Bulldogs To Build On Better 2010 Season

COLFAX - Dean Bickel­haupt and his Bulldogs knew their odds of beating Colfax were slim. But that wasn't re­ally the point of being in the playoffs at this stage in the team's reconstruction. Colfax beat Dayton 47-0 a week ago last Friday, end­ing the Bulldogs' first season under Bickelhaupt as head coach. But in many ways, it was one of the best seasons in a decade.

The team won three games, including the two tiebreakers to qualify for the playoffs. Two of its play­ers, Colton Bickelhaupt and Kroft Sunderland, were se­lected for all league. And in contrast to previous years, the players' positive attitude never let up. They lived and played in the spirit of their late teammate Andrew Groom, quarterback Bickel­haupt said. "We would say his name before every game," he ex­plained. "We always knew whom we were playing for." Senior running back Dain Henderson said the 2010 team's accomplishments bode well for next year's football season and the up­coming basketball season, since many of the same athletes will be playing that sport starting next month. "It went better than a lot of people expected," Henderson said. "We went further than probably any team in 10 years. I expect them (2011 Bulldogs) to be even better next year." It was an improbable feat to even get to districts for the first time in 11 years af­ter winning only one game during the regular season. But with steady progress throughout the fall, the "team that could" finally came together earlier that week to win the three-way tiebreaker for the fourth seed in the dis­trict playoffs. "Winning showed us what's to come," Henderson said. "Those guys are going to hang together. You're not going to win as 11 individu­als, but you are as a team, as brothers." Nearly 60 minutes of football with two overtime periods left the Dayton play­ers

mentally and physically drained after the playoff qualifier, coach Bickelhaupt said. On that Friday, "We didn't have the fire in us that we had Tuesday. We played hard but I could tell we didn't have the energy."

Colfax scored two touch­downs in the first quarter and was ahead 35-0 by halftime. The Bulldogs slowed their opponents' progress from there, but allowed a total 567 yards while recording only 144 themselves.

"Colfax is fundamen­tally a very sound team," Bickelhaupt said. "It's well-coached."

The Bulldogs' seniors punctuated the end of their last season with a playoff berth, leaving a positive legacy for next year's team, the coach said. "They told the younger kids to keep playing hard...that things would keep getting better and better."

Seniors who will be missed next year: linebacker/fullback Henderson, who provided steadfast enthusi­asm and leadership to the team; running back/offensive lineman Josh Frame; of­fensive/ defensive lineman Dalton Donohue; linebacker Albert Yacovelli; linebacker/guard Michael Gatlin; and center Pat Trainor.

Quarterback Bickelhaupt will be a senior next year as will Sunderland, a dominant Bulldogs lineman. Hayden Fullerton will be a lineback­er on defense again, Joey Schlachter will be a tight end and Garett Turner will be a wide received on offense and tight end on defense. Sopho­mores Isaiah Lambert, Wyatt Frame and Alex Naylor show great promise for the 2011 season. Cruz Ramirez and Lowden Smith were fresh­man starters.

With five JV games this year, the highest number in seven years, the up-and-com­ing players have had a lot of exposure, Bickelhaupt said. If all goes well, 2010 could prove to be the turnaround year for the Bulldogs.

"Those two wins over TOR and TCP showed us what we were made of," son and quarterback Bickelhaupt said. "It shows that if you don't get down on your team and show up for practice ev­ery day wanting to work hard it pays off."