WEEKLY BLOG: 3/8/20

Friday marked the last day of classes in the Scottsdale Unified School District (and some others) before the start of spring break. That means a couple things: students get a much-needed week to recharge before the next two months and Spring Football is right around the corner!

One of the teams looking forward to improvement in 2020 is the Desert Mountain Wolves.

It was right around this time last year that Conrad Hamilton was named as the new head coach at DMHS. In addition to getting a little bit of a late start on the offseason, the Wolves were lacking in experience. The end result was a second consecutive 3-7 record. But, there is more to it than just those numbers.

"We knew there would be a lot of new starters and a new staff," Hamilton said. "3-7 is not successful from a win-loss standpoint, but in general, the seniors were great."

It was a rough start as Desert Mountain faced Chaparral, Saguaro, and Notre Dame in the first five weeks. The Firebirds and Sabercats reached the new Super-8 tournament and the Saints were right on the cusp.

One of the highlights for the Wolves was a newcomer from Patton HS in North Carolina. Linebacker Caleb Taylor led Desert Mountain in tackles with an even 100 (20 TFL). The 6-2, 200-pounder arrived during the summer and showed the ability to get to the quarterback (four sacks) and to disrupt plays (four forced fumbles). He was named the defensive MVP for the team. Best of all, Taylor is currently a junior and carries a GPA of 4.2.

"We had a lot of kids that were new to the program," Hamilton said. "Kids are buying in. We made some traction for sure."

Another place for optimism is with the incoming players from last season's JV team. That squad went 6-3, and in order to make a turnaround, you need to have players experience that winning feeling, even if it's on Thursday nights.

In this age of transfers, having a coaching change can make it difficult to retain kids. Hamilton said a few kids left the program after the 2018 season, but since he took over, only one has transferred out.

"Our focus is on keeping the kids in the area to make Desert Mountain a destination school," Hamilton said.

The North Scottsdale school has a pair of middle school feeders in Mountainside and Desert Canyon. There have also been successful youth programs in the area. Building up the varsity would encourage those kids to stay "home".

On offense, Desert Mountain returns its top four pass catchers highlighted by junior Rogan Freeburg. The 6-foot, 160-pound receiver led the Wolves with 47 catches for 607 yards and seven touchdowns. He was a First Team All-5A Northeast Region selection.

"I've seen some growth this offseason," Hamilton said of Freeburg. "He ended last season with a foot sprain. But now, he's working hard in the weight room."

Another excellent student, Freeburg totes a GPA of 3.7 and is looking forward to his senior year.

It was musical chairs at quarterback for much of the season, but junior Aiden Cerullo started the last three games. Hamilton said Cerullo gained some valuable experience last year and is penciled in as the starter. There will likely be a battle during the summer and possibly into training camp with Pierce Nielsen, who was the starter of the JV team and is currently a sophomore.

Desert Mountain will hold its Spring Ball from April 27 through May 16. Hamilton calls it a big learning period. Several of the 100 kids in the program didn't have a football background before high school.

"From a staff standpoint, we're looking to build leaders and depth," Hamilton said. "We have to be a development program and teach our kids how to play football."

The student-athletes have shown that they can learn. In the classroom, DMHS had 28 football players that were scholar-athletes (3.5 or higher GPA). Hamilton believes that the combined GPA of the JV and the varsity programs was right around 3.5.

The new realignment caused a little bit of a shakeup to the old Northeast Region (now called the North). Open participant Horizon, Notre Dame (which went 11-2) and North Canyon have left the region. They have been replaced by Goldwater, South Mountain, and Sunnyslope.

"I think they did a good job (selecting the new region) based on what these teams have accomplished," Hamilton said. "I think it's a competitive region."

Taking a look at all seven schools (Cactus Shadows, McClintock, and Paradise Valley return to the Wolves' region), it looks like the most balanced from top to bottom. If you consult last year's final AIA/MaxPreps rankings, you will see all seven teams ranked between 10 and 23. That should make for a lot of close games on Friday nights and it's not a stretch to say that any of the seven schools in the region can win it, and any of them could finish in seventh.

Aside from the six teams in their region, the Wolves will face Chaparral, Gilbert, Arcadia, and Apollo in non-region play. Chaparral (6A) and Arcadia (4A) are both Scottsdale District schools. Gilbert will have a new quarterback as Will Plummer is now at the University of Arizona. Apollo defeated Desert Mountain in last year's opener (21-14). It's safe to say, as we look at the list of 10 opponents in March, that the Wolves will only be decided underdogs against Chaparral. Saguaro, Notre Dame, and Horizon (which defeated the Wolves by a combined 138-30) aren't on the 2020 schedule.

Hamilton, who is 27-19 in his head coaching career at North Canyon, Chaparral, and Desert Mountain, played cornerback in the NFL for six years with the Giants and Falcons. Defense is his background and he wants the Wolves to be able to get offenses off the field and establish a good, tough mindset on D. In addition, the offense (which averaged 18 points per game) will have to move the chains more and produce more points.

The familiarity with the coaching staff should help make those improvements.

"Continuity is always key," Hamilton said. "One more year learning how to play in the same system helps."