There won't be as many high-profile players on the roster this year for the football team at Birmingham Detroit Country Day as there has been in recent years, however Yellowjackets head coach Dan MacLean thinks his squad will make up for its lack of star power in on-field chemistry.
"This is a very tight-knit team," MacLean said. "We're not as naturally gifted as some of our past teams, but we're incredibly cohesive. These guys love playing football together. They just love putting in the work. I expect us to still be a very competitive."
Opening up his 14th year looking after the Yellowjackets program, MacLean-led teams have not won less than eight games, nor missed the playoffs in six years. Since grabbing the reins in 1998, MacLean has navigated Country Day to three appearances in the state finals and one state championship, as well as coaching a plethora of players who have gone on to compete at the Division I level.
Last fall, the Yellowjackets went 9-1, losing in a district championship game to Detroit Crockett. College-recruits Kenny Knight (WR), Josh Harris (QB), Lee Bailey (RB), Troy Woodland (CB) and David Brown (LB), the leaders of the 2010 team, have all departed due to graduation.
Filling the void left by that group is not an easy task, but the program's new guard is determined to keep the winning tradition at Country Day alive and this season.
Harrison Rosenfeld, last season's back-up quarterback, will take over starting signal-calling chores for MacLean's ball club this year. Rosenfeld, a senior, is a savvy field general that has a good arm and a high IQ in the huddle.
The Yellowjackets' backfield will be headlined by John Hill, one of the best No. 2 runners in the area last year as a junior. Hill is a slippery fireplug rushing the pigskin and is poised for a major yardage haul this fall on the gridiron.
Giving Rosenfeld a number of quality options in the team's passing attack will be a reliable cadre of receivers led by seniors Trevor Potter, Jack MacLean, Richard Wilson and Reid McManus.
Protecting Rosenfeld is a deep offensive line, with the likes of Cotter Lamb, Bret Fragnoli, Ahmad Tahawi, Nate Grathwohl and Connor Darby making sure the team's field general has time to find his targets and stays upright and healthy. Leno Corradi will start at tight end as well as help hold things down on the defensive line alongside Poet Thomas, Chris LeFlore and Radwin Chunghu. Thomas, only a junior, is viewed as future star.
Country Day's linebacking corps is one of the team's biggest strengths and will be spending a good amount of time in the opposition's backfield showing off its menacing ways. The unit is spearheaded by Patrick Dugan, a terror on the field as a junior in 2010 and Marlon Hairston and Jacob Scott, a pair of fast and aggressive tacklers that are expected to be two of the more improved local players in the upcoming campaign. Hairston will see time in the squad's offensive backfield, too, logging carries as Coach Mac's primary power runner.
Steve Aljuni is a player to watch out for in the Country Day secondary, where among others, Hill, McManus, MacLean and Wilson will also see action.
To kick-off the season and break-in their new lineup, the Yellowjackets will play Harper Woods Chandler Academy on August 26 at home.
Several recent DCD football stars are playing in the Big 10 right now, including Kenny Knight (Illinois), Kenny Demens (Michigan)and Bennie Fowler (Michigan State). As a college player himself, Coach Mac played in the Big 10 at Illinois.
Twitter.com/Burneystweets/Hoosierscott@aol.comSeveral recent DCD football stars are playing in the Big 10 right now, including Kenny Knight (Illinois), Kenny Demens (Michigan)and Bennie Fowler (Michigan State). As a college player himself, Coach Mac played in the Big 10 at Illinois.
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