SV LOOKS FOR POWER IN NUMBERS: INDIANS RETURN SKILL PLAYERS, TRY TO CONTINUE TRADITION

First-year St. Vincent coach Keith Winkler isn't one to talk about how good his team is or how good it could be.

But after his team showed that it could compete against schools with enrollments from five to seven times larger at last Friday night's jamboree, Winkler doesn't have to say it.

It should have been obvious to everyone in attendance: For Class 1A, these guys are good.

The Indians, who have an amazing 71 players on this year's roster, have been very competitive for the past several years, including a trip to the TransWorld Dome in 1998 when they lost in the state championship game and last year when St. Vincent made it to the state semifinals before losing to the eventual state champs.

St. Vincent has a lot of experience coming back in some key positions this year.

That includes quarterback Jonathan Paulus, who had a stellar season a year ago in leading the Indians to a 11-2 season. Last year, Paulus threw for 1,172 yards and completed 57 percent of his passes. He threw more than twice as many touchdowns as interceptions.

"He works really hard and has a good idea of what we want to do," said Winkler. "He's got the experience of taking a lot of snaps last year."

Paulus gets a lot of help from his receivers.

At Friday night's jamboree, his receivers demonstrated sure hands and the ability to catch balls in traffic.

Ryan Brown (6-4, 180) will play at both tight end and wide receiver and is a big target for Paulus, particularly around the end zone.

"You don't find a 6-3, 6-4 kid who can run so well very often," said Winkler of Brown. "And he blocks well, too."

Derek Kutz (5-10, 140), Lucas Heberlie (7-1, 170) and Aaron Ernst (5-6, 160) will also see time at wideout, while Nick Emmendorfer (6-0, 175) will play at tight end.

Running backs Mark Gotto (5-10, 160) and Adam Bockman (5-7, 165) will be receiving threats out of the backfield as well, as both had long receptions at the jamboree Friday night.

Gotto was the team's leading rusher last year. He ran for 841 yards on 143 carries last year (5.88 avg) and scored a team-high nine touchdowns.

St. Vincent's offensive line will not be huge, but it wasn't that big last year, either.

The linemen will be quick and strong, however.

"We're having a lot of battles (for playing time) on the offensive line," said Winkler. "Most of our linemen are about the same size. Our biggest guy is 225."

Anchoring the line will be a pair of experienced guards in Craig Schumer (6-0, 215) and Joey Guth (6-0, 210). Andrew Prost (6-0, 180) will spell those two at guard. At tackle, Matt Zoellner (6-2, 170), David Prost (5-11, 180) and John Hayden (6-2, 225) will all see time. Justin Weinkein (6-0, 176) and Eric Lindsley (5-10, 225) will share time at center.

Though the offense was solid last year, the team's strength (other than the kicking game) was its defense. The Indians didn't allow more than 20 points in a game until the last game of the year when Rich Hill, the state champs, scored 21. St. Vincent posted four shutouts.

The key to St. Vincent's defense figures to be Nathan Thomas (5-10, 180), the Indians' returning middle linebacker.

A lot of the Indians' top offensive players will play both ways.

Gotto, Bockman, Ernst and Justin Klobe (5-10, 152) will split time at the outside linebacker position, while Chris Meyer (5-7, 155) has looked good at middle linebacker in scrimmages and will spell Thomas.

Guth, Schumer, Zoellner and Prost will play the interior line positions, while Brown, Chad Flentge (6-1, 155) and Heberlie will play at defensive end.

The offense should be strong. The defense could be better than the offense if history repeats itself.

But the kicking game should be the strongest aspect of the team.

Derek Kutz, a two-time all-state kicker, returns and is drawing interest from some high profile colleges like Kansas State.

He made all 42 of his extra-point kicks last year and made 11 of 18 field-goal attempts.