FOOTBALL: Brookwood hopes to parlay program excitement into increased success

Despite limited success in terms of wins and losses in recent years, excitement is not in short supply around the Brookwood football program heading into the 2024 season.

In addition to the Falcons continuing a trend of solid player turnout, there is also a buzz in the air due to the fact that Brookwood will officially unveil its new football field this fall.

The longtime home of Falcons football, Adam Luing Field, underwent a major renovation starting last September with the construction of a new athletic facility next to the high school in Ontario. That project included a new football field that also features a dedicated track around it for the first time.

Due to the project, last year's team only got to play a single game at home before spending the rest of the season on the road.

"We're very, very excited just to be back home hosting," said Brookwood head coach Jeremy Mack. "But to have such an amazing complex — we're incredibly grateful for the support of the community and voting yes for the referendum and making the project happen."

In addition to the buzz around the new facility, the Falcons also are boosted by another year of steady turnout. Mack indicated that the program has 37 players out this year, which he said is similar to the turnout when he first started as head coach a decade ago.

Following several years of declining numbers — bottoming out with only 14 players suited up at the end of the 2021 spring alternate season — turnout has risen and stabilized for Brookwood.

"It's really not something that you think about until you don't have the bodies and literally even just practicing is difficult," Mack said. "Just having the ability right now to have a varsity huddle, a JV huddle and a little bit of a mock defense out there, even if it's just the D line and linebackers — it's really hard to simulate much of anything when you're going against air. So, to just have bodies holding shields out there makes practice a ton more productive."

While there are positives to point to for the Falcons, the challenge for them is to start building themselves toward becoming a playoff-caliber program again as they come off a 2-7 season in 2023 that featured only one conference win.

Brookwood does bring back seven starters on both offense and defense but lost a handful of key players to graduation, including leading receiver Wyatt Maurhoff (a first-team All-Scenic Bluffs selection), starting quarterback Brady Hansen (All-SBC second team), inside linebacker Tim DeWitt (All-SBC second team) and lineman Gavin Kinserdahl. Additionally, Marshall Doll, the team's leading rusher the last two years, underwent shoulder surgery this summer and will be sidelined for his entire senior season.

Senior Braeden Pasch is set to assume the role as the Falcons' new starting signal caller under center, senior wide receiver/linebacker Carter Arbuckle will take on even greater responsibilities after finishing second on the team in both receiving yards and tackles last year, and juniors Owen Wang and Jackson Cunitz will lead the charge in trying to fill Doll's shoes in the backfield.

"I feel like we're meshing pretty well. There's definitely a connection there," Pasch said of how he and the other new starters are acclimating to their roles. "I've been with those other guys on JV before, so I feel like there's still a connection there. I trust them and I know they're going to trust me during the season."