GEORGETOWN — Georgetown-Ridge Farm/Chrisman football team head coach Dwayne Grider had one thing to tell his players at the start of camp.
“If you are not here to win or to be the best you can possibly be, then you might have to think about doing something different,” Grider said. “No one left, so that is all that we can ask for.”
Although a few players left the team over the offseason, Grider was still confident of the team that has stayed behind and has battled through the last few seasons.
“We are in a bind again,” Grider said. “But the kids are here and they have been through the tough times and they still come back and you can’t say nothing about that. Also one of our coaches is leaving as Colton Murray is leaving for the Police Academy, but we picked up a guy (Steve Silwa) that is going to do our stats and film.”
One of the players that have stuck around is senior Rylan Mosier. He has been there since Grider started three years ago and has been the leader, even in summer workouts.
“I have been there every day that I could. We have had about 3-4 that are consistent, but everyone else was off and on,” Mosier said. “We are trying to do team dinners and improve the culture and try to make it cool for more players to join.”
“He’s a straight A student and he has perfect attendance,” Grider said. “He never missed a training session or workout all summer. Kids look up to him and we are going to ride his attitude and demeanor. He is a leader in every aspect.”
The Buffaloes will also return key pieces in key sports, including Max Kochevar as starting quarterback.
“Rylan is our mainstay guy but we have George Carswell and Max Kochevar. Carson Adams and Garrett Wells are our kids from Chrisman, so we have some bright spots,” Grider said. “Carswell was hurt in the Seneca game, but he has been around all summer long. Kochevar will be our quarterback. He came on last year and we think that any trouble he gets into, he can get out of.”
The team does have a few underclassmen that has impressed Grider so far.
“Jacob Cooprider has raised our eyebrows a bit,” Grider said. “He has a good frame for a freshman and he has the right attitude and he has been upbeat and positive. So we are looking for good things this year.”
The main thing Grider will be working on is not the physical, but the mental side of the game.
“When you put freshmen against seniors, you are putting boys against young men,” Grider said. “They know how to physically take the pounding, so it will be working on the mental. When they make a mistake, they are realizing that it is not the end of the world. We missed some key players but it is our turn to shine.”
Mosier also said with any young team, simplicity is the key.
“He’s simplified the offense,” Mosier said. “We have a young group so he’s made things simple and we can add on later. We are trying to learn and then improve.”
The Buffaloes start the season at home against Watseka, but because of the new, single Vermilion Valley Conference setup, the Coal Bucket game with Westville will be moved up to Sept. 15.
“That’s weird because it is usually the last game of the season, but no matter where it is at, it is still the Coal Bucket,” Mosier said. “I think we can actually win a game with Watseka, Momence or Seneca. We have more seniors that have played and our chances might be better than last year.”
“It is in the middle of the season and that is different for those who have attended it in seasons past,” Grider said. “We are looking forward to not traveling as much and letting teams know that we have a chance to win and we will be in the game.”
Grider has not gotten a win in his time at GRFC, but he says that with a change in mentality, the Buffaloes can make that happen.
“I think we will be in most of the games we can play in and I hope that if we don’t get the win, I will put the blame on me,” Grider said. “I want to get back to the mentality and that they can recover from those mistakes.
“We want to show with our actions. I told the kids, if you take care of what you can do, the scoreboard will take care of itself.”