ABOVE: Front row, from left: Ethan Preston, Lucas Dreyer, Brennan Bollinger, Carter Martens, Grady Madden, Eli Oleson, Caden Walders, Josh Harmon, Nick Hanson Second row, from left: Khael Jones, Jeffrey Walker, Cole Nicoson, John Waller, Hudson Tirevold, Lane Bruhn, Draven Keeler, Drew Henderson, Jayden Hagedorn Third row, from left: Jackson Hutchinson, Kael Vaske, Cooper Hoye, Wiley Stevens, Gabe Whaley, Dyson Wikert, Max Merrill, Greyson Colegrove, Caden Zotz Fourth row, from left: Kaden Grimm, Carter Brown, Noah Hersleff, Kyan Walter, Hunter Clendenen, Michael Tobin, Zane Vaske, Castor Kollasch, Hunter Geitzenauer Fifth row, from left: Colin Kruse, Drake Nelsen, Donnie Stevens, Carson Crouch, Liam Eischen, Wyatt Leininger, Samuel Kirkegaard Missing: Casey Rezac, Christian Reyes, Brenden Derby.

ARMSTRONG, Iowa – The North Union Warriors football team is looking to push further into playoffs coming off of back-to-back winning seasons.

Going 5-4 in their district and securing a fourth-place finish last season, the team looks to build on the success seen in the last two years.

Even though the team graduated seven seniors, they are returning their All-District quarterback Grady Madden, who threw 14 touchdown passes and four interceptions last season. Allowing the team to maintain an experienced leader under center and a strong offensive front this season will be key.

“We’ve got three offensive linemen back with Brendan Bollinger coming back as a three-year starter,” said North Union football head coach Matt Ernster. “We’ve got Carter Martens coming into his second year starting, Cole Nicoson coming into his second year starting. So it’s a good start up front there.”

Normally the team prefers to maintain a balanced offense between pass and run. Due to personnel changes, they are looking a little more at the pass this year. According to Ernster the team runs a spread-style offense but is not afraid to run out of that formation.

“I’ve got wide receivers back with experience … Nick Hanson and Eli Olsen that played quite a bit last year,” said Ernster. “I’ve got some young guys that did some good stuff on JV last year that got some experience too. Offensively, it looks pretty decent there.”

The Warriors’ defense has a decent amount of returning talent this season in linebacker Eli Oleson and quarterback/linebacker Grady Madden. Brendan Derby, Carter Martens, Lucas Dreyer and Caden Walders also shore up the defense and help present a solid defensive core.

“Caden Walders got a lot of experience playing in the secondary last year and so did Drew Henderson,” said Ernster. “So we’ve got guys on all levels who have experience that will help us going into this year.”

According to Ernster the team is focusing on consistency and positivity. Ernster said some of their losses came in one-score games last season. He said if the team can be a bit more consistent this year, they would be able to find themselves in a better position come playoffs.

“We have better participation numbers than we’ve had, so we’ve got better depth than what we’ve had,” said Ernster. “We’ve just been talking a lot about finding whatever it is that you do that’s going to make us the best possible team that we can be.

“Whether it’s on a varsity level down to a freshman kid coming out for the first time. Just finding ways to become a better football player every day and ultimately that’s going to lead us to being a better team.”

The Warriors’ leadership reaches beyond the captains, with every player involved in how the team is functioning on and off the field. The team feeds off of the seniors setting the example making the culture of the team cohesive and efficient.

“We’ve talked a lot about it doesn’t matter what the designation is if you’re a team captain or a senior,” said Ernster. “There’s a way to lead no matter what level you are. We’ve got a lot of kids that are positive in that aspect on our team.”