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NAPPANEE — In some ways, the expectations around the NorthWood football team heading into the 2024 season mimic that of 2017.
Seven years ago, the Panthers were coming off a 14-1 season that ended with a loss in the Class 4A state championship game to Indianapolis Cathedral. It was a senior-laden team with a quarterback in Trey Bilinski that set several program records.
This year, NorthWood is back after going 12-3 a season ago, reaching Lucas Oil Stadium and the Class 4A state title tilt against East Central. Thirteen starting positions were occupied by seniors for the Panthers in 2023, including quarterback Owen Roeder that broke several of Bilinski’s records.
The 2017 NorthWood team went 7-4. The 2024 group is confident they can be better than that.
“I feel like, as a team this year, we’ve come together and our bond is stronger,” senior linebacker Kent Miller said. “This team is really hungry because there’s a lot of doubters out there, talking about all these key players we lost. We’re just a hungry team. We want to go out there and compete. We love competing.”
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Plenty of production to replace for NorthWood
Along with Roeder (3,490 passing yards, 40 touchdowns), the Panthers have several high-impact players to replace.
Two of them are playing high-major college football right now in NiTareon Tuggle and JoZiah Edmond, both of which played wide receiver and defensive back. Tuggle led the state with 1,449 receiving yards, while Edmond had 59 tackles and five interceptions. Tuggle is a wideout for the University of Georgia currently, while Edmond is a defensive back at the University of Michigan.
Other major contributors from last year that will need to be replaced include linebacker Keith Miller (115 tackles), linebacker Kayne…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/preview-state-finals-appearance-northwood-122833366.html
Author : South Bend Tribune
Publish date : 2024-08-13 12:28:33
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