From the first day of practice, the Firebirds have been preaching one thing: playing as family.
The team aspect is ever so important in football — from the top at quarterback, to the running backs and wide receivers, to the offensive and defensive lines, down to the backups and special teams. Getting everyone to gel is arguably the most important factor to Devils Lake finding success. Some players have already stepped up, while others are still waiting to unleash their potential.
Head coach Todd Lambrecht wanted to improve the running game
And so far, he has.
It was one of the first areas of improvement he mentioned he wanted to see at the team’s first practice. He wanted the Firebirds to run the ball more, which would, in turn, improve the team’s passing game as well.
The biggest player who’s stepped up in that respect is running back Bryar Exner, whose explosive performance in Game 2 led Devils Lake to its first win. But fellow junior running back Kade Fee’s impact can’t be discounted, either; the Firebirds often went to him as a backup plan to complement Exner. The versatility helped keep the Wolves guessing, despite relying heavily on Exner.
Exner and Fee were both players Lambrecht mentioned, before the season, as wanting to step up.
“Bryar Exner’s back; he was hurt last year. He’s got some shoes to fill,” Lambrecht said before the season. “Kade Fee played a lot last year; starting inside backer for us. And he’s gotta work hard because there are some kids that are gonna push him.”
So far, those two have lived up to their billing and earned their spots.
Other players who have stepped up
Sophomore Will Heilman has been a nice addition to the team, despite not being mentioned by Lambrecht as a key player preseason. His performance on both sides of the ball in the season opener helped Devils Lake nearly complete a comeback. Although he’s not huge, at 5-foot-11 and 160 pounds, he’s shown speed and persistence as a cornerback and offensive pest.
Brody Forsberg has also stood out on defense, especially in the Firebirds’ first game. They had a lot to clean up as a defensive unit, but Forsberg came up with some big stops. Lambrecht was overall happier with the team’s tackling in their second game, and that included Forsberg.
Coby Dronen Levitt has shown some athletic hands as a wide receiver — another player who was on Lambrecht’s radar and has brought encouraging signs. He’s also contributed on both sides of the ball. He’s one of many players on the team who just started his junior year — a key designation, going from an underclassman to an upperclassman and needing to step up to keep this team afloat.
Max Palmer, another player returning from injury, caught a touchdown pass from his twin brother in the second game. He’ll be another kid to keep tabs on to see if he can secure a spot.
Players Lambrecht still has his eye on
Despite everything that’s gone right, there are still some players whose growth could lead to this team being even deeper and more potent.
Seemingly everyone, Lambrecht included, had high expectations for Mason Palmer and Oliver Wirth — Devils Lake’s primary quarterback and wide receiver, respectively. And while both have done well, especially from a leadership perspective, it feels like there’s more in the bag from both of their outputs.
Linemen like Stetson Trottier and Traycer Tollfeson will be important, too, and already showed improvement from one game to the next. The Firebirds allowed some openings that killed them in the first game. They were much tighter in the second game, allowing just six points, and their offensive line’s performance was strong too, blocking much better to create space for players like Exner and Fee.
Before the season, Lambrecht said that this team would have to be filled out by “young kids who haven’t played a whole lot.” So there’s still a lot of learning going on, up and down the roster. Sophomore Rylan Samuelson is another one who Lambrecht indicated he was looking forward to seeing more from.
It’s a deep group, with lots of cogs in the machine needed to keep it running smoothly. So the most important thing Lambrecht has been preaching is to play with each other, and for each other. Through the ups and downs, it’s about each kid playing for the kid next to him and lifting each other up.
That’s what will make a great team, in the end.
