By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
FAUCETT - Mid-Buchanan football had perhaps its best season in program history in 2020.
The Dragons won their third straight district title and reached the state championship game for the first time before falling to Windsor 43-20 and coming home as state runners-up in Class 1.
The Dragons lost 12 seniors from that roster, including dual threat quarterback and all-state performer Javan Noyes, who accounted for over 4,100 all-purpose yards and 65 all-purpose touchdowns last year alone. Noyes was also the starting punter, and contributed on defense.
Mid-Buchanan also lost T.J. Runyan (leading rusher), Lane Ellison (top receiver) and Leyton Starks (place kicker).
The Dragons do, however, return five players from last season who have starting experience on both sides of the ball.
One of the returning starters is senior receiver and linebacker Blake Hunter, who had over 450 yards receiving and five touchdowns last year. He also had 47 tackles, seven pass break-ups and four interceptions.
Hunter says proving doubters wrong is a leading motivator this season.
"We're very motivated," he said. "Everyone is saying that we're not going to be as good as we were last year. But, we still come in every day and put the work in, and get the job done."
Other returning starters expected to take a leading role in 2021 include seniors Rawlins Brant, Caiden Bailey and Cage Burns, along with junior Wade Stanton.
"They all played significant minutes on both sides of the ball for us," seventh-year head coach Aaron Fritz said. "Those are the guys we're looking for to make sure that the guys who are stepping in and having to play a little bit more understand what's expected and how hard they need to play."
While some of the names may be different, Fritz says the expectation remains the same.
"Everybody here knows what to expect," Fritz said. "We have a good core of kids who come to weights and do things like that, so they know we're going to play as hard as we can, as fast as we can. Whether people believe we're going to win or not because of what we lost, that doesn't matter. We've got to do what we need to make sure we're taking care of our business."
Burns, a linebacker who led the Dragons with 113 tackles last year, says those who are back this season and have starting experience can help lay a foundation for success this year.
"It'll help us a lot," Burns said of the returning talent. "Because, we know from last year and we still have the talent and stuff like that."
Mid-Buchanan opens the season at home against Princeton/Mercer on August 27. They'll also host Lawson, Lathrop, North Platte and top rival East Buchanan.
The Dragons have road games at Southeast, Penney/Hamilton, Plattsburg and West Platte.
Many don't expect Mid-Buchanan to be quite the powerhouse they were last year. This year's Dragons are taking that personally.
This year's Dragons are bent on silencing doubters in their quest for a fourth straight district title and consecutive trips to the state championship game.
"If you're not playing for a state title every year, you're not doing it right," Fritz said. "Whether that's a realistic expectation or not, that needs to be a goal for everybody. Our kids want to win, and they want to do as good as they can.
"But, I'm telling you - there's a lot of kids here that are pretty disappointed with people even in our own community that don't think we're going to be very good and are doubting. These kids can play, so I think that's all they're worried about right now is kind of going out there and taking care of what they need to take care of."
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