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Potlatch High School
School Info
Conference: 1AD1 Whitepine League
Classification: 1A D1
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Head Coach: Cliff Dudley
Years as Head Coach: 1st Season
Previous Experience: 2 years junior tackle, 4 years junior high head coach
Record Last Year: 1-7
State Titles: None
Assistant Coaches:
Charlie Wilson
Bob Normington
Phil Burkhart
Returning Players:
#9 Cole Thompson, QB, Sr.
#26 Baily Clark, RB, Jr.
#66 Layton Paul, DE, Jr.
Key Players lost from last year:
Cole Wallen, DE/QB. Cole was a leader on the field with a furious level of play.
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Photo By: Jason Duchow - #26 Baily Clark
Incoming impact players:
Kenon Brown, Fr.
Chris Hamburg, TE/FB, So
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Team Preview:
Written by: Brandon McIntosh
The theme this season in the Whitepine League at the division 1 level is having a new head coach take over the program. The Potlatch Loggers are one of four teams that found a new leader of young men. After spending the past four seasons leading and building the junior high football program for Potlatch, Coach Cliff Dudley will be entering his first season as a high school football coach. He is looking to erase the misfortunes of last season quickly.
The attitude of the first year coach has been front and center with his new team.
“Do the work! It’s not easy but it’s worth it.”
That message is what Coach Dudley is leaning on to transform his squad from a single victory a year ago to many more this season.
Eleven players, six who started, are returning from last season, but it is the twelve new freshmen faces that is most impressive. Feeling comfortable with their coach, the freshmen will look to build off of their past experience with Coach Dudley and use it entering this season. If fans are looking for a new impact type of player, they should look to freshman Kenon Brown and sophomore Chris Hamburg, both of whom Dudley is high on and can’t say enough about.
Coach Dudley is excited about the opportunity of turning hard work into victories on and off the field. His goal for this team is not just to improve in the win column, but for the players to prove to themselves that they can achieve high marks and compete at a high level.
With the loss of quarterback Cole Wallen who was the leader last season, the Loggers will be turning over the offense to senior play caller Cole Thompson and junior running back Baily Clark. Last season the Loggers struggled to score points. They were held to less than 20 points five of their games. Thompson and Clark will be asked to find the end zone more often this season, especially if the Loggers expect to compete for an opportunity in the postseason.
Coach Dudley hopes to show the Whitepine League a different Logger offense that has more experience on the offensive line who will be creating running lanes for the running backs. They will attempt to utilize more players to their strengths and work to move the ball more efficiently.
On the other side of the ball, defensive coordinator Charlie Wilson has brought a new attitude and energy. Coach Wilson looks to create a defense that is more aggressive up front led by junior defensive end Layton Paul. With Wilson’s calls, Paul and the other linemen must apply more pressure up front. Last season, the defense gave up too many passing yard which turned into too many points. The Loggers were only able to hold one team under 30. The new, aggressive approach must see more tackles for loss, sacks, interceptions, and getting off the field quickly.
For the first year coach, the schedule looks to be tough.
The Loggers open the season at home in a non-league match up against 1A D2 runner-up, Deary Mustangs. They will be traveling in week 2 to semi-finalist Lapwai, a mid-season trip to a playoff team in Genesee, and a season finale trip south to Kamiah. They will play host to new Whitepine opponent, Wallace, Troy, and state champion Prairie.
It won’t be a simple answer to last year’s shortcomings for the Loggers, but Coach Dudley believes he has the right staff and the right attitude heading into this season. The keys will be simple: increase scoring and become more aggressive on defense to assist in the scoring of their offense.
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