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Underdog Bears beat 2 Top-10 teams
by Gregory R. Norfleet · Sports · November 15, 2023
West Branch’s varsity football team played 10 games this season — six against Top 10 ranked teams.
Even as the underdogs, they beat two of them, earned a 6-4 record and a share of the District 5 title, then finished in the Top 16 in Class 1A. Both of the ranked teams they beat — Columbus Catholic and Regina Catholic — reached the state playoff quarterfinals.
No wonder Co-Head Coach John Hierseman called this “probably the toughest schedule we’ve had in 30 years-plus,” back when the Bears played in the Eastern Iowa Hawkeye Conference.
It was also the first time playing without longtime Head Coach Butch Pedersen, who died in April.
“I just want to tell the guys what a great season this was,” he said Sunday night at the team’s end-of-season awards night. “We really rallied together around a lot of tough times, a lot of adversity. We showed a lot of heart throughout the season.”
West Branch’s postseason run did not end until they played No. 4 MFL MarMac, which on Thursday will play for the state championship.
He noted that of the six ranked teams, three made the final four: Columbus, MFL, and Class 3A Williamsburg, which is also playing for that state championship.
“We’re not looking for consolation prizes or moral victories, but what I want you guys to know out of that is how close you were to going to the Dome,” Hierseman said, referring to the playoff venue at the University of Northern Iowa. “You guys were right there.”
That should motivate the Bears to work hard in the off-season to make another playoff run in 2024, he said.
“Football teaches you life lessons,” the offensive coordinator said. “It teaches you to work toward a common goal. It teaches you to put the team goals ahead of your personal goals. And it, literally and figuratively, teaches you that if you get knocked down, get back up. Those life lessons are going to mean a lot down the road. You guys are going to be better off from playing football.”
Hierseman, Defensive Coordinator Tyler Bailey, and Special Teams Coach Kevin Braddock spend the season as co-head coaches to honor Pedersen their former coach and colleague. Hierseman later announced that is retiring from his position and Braddock and Bailey are uncertain about what roles they will play in 2024.
All three of them commented throughout the season about the time, talent, and organization needed to maintain the program Pedersen built over 40 years.
“There’s a lot that goes into this program,” Hierseman said. “Butch built a monster of a program.”
He said Pedersen got so many people to share their time and talent that he made the football program a product of community support.
Hieresman said this season was tough for him and the co-coaches and everybody else, but Butch’s wife always seemed to know when to share encouragement.
“We had a lot of moments of, ‘What would Butch do in this situation?’ And Jenny just kind of has that knack for timing,” he said. “We were 0-2 and we’d get a text or call from Jenny to ‘keep your head up.’”
He said she went through 40 years of that with Butch and “she learned a lot of lessons over those years, so thank you, Jenny.”
That recognition drew the biggest applause of the event.
While discussing the many awards, the Bears highlighted senior Zach Capper, who received the Class 1A District 5 Golden Award.
Hierseman said Capper was accidentally left off the All-District honors. The Golden Award goes to the player who would have likely earned another All-District spot, but was sidelined due to injury.
Capper finished the season with 76 carries for 300 yards, three rushing touchdowns, five catches for 33 yards, 15.5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, five kickoff returns averaging 22.2 yards.
Defensive Backs Coach Jacob Graves said Capper always asked what he could do to improve and “gave 100 percent” in every game.
“Coaches want that” in players, he said.
He said Capper visited multiple doctors in an effort to get back to playing before the season ended.
“He gave it all,” Graves said.
Other All-District honors (see the Nov. 9 Times for more) went to seniors Reese Trepanier, Trenton Schutte, Joe Hamann, Cale Seydel, Logan Wright, and sophomores Reese Gingerich, Brennen Dale, and Nolan Staker. Honorable mentions went to seniors Shae Farmer and Quin Rocha and sophomore Conner Capper.
The varsity team also announced several individual awards voted on by the players:
• Team MVP (Chad Gates Memorial Award): Wright
• Most Valuable Offensive Back (Wayne Rummells Memorial Award): senior Auron Marsh
• Most Valuable Receiver: Schutte
• Most Valuable Offensive Lineman (Larry Rummells Award): Max Lodge
• Most Valuable Defensive Lineman: Wright
• Most Valuable Linebacker: Trepanier
• Most Valuable Defensive Back: Seydel
• Most Valuable Special Teams: Joe Hamann
• Most Valuable Scout Team Player (tie): Ethan Miller and Dylan Schiele
• Most Versatile: Seydel
• Bear Award (tie): Jake Swisher and Bradyn Sexton
The team also announced the captains for the 2024 squad: Tate Frantz, Dylan Schiele, Connor Rios, Cole Crothwaite, and Ethan Miller.
The coaches announced that 18 players earned a 3.25 grade point average to earn spots on the Academic All-District list: Joe Hamann, Zach Capper, Conner Capper, sophomore Connor Rios, Jake Swisher, Trenton Schutte, Brennen Dale, Bradyn Sexton, Reese Trepanier, Shae Farmer, sophomore Cooper Gates, Nolan Staker, Reese Gingerich, Auron Marsh, junior Tate Frantz, Logan Wright, junior Cole Crosthwaite, and sophomore Michael Montgomery.
Fresh-soph
Head Freshman-Sophomore Coach Steven Grace said his team “had a lot of fun this year.”
“We did not get as many wins as we wanted to, but we saw a lot of improvement and growth,” he said.
The Bears also played three or four junior varsity squads, making the season more of a challenge.
“We had a lot of freshmen and have a lot of potential,” Grace said, noting that he expects some sophomores and maybe some freshmen to play varsity next season.
The fresh-soph team also honored several players:
• Team MVP: sophomore Logan Christoffel
• Outstanding Offensive Back: freshman Spencer Green
• Outstanding Receiver: sophomore Lincoln Naber
• Outstanding Offensive Lineman: sophomore Bodee Morehead
• Outstanding Defensive Lineman: sophomore Jerricho Hobbs
• Outstanding Linebacker: sophomore Oliver Trepanier
• Outstanding Defensive Back: sophomore Griffin Seydel
• Outstanding Special Teams Player (tie): sophomore Brandon Pedersen and freshman McGavin Smith
• Outstanding Scout Team Player (tie): sophomore Haydon Haines and sophomore Wesley Strong
• Best Team Player: freshman Shay Kinsinger
• Most Improved Player: sophomore Maddux Rushton
• Coaches Appreciation Award: sophomore Xavyer Boone
Thank-yous
Hierseman shared a long list of thank-yous, starting with the coaching staff and all the time they put into making the team a success.
“It’s not just the practices, it’s not just during games — it’s that’s just a very small percentage of the time they put in,” he said. “I just appreciate everything that they did and do.”
He also thanked the “very understanding” wives who share their husbands with the team, putting up with them watching Hudl videos and conducting other coach-related duties.
Hierseman thanked the supportive parents, especially the senior parents and captains parents with the responsibilities that come with those roles.
The thank-yous included Activities Director Jake Stenberg, who picked up extra duties in light of Pedersen’s passing; strength and conditioning coach Bryan Rohrbach and the hours he puts in year-round; trainer Scott Thoma and Dr. Brad Heithoff, who donate time without being asked to keep the players healthy; Dalton Kaalberg, who films from the crow’s nest; transportation director Tammy Oaks and bus drivers Bob Cahill, Bob Hoffman, Randy Robertson, Greg Humrichouse and Ted Tuttle; and the crew who maintains the practice and game fields: Tom Pedersen, Kenny Voparil, Alex Krafka, and Tony Senio.
Hierseman said the field crew maintains the “best game field in the state,” noting that some folks by the Little Rose Bowl at first think it’s Astroturf.
Continuing with the thank-yous, he next talked about WestBranch.Football, a group of supporters who run the team’s website, shoot and edit video, interview players, post to social media, and report on the team’s accomplishments. That crew includes Matt Chinander, “the brains and expertise behind the BearCast,” as well as YouTube videos and livestreams, Mixlr, Instagram, Facebook, and X/Twitter; Jason Miller, Jarod Tylee, and Voice of the Bears Mike “Quinny” Quinlan.
The coach gave kudos to the “stat boys”: Chad Schutte, Pete Swisher, and Matt Hudson; the press box staff: Jason Miller, Steve Kabela, Nick Goodweiler, Amanda Whaley, Tom Burger and Ron Ewald; and the chain gang: Andy Corr, Kent Kaufman, Craig Cochran, and Steve O’Neil.
To round out the list of those deserving gratitude, he thanked cheerleading sponsor Jordan Ellyson and the squad; manager sponsor Jodee Culver and her crew, “who are the first ones there every day and the last to leave”; and the ball boys: Kason, Beckett, Braxton, and Parker.
Culver added to the thank-yous by mentioning Chad Whaley who drives the managers to away games and the managers who make sure they attend every practice to keep the players hydrated and take care of the equipment.
Ellyson introduced the cheerleaders and thanked them and the coaches for supporting her as a first-year sponsor.
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