SHNH Football

By Jacki Wood

The South Holt/Nodaway-Holt football team will look to its youth for success in the 2019 season after the Spartans went 5-6 overall and 4-4 in conference action last year.

They will once again be led by head coach Josh Petersen and assisted by Cody Hasekamp.

“We have a lot of players stepping into full-time starting positions,” Petersen said, “so we are counting on them to make plays to help us be a contender.”

He said the Spartans graduated two really good receivers in Eric Ottman and Reagan Morris and a really good lineman in Dalton Rauch.

But the Nodaway-Holt and South Holt co-op returns plenty of talent and playing time.

Seniors Treyton Plummer, Lane Jones and Will Peter will lead the team. Petersen said Plummer and Jones bring positivity and a hard work mentality. This is Peter’s first year playing football.

Returning starters for the Spartans include Plummer at offensive and defensive line; junior quarterback/linebacker Drew Quinlin; junior wide receiver/linebacker Dylan Schuetz; junior running back/safety Houston Coleman; junior wide receiver/defensive lineman Dallas Nowling; junior defensive lineman Tristan Steinert; sophomore running back/corner back Gavin Leeper; sophomore wide receiver/corner back Gannon Phelan; sophomore offensive lineman James Herr; sophomore offensive lineman Brody Scroggins; and sophomore wide receiver/corner back Alex Harris.

Last year, the Spartans had a fast-paced offense able to put up big numbers and Petersen sees that continuing into this year. He said they will focus on defense and being more aggressive, especially when facing formidable opponents in last year’s state champions Mound City, state runners-up Worth County, East Atchison and Southwest Livingston.

Petersen said team goals include winning the third down and turnover battles as well as winning every game by executing their game plan.

The Spartans will get the chance to prove their mettle when they face the Worth County Tigers on Friday, August 30 at Oregon.