By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
MONTPELIER – The last time Montpelier got off to an unbeaten 5-0 start was back in 1993, when the Locos finished with an impressive 10-2 overall record, took runner-up in the Northwest Ohio Athletic League and reached the Division IV regional finals.
This time around, the Locos are off to another 5-0 start, outscoring their first five opponents 152-43 – averaging 30.4 points per game and allowing just 8.6.
Coming off a 6-5 campaign a year ago that included a Division VII state playoff appearance, Montpelier has its sights set on doing something special: win the inaugural Great Lakes Conference championship, host a state playoff game for the first time in program history and make a deep postseason run.
The Locos graduated several talented starters last year, but according to head coach Andy Robinson, the biggest surprise has been the contribution of a talented sophomore class that has filled its own roles in the 5-0 start.
“We have a good handful of sophomores that have stepped up this year and given us a lot of depth,” said Robinson. “We’re playing six or seven sophomores on both sides of the ball.”
Robinson mentioned sophomores Dom Guilford, Hazen Smith, Kian Foster, Anthony Fletcher and Kam Smith, who have all contributed along with a veteran group of starters in the early-season gridiron success.
The success of the Locos’ offense has been credited to an experienced offensive line that averages 235 pounds up front, helping the offense churn out 377 yards per contest.
“We’re seven-deep on the offensive line right now which helps us out quite a bit,” said the Locos coach. “This is probably the most depth we’ve ever had up front and easily the biggest team we’ve ever had. The good thing for us is we don’t have a single senior on the offensive line.”
Another big factor for Montpelier has been the play of senior quarterback Wesley Hartsock, who has quickly established himself as a dual-threat quarterback.
Hartsock had the daunting task of replacing four-year starter Hayden Sharps, who threw for 2,063 yards and 21 touchdowns last season.
The 6-3, 205-pound senior has already completed 43 of 65 passes for 712 yards and 12 touchdowns, and has added 444 yards on the ground on 75 carries – a 5.92 yards-per-carry average – with three more touchdowns.
“Replacing a kid like Hayden Sharps, we weren’t quite sure that was going to be possible,” Robinson said. “Hayden (Sharps) was a good pocket-passer for us, and he could do some things with his legs. I think Wesley (Hartsock) is a little more built for his legs.
“His (Hartsock) maturity is probably the number one thing that we’ve seen this year as a player, as a person, and has been a good leader for us. He’s really decided to put the team on his back.”
Robinson admitted he wasn’t 100 percent sure during the summer that Hartsock would be the quarterback – a doubt that looks pretty silly now.
“His growth as a passer has become probably the best thing, but he still has a way to go in the back half of the season,” said the Locos coach. “The things he can do with his legs it makes us pretty good.”
Another offensive weapon for Montpelier has been junior running back Carter Meek. The 6-0, 190-pound junior, who rushed for 683 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore, has already put together some impressive numbers this season.
Meek has rushed for 573 yards on 74 carries, an impressive 7.74 yards per carry, with six touchdowns in the first five games.
“He got a chance last year after an injury to Griffin Cooley in the backfield, and we thought we had something special,” said Robinson. “He has worked his tail off in the off-season, and his weight room lifting has been huge after gaining over 20 pounds from last year.”
Leading the Locos’ receiving corps are junior Jacob Lyons, who leads the team with 294 yards and five touchdowns on 14 catches; junior Braxton Richmond, with seven grabs for 148 yards and three touchdowns; and senior Xavier Eidenier, with eight grabs for 141 yards and a touchdown.
“Offensively we’re getting better each week and it’s what you want to see,” said Robinson. “We’re halfway through the season now and I think we’re really starting to put some things together and have been extremely balanced.”
Defensively, the Locos are led by senior Malachi Smith with 33 tackles, sophomore World Peace with 30 stops, sophomore Hazen Smith with 28 tackles, Meek with 22 stops and Kam Smith with 21 tackles.
Montpelier (5-0, 2-0 GLC) has already defeated Antwerp (21-14), Swanton (25-7), Edgerton (33-14), Erie Mason (39-8) and Summerfield (34-0), but the biggest task awaits when the Locos travel to Whiteford, Michigan (2-2, 2-0 GLC) for a key conference showdown on Friday night.
Robinson hopes the Locos can come out firing on all cylinders against the Bobcats, who put a 60-7 shellacking on them a year ago.
“They (Whiteford) came to our place and embarrassed us last year,” said the Montpelier coach. “These kids know it and they know if they want a league title. This is going to be the first big step towards it. It’s something that is really important to this town, and the town has rallied around these kids.
“Since I’ve taken over the program five years ago, this program has just gotten a little bit better each year and it’s finally started to pay off with all the hard work put in.”
