By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
While Bishop Brossart High School supporters are raising funds to construct an outdoor athletic stadium, the football team has generated some excitement of its own with a 3-1 start this season.
Brossart junior Nathan Bezold is the team’s leading rusher on offense and leading tackler on defense going into Friday’s district game against Nicholas County. (Photo by Mark Baumann / mbaumann.zenfolio.com)
The Mustangs have not had a home field of their own since the varsity football program was started in 2007, but that could soon change. The school conducted a public meeting on Wednesday to unveil plans for a football/soccer stadium with lights and an eight-lane track.
The site for the stadium is on Gilbert Ridge Road off U.S. 27, less than one mile from the high school. Brossart football and soccer teams currently use the property as a practice field.
The recent success of the Brossart football team should help promote the stadium project. The Mustangs posted records of 8-3 and 9-2 the last two years and appear to be on their way to another winning season.
On Friday, Brossart will play Nicholas County in the first Class 1A district game for both teams. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Campbell County High School, where the Mustangs are playing their home games this season.
“Campbell County has been awesome to work with in allowing us to use their field and so have other schools in the past,” said Brossart head football coach Paul Wiggins. “But to actually have a place where we can just walk out of the locker room and on to the field and have our own place to play would just be a major boost for us, and for soccer and track too.”
Wiggins said he wanted to face a district opponent in his team’s Homecoming game on Friday to make it “a game with meaning behind it.” Nicholas County was the only district team that beat the Mustangs last season, so they definitely want to come out on top this time.
To do that, Brossart must contain or outscore a Nicholas County offense that’s averaging 221 rushing yards per game. The team leaders are senior running back Kody Campbell with 496 yards on 114 carries and junior quarterback Isaac Fryman with 418 yards on 67 carries.
“They are big and they play football like I did back in the 80s,” coach Wiggins said. “They just line up and pound it, and they do it very well.”
Junior linebacker Nathan Bezold has been the Mustangs’ standout performer on defense. In the team’s first four games, he made 58 tackles with one interception and one fumble recovery.
Wiggins said he named Bezold one of the team captains early in the season because of the effort he puts into each game and practice session as a linebacker and running back. But it will take more than one player to keep Nicholas County’s offense in check.
“It’s got to be a collective effort,” the coach said. “No one person is going to be able to stop their running game. They’re big and they come right at you. We need 11 guys playing their positions as they were taught to slow them down.”
The Mustangs are averaging 291 yards per game with a more diversified offense. Junior quarterback Tyler MacDonald has completed 53 of 106 passes for 912 yards, but the team has scored six of its 11 touchdowns on the ground while averaging 103 rushing yards per game.
“As far as our offense goes, I would say we’re a lot more open with what we do,” Wiggins said. “I’m not afraid at times to say, ‘Hey, it’s working in the air so let’s just stay in the air.’ We’ll pass to set up the run as opposed to the other way around.”
The success of Brossart’s passing attack has a lot to do with senior wide receiver Bryce Donnelly, who is averaging 95.3 reception yards per game with four touchdowns. In the Mustangs’ last game, Donnelly broke team records for most receiving yards (1,475), most touchdown receptions (22) and most touchdowns scored (25) in a varsity career.
“He presents a problem for most teams,” Wiggins said. “He does things very well and his routes are usually pretty crisp.”
