Ty Reynolds column

COMMENTARY Lots of new faces looking to make their mark this season

Every year, high school football teams go through the tough process of saying goodbye the seniors who are leaving, then turning around the next fall and trying to identify the new players who will replace them in the lineup.

But entering my 23rd football season here at Sauk Valley Media, I can’t remember the last time there was so many big shoes to fill on so many of our area teams.

Looking back at the all-area team from last fall, 32 of the 48 players were seniors – 17 on the first team, 15 on the second team – leaving 16 returning players who were among their team and area-wide leaders on the field and in the final stats in 2021.

Now, I realize that’s one-third of the highest-impact players from the area last year coming back and putting on the pads again this season. But the biggest hit from losing the other two-thirds won’t just be on the stat sheet, but also as leaders on and off the field.

The intangibles of losing such a strong senior class – for every team – is not necessarily how you replace their production on Friday nights, but how well the next group of seniors can step up and fill those leadership roles for the next season.

Looking back over some of the names and accomplishments from last fall, that’s the thing that jumped out to me most: it seems like every team in the area lost at least one key leader whose absence might be felt even more in the locker room than between the lines on the field.

But that’s the beauty of high school sports. Every year, there’s going to be turnover, and it’s how a team deals with it that determines how much success they’ll have.

So here’s to the next group of team leaders who will step up and find their voices to lead the way in 2022. We’ll know who they are by looking at this year’s all-area team in a few months.

EDITOR’S NOTES

Ty Reynolds

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