Junior Midgets squad preps for playoff run

LAKEWOOD RANCH — When the season began, eighth-graders Brandon Chrisan and Kyle Thoma never imagined they would walk off the field hoisting a division championship trophy.

At the time, thoughts of the playoffs, let alone the Pop Warner Super Bowl, were the furthest thing from their minds. Instead, the two East Manatee Bulldogs Junior Midget teammates were focused merely on helping their team gel together.

But it didn’t take long for the Bulldogs to come together. The Junior Midgets put together an impressive 3-1 record; and as the team prepared to play for a county championship, Chrisan and Thoma’s expectations began to change.

“We finally saw a hint of what it’s like to win, and we wanted to win some more,” said Chrisan, who plays tailback for the Bulldogs. “We have a lot of small people, so we did not think we would do well, but there’s a lot of heart and commitment to the team.”

Thoma agreed.

“Last year we were just an average team,” said Thoma, who plays fullback for the Junior Midgets. “After the fourth game, we (practically) knew what we were doing more. We were more fundamentally (sound).”

The Bulldogs won their next three games en route to capturing the FYD South division title with a 32-16 victory over the Manatee Wildcats. The win was especially sweet for the team, which had heard from opposing players on more than one occasion that the Wildcats were the better team on the field.

“It meant a lot,” Chrisan said. “After that everyone (started) thinking we could win the whole thing. I’m excited to play more games and hopefully go to the Super Bowl.”

“It was like tears of joy,” said coach Elton Strawderman, who is in his first year coaching the Junior Midgets. “I know these kids and the hard work they’ve put in is more than all the other teams have done since 2005.

“It was pretty overwhelming,” Strawderman said. “Before the game I just told them, ‘Today this is up to you. Just give back a little of what I’ve given you.’”

Most recently, the team closed out its regular season with a 46-6 victory over the New Tampa Wildcats. Quarterback Nate Strawderman threw for 140 yards and four touchdowns. Thoma caught a pair of touchdowns, while Kyle Struthers and Cody Hendrickson each caught a touchdown pass. Zach Wyatt led the way defensively with a fumble recovery and an interception.

With their nearly perfect regular season behind them, the Bulldogs will begin their playoff run Oct. 29. The team must win two games to take the title in the FYD conference and another two games to reach the Pop Warner Super Bowl, becoming the first Bulldogs team to reach the championship game since 2005.

It’s been a whirlwind season for the Bulldogs, to say the least. When the 26 players came together Aug. 1, the majority of them had never played football before while the rest were still learning the fundamentals of the game.

Elton Strawderman and the rest of the Bulldogs coaching staff began by trying to get the players to believe in one another before turning their attention to each individual game.

“At the beginning of the season, the general theme was ‘Good Luck coach,’” Strawderman said. “We’ve just been instilling a system from day one of believing in each other. These are just a bunch of average kids that play together as one.

“They go into every game knowing I generally love them, and I’m going to go to war with them,” Strawderman said. “We’ve produced some pretty hefty numbers throughout the season.”

The Bulldogs finished the regular season 8-1 thanks in large part to a high-school style offensive scheme.
“Our diversity of plays has really helped us against other good defenses,” Thoma said. “The plays are so complicated, like in high school, and defenses can’t usually figure it out.”

The Junior Midgets, who outscored their opponents 234-37 during their wins this season, will now turn to Nate Strawderman, who threw for more than 1,500 yards and 21 touchdowns; Thoma, who has scored 15 touchdowns this season, and a host of other players to carry them into the postseason.

“We all need to go out and not be afraid or intimidated,” Chrisan said. “If everyone has trust for each other, does the plays and executes, then I think we can win it all.”

“We just need to trust each other and play like that on the field,” Thoma said.

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].