BA LL
2 P 01 FO R OT E 3 P
AI TH RIN OU IN G G T S
Friday, August 23, 2013
www.sheboyganpress.com
Plymouth QB Neils leads quest for 3rd EWC title By McLean Bennett
P
mbennett@sheboyganpress.com
LYMOUTH — The Panthers have tradition-
ally been a keep-it-on-the-ground football team. But while Plymouth likely won’t do away with its rush-first mentality, a change in on-field personnel this season could ensure the pigskins will rack up a few more frequentflier miles. Former All-Region running back Eric Roberts is gone after rushing for nearly 1,400 yards and 16 touchdowns in his senior season. Back in the huddle is Kollin Neils, a quarterback who threw for almost 1,600 yards and 16 TDs — and whom coach Dan Knaus thinks will fly front-and-center onto most opposing defenses’ radar screens this fall. “We will definitely change KolFin lin’s role a little bit this year,” d Knaus said after a recent practice. cov 13 p “He’s a great thrower of the ball, sch erag ages e o e but he’s also a great runner of the an dules inclu f pre football. We haven’t really utilized dm ,o p d ore utlo ing him because we’ve had a featured ins oks (running) back always that was pretide ty good.” . Neils completed 115-of-181 passes in 11 games last season, averaging nearly 9 yards per throw, and finished his junior year with a 104.8 passer rating, according to the Wisconsin Sports Network. He complemented his passing stats with solid play on the ground, running for 283 yards and three touchdowns on 64 carries. Neils has hardly gone unnoticed in footballwatching circles. Despite working alongside bullish running backs who’ve carried much of the Panthers’ offensive weight, the lanky 6-foot-2 QB has turned enough heads to be named one of the sports network’s 15 top senior quarterbacks entering this season. “Neils has been a highly-productive signal-caller the last two years, throwing for a combined 3,170 yards and 35 touchdowns with a combined passer rating of 112.0,” WSN says on its website. “… Neils has good size and shows an ability to be very accurate on the deep and intermediate routes.” Knaus said the team can plug Neils into the offense in a number of different ways, noting his blend of strong legs and accurate arm means he can threaten teams as much on the ground as in the air. “We’ll keep people guessing with what we’re going to do with Kollin,” Knaus said. “But he’s a versatile-enough athlete that we can do a lot of different things with him.”
M IN ORE SI DE
Plymouth quarterback Kollin Neils could pose a significant threat — both in the air and on the ground — to opposing defenses this season. Neils threw for almost 1,600 yards and 16 TDs as a junior last season, and finished with a 104.8 passer rating. MCLEAN BENNETT/SHEBOYGAN PRESS MEDIA
PAST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// FRVC/FRCC 2012 — Green Bay Southwest (8-0) 2011 — Manitowoc (8-0) 2010 — Ashwaubenon (8-0) 2009 — Bay Port (7-1) 2008 — Green Bay Notre Dame (8-0) 2007 — Ashwaubenon (7-1); Bay Port (7-1); De Pere (7-1) 2006 — Green Bay Notre Dame (6-1); Manitowoc (6-1) 2005 — Green Bay Preble (7-0) 2004 — Sheboygan South (7-0) 2003 — Green Bay Notre Dame (7-0)
EWC 2012 — Plymouth (7-0) 2011 — Kewaskum (7-0) 2010 — Plymouth (7-0) 2009 — Plymouth (7-0) 2008 — Kewaskum (7-0) 2007 — Kewaskum (7-0) 2006 — Kewaskum (6-1); Plymouth (6-1) 2005 — Kewaskum (7-0) 2004 — Plymouth (6-1); Sheboygan Falls (6-1) 2003 — Plymouth (7-0)
CLC 2012 — Cedar Grove (4-0) 2011 — Cedar Grove (6-0) 2010 — Oostburg (7-0) 2009 — Cedar Grove (7-0) 2008 — Cedar Grove (7-0) 2007 — Oostburg (5-1); Random Lake (5-1) 2006 — Cedar Grove (4-1); Howards Gr. (4-1); Random Lk. (4-1) 2005 — Cedar Grove (6-0) 2004 — Cedar Grove (7-0) 2003 — Ozaukee (6-1); Random Lk. (6-1)
THE FORMIDALBLE FIVE
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
1. Plymouth
(10-1 last year; team preview on page 6)
2. Cedar Grove-Bel. (6-3 last year; team preview on page 8)
3. Sheboygan South (3-6 last year; team preview on page 3)
4. Kiel
(4-5 last year; team preview on page 4)
5. Sheboygan North (1-8 last year; team preview on page 2)