Union wildcats

The Union Wildcats are back in action after a very successful regular season, but a tough District Semi-Finals loss to Rockwood Summit. Head Coach Justin Grahl was disappointed with the finish, knowing his men had a lot more left in the tank. This year’s Wildcat team returns 11 lettermen, 5 offensive starters, and 7 defensive starters. Coach Grahl is looking forward to this season saying “Very excited to see what we have after losing some very special talent to graduation. Our kids have had a great year in the weight room and a solid summer of practices.” Although they graduated some great talent, the current leaders on this Union team know how to win and what it feels like, they have some immeasurable qualities that will help them be successful.

The Union offense has some key skill players returning this year to light up the scoreboard. They will be running a spread offense which earned them 229 rushing yards per game and 200 passing yards per game last year, averaging 40.5 points per game. An important piece to the Wildcat’s offense is senior Ryan Rapert (5-11, 175). He is a pure athlete and utility man for the Wildcats. He can run the ball, battle for catches, and is an even better defender. He had 8 carries for 101 yards, 1 touchdown as well as 538 receiving yards with 9 receiving touchdowns. He earned 2nd Team

Class: 4

Conference: 4 Rivers

Head Coach: Justin Grahl

Years at School: 4

Overall Record: 33-11

Returning Lettermen: 11

Offensive Returning Starters: 5

Defensive Returning Starters: 7

2022 Overall Record: 10-1

All-Conference at the wide receiver position as well. Another producer for this team is senior Wyatt Birke. He will be a strong running back for them after last year’s success. He will definitely improve upon his numbers he earned from last year. Birke earned 1st Team All-Conference for his 131 carries for 832 yards with 9 touchdowns along with 6 catches for 20 yards. At wide receiver is senior Nick D’Onfrio (6-0, 185). He returns after last year’s 10 catches for 160 yards and 3 touchdowns. Rounding out the skill position returning starters is junior running back Hayden Parmenter (6-0, 180) who was a go-to guy for the Wildcats last year when running the ball. He had 102 carries for 688 yards with 8 touchdowns. The Wildcats return two 2 year starting linemen as well seniors Killian Cordia (6-1, 270) and Eli Bray (6-3, 280). These are two big men who have been pillars to this offensive line for two successful seasons and they will continue to impose their will on the opposition’s defense as well as set an example for the new generation of linemen. New to the offensive line will be sophomore Traven St. Clair (5-11, 220). Also new to the offense is senior tight end Gavin Mabe (6-3, 220). The Wildcat defense is returning a lot of core players from last year’s team and also has some very promising young players ready to make some stops. Ryan Rapert is back at defensive back after earning 1st Team All-Conference Honors at defensive back. Rapert ended last year with 26 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 4 interceptions, and 1 defensive touchdown. Rapert is an absolute stud of a player no matter where he is and is a difference maker on both sides of the ball. At defensive back, senior Nick D’Onfrio is returning. He had 20 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 interception and 1 defensive touchdown last year. Also at defensive back is senior Brayden Pracht (5-11, 160) who had 28 tackles last year. At linebacker are juniors Trey Ladymon (5-11, 175) who had a solid 41 tackles last season and Parker Schrader (5-10, 178) who had 35 tackles, 1 interception, and 1 fumble recovery. Returning to the defensive line are the imposing and experienced senior linemen Eli Bray and Killian Cordia. Bray had 23 tackles last year and Cordia had 15, proving them a solid duo for making big stops at the line of scrimmage. Joining them on the line on both sides of the ball will be seniors Nathan Keith (6-0, 220), big man Kelby

Edmunds (6-7, 295), Karson Wright (6-1, 250) and sophomore Garant Wenker (6-3, 230). Coach Grahl has plenty of size on his lines and just has to make sure his men can be consistent and solid game after game to create opportunities for his players to make big stops. A newcomer to the linebacker core is sophomore Brody Seitz (6-1, 190). At defensive back, sophomore Malachi Frazier (5-11, 155) looks to get some minutes in. When asked about the defense this year Coach Grahl said “(We) return quite a few defensive starters who are ready to take steps forward. Excited about a lot of younger players on the defensive side of the ball.” The Wildcats have all the right pieces to be a strong defensive team this year, as long as they come into their own by the midway point of the season, they will find a lot of success on the defensive side of the ball.

Coach Grahl and the Wildcats are expecting to put together a high quality, winning season. They will see a lot of their players develop and grow as the season progresses and that should give them a good chance in the playoffs. The Wildcats should be poised to compete for another conference title, but repeating last year’s magic will be a challenge.