Photo By Mike Turner - #6 Kooper Von Brethourst
Written by Chris Deremer
After a strong 2019 season, Weiser football aims to take the next step towards a potential 2020 3A state championship.
With most key players returning for the upcoming 2020 campaign, head coach Tom Harrison and the Weiser Wolverines look to reach new heights this coming season and overcome their conference rivals.
Weiser returns many from its playoff team a year ago after getting eliminated in the first round of the state playoffs by the Timberlake Tigers.
Harrison enters his third season with Weiser, and with 38 years of experience coaching Idaho high school football, this may be his best opportunity to bring Weiser its first state title in 23 years.
In 2019, Weiser carried a ferocious offense averaging 36 points per game with the Wolverine defense holding teams to only 17 points per game.
The Wolverines were able to bring the tenacity on both sides of the ball throughout the 2019 regular season and state play-in game before coming up short against the Tigers.
On offense, it all starts with junior Bret Spencer. Being an all-conference talent on both sides of the ball, Spencer returns as the Weiser starting quarterback from a season ago. While serving as leader of the offense, Spencer also helped lead an experienced secondary playing at free safety.
Juniors Willy Shirts and Jack Burke look to provide a nice one-two punch at running back for the Wolverines, making Weiser lethal through both its passing and running game.
Shirts, a Snake River Valley All-Conference second team member from a year ago, eyes to take that next step to becoming one of the most dangerous running backs in the Snake River Valley. According to coach Harrison, Spencer, Shirts, and Burke have made great strides this offseason to potentially make the Wolverine offense even better this coming season.
On the defensive side of the ball, Weiser will need to make minor adjustments in order to become a championship contender in 2020. After losing two key pieces in Riley Willet and Eli Carter, the linebacker group might experience some troubles to start the season. But with an experienced secondary returning, this team looks to be able to continue to shut down opposing squads passing games.
With more experience under this team’s belt, the Wolverines may have a shot at dethroning last year’s SRV champions, the Homedale Trojans. Three SRV teams, Weiser, Homedale and Fruitland, made it to the 3A state playoffs a year ago.
Weiser finished with the second-best offense in the conference behind Homedale, and with the majority of the Wolverines continuing to develop, expect Weiser to come out hungry for recognition in the 2020 season on its way to fight for a championship.