 touchdowns has belonged to Jackson Dixon since 2014.
As the season comes to a close, Bailey also owns the Cardinals’ all-time single-game record (523 against the league) as well as the career all-purpose yardage and touchdown total records, but we’ll have to wait until next year to tally those records.
Bailey, who is about 5-foot-8 and 165 pounds, didn’t seem too interested in how many yards he ran for or the records he set. He is now preparing to defend the state wrestling title he won a year ago.
“Whatever is best for the team,” he said of his football assignment. “I like to dribble the ball, but I also like to fake when the ball is passed to someone else. “A lot of times my job is easy because other people open holes for me. “
Offensive linemen include seniors Gabe Tidyman and Blake Rhembrandt, as well as juniors Zane Cullers and Jon Fentel (Jon Fintel) and Owen Wess.
Fullbacks Gage Wilder and Kaden Buskirk are also excellent post-game blockers, and when the Redbirds get into the “Beast Formation,” Bailey snaps right up the middle and Darrion Day often joins them.
Bailey also noted that Bailey has helped out on would-be tacklers at times. In particular, he recalled with a smile the “pancake nuggets” the senior signal caller made that helped pave the way for more yardage in tough games against Gothenburg and McCook.
While the Cardinals allowed 1,376 yards through the air last year and just 807 yards this year, the passing game will still be an important weapon this fall.
In particular, fans will remember that against Gothenburg, Berry’s short pass was picked up by Wilder 74 yards for the first touchdown; while Trey Hendrickson’s short pass against Sidney In the game, he caught a 52-yard ball in the air, and Tobin Rust completed a 36-yard touchdown.
Another Cardinals player, Talon Jelinek, missed the first half of the season with mononucleosis but had his only touchdown pass in a narrow win over McCook. of a catch. In the last game against the Union, Jelinek completed an interception and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown, breaking Andy Goode’s 67-yard touchdown record since 2002. (For this, Goode presented Jelinek with a medal.)
The twins of Brayden Wright and Brison Wright must also get recognition, as they performed well on both sides of the ball and probably as much as any freshman in Cardinals history. Please look forward to more good works from them and their classmates.
Here are the statistics for the Cardinals:
Total net yards; 3,237; 3,258
Rush codes; 2,430; 1,851
Passing yards; 807; 1,407
Pass; 59-123-5; 105-209-10
Chong; ; No. ; code. ; bird.
Quinn Bailey; 274; 1,997; 7.3
Ryan Davidson; 28; 167; 5.9
Tobin Langdon; 3; 40; 16.7
Taylor spotted elk; 3; 25; 8.3
Receive; ; No. ; code. ; bird.
Trey Hendrickson; 13; 209; 16.1
Quinn Bailey; 9; 124; 13.8
Caden Buskirk; 9; 58; 8.3
Taylor spotted elk; 1; 13; 13
Blake Rembrandt; 1; 3; 3
Rating; ; TD; beat; score.
Caden Buskirk, Trey Hendrickson, Matt Ryan,
Tobin Rust, Gage Wild, and Braden Wright all scored 1 touchdown.
Blake Rhembrandt completed 1 2-point conversion.
Kickoff return; ; No. ; code. ; bird.
Quinn Bailey; 19; 458; 24.1
Brayden Wright; 9; 133; 14.8
Caden Buskirk; 2; 45; 22.5
Ryan Davidson; 3; 29; 9.7
Points return; ; No. ; code. ; bird.
Pointing; ; No. ; bird. ; bird.
Brock Berry; 13; 383; 29.5
Quinn Bailey; 9; 229; 25.3
Tackle; ;A. ; assistant; all
Caden Buskirk; 25; 31; 56
Blake Rembrandt; 29; 6; 37
Trey Hendrickson; 19; 14; 33
Ryan Davidson; 10; 8; 23
intercept—Trey Hendrickson 3, Blake Rembrandt 2
Chadron High School Football Single Game Leader
1. Quinn Bailey; 346 vs. league, 2023 (25)
2. Rex Stara; 287 vs. Mitchell, 1981 (27)
3. Jack Lemmon; 269 vs. Jaylin, 2018 (44)
4. Dylan Sayalun; 264 Broken Bows, 2019 (27)
5. Dale Grant; 258 vs. Douglas, SD, 1972
6. Quinn Bailey; 257 vs. Gordon-Rushville, 257 (35)
7. Jack Lemmon; 252 vs. Ogallala, 2018 (44)
8. Quinn Bailey; 245 vs. Jaylin, 2023 (39)
9. Omar Rodgers; 244 vs. Rushville, 1986
10. Jeff Mueller; 233 vs. Jaylin, 1985
11. Jeff Mueller; 226 vs. Rushville, 1985
12. Travis Reeves; 223 vs. Torrington, 2006
13. Colby Leeson; 221 vs. Mitchell, 2011
14. Logan Tienswold; 221 vs. Mitchell, 2017
15. Jackson Dixon; 220 vs. Ogallala, 2013
16. Travis Reeves; 214 vs. Bridgeport, 2007
17. Quinn Bailey; 206 vs. Ogallala, 2023 (28)
18. Logan Tienswold; 204 vs. Mitchell, 2016
19. Jackson Dixon; 203 Valentine’s Days, 2014
20. Malachi Swallow; 203 vs. Jaylin, 2022 (8 rushes. Including two 85-yard jet sweeps for touchdowns. Jaylin scored two touchdowns on the ensuing kickoff, his first in the game The only score.)
The number of wicks is in parentheses.
Chadron tops 1,000-yard rushing stat
potato; ; recipient; code. ; bird. ; TD; minutes; years
Danny Bach; 136; 1,013; 7.4; 11; 71; 1962
Dale Grant; 269; 1,009; 5.9; 13; 78; 1972
Ted Grant; 182; 1,076; 5.9; 8; 52; 1974
Doug French; 193; 1,210; 6.8; 14; 86; 1980
Rex Starr; 190; 1,061; 5.6; 4; 24; 1982
Jeff Mueller; 270; 1,590; 5.8; 11; 66; 1985
Omar Rogers; 209; 1,232; 5.9; 11; 66; 1986
Omar Rogers; 196; 1,484; 7.6; 17; 104; 1987
Mike Combs; 204; 1,140; 5.7; Twenty; 120; 1988
John Ritzen; 129; 1,139; 8.8; 22; 134; 2005
Will Brown; 152; 1,274; 8.4; 17; 102; 2009
Jackson Dixon; 146; 1,015; 6.9; 23; 140; 2014
Logan Tienswold; 176; 1,048; 6.0; 17; 110; 2017
Dawson Dunbar 157; 1,167; 7.4; 18; 110; 2021
Quinn Bailey; 167; 1,023; 6.1; 14; 88; 2022
Quinn Bailey; 274; 1,997; 7.3; 30; 184; 2023