2024 season provided some thrills for VW

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

It wasn’t the season the Cougars hoped for, but that doesn’t mean it was a season without some thrilling and memorable moments.

Van Wert’s 2024 football season came to an end with last Friday’s 49-34 loss to Elida in the regular season finale at Eggerss Stadium, which left the Cougars with a record of 4-6 (3-6 WBL). The finale was considered a “win and in” game for the OHSAA playoffs, but it wasn’t meant to be as the loss ended Van Wert’s postseason hopes.

To put things in context, after six weeks Van Wert was 1-5 and after a season opening win over Bryan, the Cougars had lost five straight, including a last minute 43-37 loss at Bryan, followed by losses to Celina, Defiance, Wapakoneta and St. Marys Memorial. According to computer calculations after six weeks, the Cougars had little chance of making the playoffs. However, an exciting 35-34 overtime win over Ottawa-Glandorf was the first of three straight victories that vaulted Van Wert to the cusp of the postseason.

“Many people counted us out at 1-5, but our guys knew the mission wasn’t over, we still had time to get back on course,” head coach Keith Recker said. “Our players didn’t seem to lose focus, they stayed confident that we could win games and that is a blessing to have from a team that struggled to start the year.”

After the O-G win, the Van Wert returned home and defeated Shawnee 28-14, then pulled off an improbable 45-44 come from behind victory at Kenton. It was improbable because the Cougars trailed by 21, 38-17 early in the fourth quarter.

Even though Van Wert fell short of the postseason for the first time since 2018, Recker said he’ll enjoy some fond memories of the 2024 season.

“I will remember the willingness to show up even through adverse times,” Recker explained. “In a time when instant gratification is expected by some, our players continued to show up when our record was 1-5 with no promises of more wins, but with a focus and attitude to get better. As coaches we are very grateful for their mature approach of fighting through adversity and showing resilience, all while making it enjoyable to be around the field and locker room every day. I’ll remember the heart and will to win that Briston (Wise) led us with, the way some younger players stepped up to play pivotal roles, and how this team never gave up on themselves or their program.”

As the starting quarterback, Wise provided many thrills with his slippery and elusive runs. In fact, he was crowned as the Western Buckeye League rushing champion after logging 257 carries for 1,463 yards and 19 touchdowns. He became the second consecutive Van Wert quarterback to lead the WBL in rushing (Brylen Parker, 2023), and he became the third straight Cougar signal caller to rush for at least 1,000 yards and pass for over 1,000 yards, after completing 166-of-256 passes for 1,785 yards, 16 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

A pair of sophomores led the Van Wert receiving corps. Micah Cowan finished the season with 65 receptions for 803 yards and six touchdowns, while Keaten Welch had 49 catches for 385 yards two touchdowns. Senior Nate Gearhart became a more frequent target as the season went along (21-228, two touchdowns). Freshman Xavier Kelly played receiver and running back and provided a spark down the stretch, finishing with 39 carries for 279 yards and two touchdowns and 15 receptions for 241 yards and six more scores. Kelly’s emergence allowed junior running back Geary Hilleary (48-154, two touchdowns), to assume more of a lead blocker role for Wise, a role he excelled at. Another underclassman offered notable contributions as the season progressed. Sophomore Cohen Bragg started the year as the team’s long snapper and continued in that role throughout the season. He also became a starting member of the secondary and finished with 39 tackles and an interception.

Another key cog was junior kicker Griff McCracken. He finished the season 32-35 on extra points and his PATs were the difference in wins over Ottawa-Glandorf and Kenton. He also connected on 2-of-3 field goal attempts.

While underclassmen played a key role in the season, seniors provided the leadership necessary for the Cougars to navigate toward playoff waters. The 13 member senior class included Wise, Gearhart, RB/DB Case Stegaman (60 tackles), RB/DB Brendon Mendoza, RB/LB Kyle Eggleston, WR/LB Hayden Davis, WR/DB Donovan Winkeljohn, HB/LB Aaron Reichert (team high 68 tackles), OL/DL Aiden Munson, OL/DL Noah Doctor, OL/DL Jaymison Moynihan, WR/DL Jaymison Calhoon, and WR/DB Christian Thatcher.

“I appreciate the senior class’s commitment to our program,” Recker said.  “Multiple seniors had perfect or near perfect attendance during our off season workouts. We also had seniors who played JV for 3 years but never gave up on themselves or the team and ended up earning a starting spot their senior year. But above all, I’ll remember the high character of this group and how they represented our program and school in a first class manner.”

As far as the WBL title race, pre-season favorite Wapakoneta lived up to its billing and finished 10-0 (9-0 WBL) and won a fourth consecutive league championship by two games. St. Marys Memorial (8-2, 7-2 WBL) was the runner-up, while Defiance (6-4, 6-3 WBL) finished third. The Cougars finished seventh in the standings.

“When you look at the scores each week it becomes very evident how much parity there is in our league,” Recker stated. “As a competitor you can’t help but love playing and coaching in games where you know you’ll have to bring your best effort, make adjustments throughout, all to have a chance to win in the fourth quarter. Wapak has set the standard for what we are all working to achieve, and congratulations to them on the WBL title.”

As for the off-season, Recker said it’s important for next year’s team to become bigger, faster and stronger, things accomplished through hard work in the weight room.

“We have to put both the time and effort in to become the best version of ourselves, athletically, academically, and socially,” he said. “To do that we have to have a great off-season. Last year our off season attendance as a team was very poor. We have to gain strength and speed this off-season.  Celina, specifically, stands out as a game where the physical difference between us and them was evident and played a big factor in their win.”

“Speed and strength will be our focus early in this off-season and as we get into the spring we will begin working on more football specific things,” he added. “We have a good number of guys that play winter sports, which is great, and I’m excited to watch them have success in those sports.”