Written by: Brandon Baney
An incredibly youthful Century team went winless a year ago, but third-year coach Ryan Fleischmann believes that all of that on-the-job training will pay off for the Diamondbacks this season.
“We have an O-Line that is super close with each other, a solid receiving corps with varsity experience, a QB with three years of varsity play, and some fresh new running backs to add a spark,” says Fleischmann.
Juniors Rogan Boomer and Daniel Harris are back to anchor the offensive line, while juniors Deshawn Clark and Carter Ward each started at wide receiver a year ago. That quartet combines with returning quarterback Deagan Crabtree to give Century a solid foundation on offense.
Fleischmann is hopeful that all of that returning talent will help Century put more points on the scoreboard. The D-backs averaged just over seven points per contest in 2023.
“We need to take better care of the football, sustain drives, and score more points,” Fleischmann says.
The defense will feature a lot of the same players. Boomer will lead the linebackers, while Clark and Ward both play in the secondary.
“We play tough and fundamental defense,” says Fleischmann. “We’re great at getting off the field on third down and creating turnovers, but we need to reduce the big plays and clean up our tackles.”
Overall, the South East Idaho Conference is wide open this year. Reigning league champ Pocatello lost a lot of talent to graduation, while Preston is a similarly young team like Century. If a promising group of sophomores can gel quickly with the upperclassmen, the sky’s the limit for Century in 2024.
“We have some young, excited sophomores ready to play with the junior class that has had a little varsity experience under their belts. We have some guys excited to build a culture and become successful,” says Fleischmann.