Back to the basics for Ottawa Pirates in 2019

Entering his second season as Ottawa head coach, Chad Gross has made a few changes — in his offensive and defensive philosophies, as well as his approach at the outset — that he believes will be for the betterment of his Pirates this fall.

"You know, last year I kind of felt like, 'I've got to get everything in by Week 1,' " Gross said, "and I learned that was not the case. We can ease into it. We can get the basics down, and then build from there.

"We're trying to build our base. We're kind of building it slowly with (the kids), and we're gaining confidence in the kids each day, and we're adding to that.

"I just think it's helping our kids a lot. Our kids, for whatever reason, seem to be way ahead of where we were last year at this time. We may have had double the plays in, but I feel like the kids have more confidence in what we're trying to accomplish."

Ottawa endured its first winless campaign on the gridiron in nearly a century (1922) last fall.

"We haven't talked about that as a team, but there's not a day that goes by that I don't think about us being 0-9 last year, and that we've got to get this figured out," Gross said.

"I'm very optimistic where we're at. I'm excited. This group, it's just a totally different feel."

Making up Gross' current 43-player roster are 20 seniors, 19 juniors and four sophomores.

"They're a real tight-knit group that picks each other up ... and it's refreshing as a coach to see that camaraderie," Gross said. "They're very energetic.

"(The seniors are) a group of kids that are going to do what the team needs to make the team successful. We're going to be a junior-heavy team (out on the field), that's for sure. (The junior group has) a lot of different parts that can help us out, but at the same time it's going to take a little adjustment and time to get used to the speed of varsity football. I think on Fridays you're going to see a lot of sophomores play significant roles.

"We have some good depth on this team — I'm excited about it — and I think the competition's made us better as a group for sure."

Quarterbacking the Pirates will be junior Brett Galletti (66-154, 714 yards, 2 TD, 11 INT in 2018) — the third-rated QB in Illinois' Class of 2021, according to Tom Lemming. Among the ballcarriers will be senior Damonte Coleman, a transfer from Indiana who's strong and quick, junior Bryant Schomas and sophomore Cedric Fairrow. One of Galletti's targets will be junior Briar Naggs — a "plus-athlete" with a "very high ceiling."

Anchoring the O-Line will be senior Jake Ovanic, who started at guard last season. Junior Matt Ahearn will be the other guard. Juniors Dominic Gende and Kevin Hernandez will be bookend tackles.

"Going into last season, I thought we could go out there and just throw the ball," Gross said, "but I quickly found out that you have to be able to control the ball a little bit too to be successful at the varsity level, especially in our conference.

"I've adjusted my scheme, and the kids have really bought into it. It's going to kind of look a little bit like the old Ottawa Pirates, but at the same time we're going to be more modern. We're going to throw the ball more than the traditional Ottawa teams.

"We are going to be a balanced team. I feel like we're going to be able to do a much better job controlling the ball."

The heart and soul of the defense will be Ovanic (84 total tackles), a three-year starter at linebacker. That corps will also include Coleman and junior Adam Weitzel. The secondary will feature Fairrow at safety.

"We tried to switch to a 3-4 last year, and we had a big struggle with it, and I made the decision that we need to go back to kind of what we were doing previously at Ottawa," Gross said. "It's more of an even front. It's not as much moving around, and it should simplify things for our kids and allow them to play at a faster speed.

"I like our speed (defensively); I think they are a quick group. I think they're smart. They're very good at communicating."

Special teams are a question mark for Gross.

Ottawa is in the midst of a program-worst 16-game losing skid. The Pirates hope to put a halt to that Friday night when they host Chicago Juarez.

"Week 1 is a huge deal for this program," Gross said, "and starting 1-0 is a big deal for this group to gain confidence to build on."

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SCHEDULE

Date Opponent Time

8/30 CHICAGO JUAREZ 7 p.m.

9/6 at Woodstock 7 p.m.

9/13 PLANO 7 p.m.

9/20 at Sycamore 7 p.m.

9/27 at Morris 7 p.m.

10/4 LA SALLE-PERU 7:15 p.m.

10/11 at Kaneland 7 p.m.

10/18 at Sandwich 7 p.m.

10/25 ROCHELLE 7 p.m.

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ROSTER

No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. Pos.

1 Logan Tarbox 5-5 134 Jr. WR/DB

2 Briar Naggs 6-1 170 Jr. WR/DB

3 Damonte Coleman 5-9 170 Sr. RB/LB

4 Collyn Gustafson 5-9 135 Sr. WR/DB

5 Braiden Miller 6-1 161 So. QB/DB

6 Bryant Schomas 6-0 175 Jr. RB/DB

7 Brett Galletti 6-1 195 Jr. QB

11 Jake Serby 6-0 145 Jr. WR/DB

12 Noah Smith 6-1 165 Jr. WR/LB

14 Johnny Walsh 5-8 150 Jr. WR/DB

16 Zak Maslanka 6-3 220 Sr. OL/DL

21 Cedric Fairrow 5-10 180 So. RB/DB

23 Anthony Mulinazzi 5-9 148 Jr. WR/DB

24 Hunter Brown 5-7 170 Sr. RB/LB

25 Dalton Gosdin 5-6 165 Sr. RB/LB

28 Tyler Collins 5-9 151 Jr. RB/LB

32 Nolen Miller 5-8 163 Sr. RB/DB

33 Adam Weitzel 5-11 175 Jr. RB/LB

34 Chase Bowers 5-10 155 So. RB/DB

36 Michael Morse 5-8 150 Sr. RB/LB

42 Ulices Perez 5-10 180 Sr. TE/DL

45 Colton Johnson 5-10 155 Jr. TE/DL

50 Anthony Gutierrez 5-6 165 Sr. OL/DL

51 Ethen Swords 6-0 250 So. OL/DL

52 Bryan Gleason 5-10 215 Sr. OL/DL

54 Zach Owens 5-11 190 Jr. OL/DL

55 Kyler Sprowls 6-5 238 Sr. OL/DL

57 Jake Ovanic 6-0 215 Sr. OL/DL

58 Dustin Gertkitz 5-11 205 Sr. OL/DL

60 Matt Ahearn 5-10 200 Jr. OL/DL

61 Matt Kuzniar 6-1 264 Jr. OL/DL

63 Leo Gutierrez 5-5 155 Jr. OL/DL

65 Kevin Saar 5-10 235 Sr. OL/DL

66 Tim Lingle 6-0 210 Sr. OL/DL

67 Owen Snyder 5-6 180 Sr. OL/DL

74 Bryan Koppenhoefer 5-10 290 Jr. OL/DL

75 Dominic Gende 6-3 305 Jr. OL/DL

77 Kevin Hernandez 5-11 255 Jr. OL/DL

80 Austin Howard 5-9 130 Sr. WR/DB

85 Travis Dougherty 6-0 164 Sr. WR/DB

87 Austin Stanley 5-10 155 Jr. WR/DB

88 Devin Gende 5-10 195 Sr. TE/DL

89 Kyle Szewczuk 6-1 160 Sr. WR/DB

Head coach: Chad Gross (2nd season)

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CONFERENCE HISTORY

The Pirates have been in five football conferences during their 125-year history — the Illinois Valley, Big Vermillion Valley, NCIC, NIB 12 and now the Interstate Eight.

Illinois Valley Conference (1917-1931; 1970-1972)

Championships: 1924, 1970, 1971

Big Vermillion Valley Conference (1933-1937)

Championships: 1934, 1936, 1937

North Central Illinois Conference (1942-2009)

Championships: 1942, 1946, 1947, 1952, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2007

Northern Illinois Big 12 Conference (2010-2018)

Championships: 2010, 2012

Interstate Eight Conference (2019-present)

Championships: none

— Kyle Nevins & J.T. Pedelty