Oakland County preseason top 10

By KEITH DUNLAP
Of The Oakland Press

LAKE ORION — The goals haven't changed, the large size of the roster hasn't changed, and the excitement of another season certainly hasn't changed.

However, there is one thing noticeably different this season about the Lake Orion football team.

Before last year, the Dragons annually entered the fall dreaming of what it would be like to reach a state final.

After doing just that by advancing to its first ever state football championship game in a magical November run last year, the big difference now for Lake Orion is that no longer has to dream about what it's like to play for a state title and what it takes to make a deep playoff run.

The Dragons now know.

“There are a lot of positives that we're going to build on,” Lake Orion head coach Chris Bell said. “The guys now know it's a tangible thing that they've been there, so that only helps the program. Still though, we've got a lot of work to do before we can talk about getting to that point.”

No, finally proving they could make a long run in the playoffs after years of getting eliminated sooner than hoped doesn't mean the Dragons are destined for Ford Field again this November.

But the experience gained last year doesn't hurt, and neither does having loads of returning talent.

Entering this season as the top football team in Oakland County, Lake Orion has every reason to believe it's capable of returning to the Division 1 state title game, but this time winning it. The Dragons lost to Rockford, 26-14, in the 2008 finale.

Most people who watched that game came away slack-jawed at the poise of then-freshman quarterback Sean Charette, who might have been Lake Orion's best offensive player in the game.

This year, Charette is a bigger, more mature sophomore who'll have the reins loosened this year.

“We did some things where we had to protect him last year,” Bell said. “That's just not the case (now). He's arrived. He's a weapon.”

He'll have plenty of help on offense, because the Dragons might have two of the area's best tackles back along the line in seniors Pat Fehlberg and Ben Walker.

Both will anchor a line that should blow holes open for fast, shifty running backs Kim Bruce and Marques Stephenson. Also, Charette will be have some threats at wide receiver in the form of senior Mike Nelson, junior Zack Zott and senior Alex Mayo.

On defense, LB/DE Phil Serzo, senior DB Vinnie Booker, senior LB Kane Hayes, senior DL John Hill and senior DL Jake Ludwig form a nice core of returnees.

Obviously, there are other teams capable of reaching Ford Field just like the Dragons. Here's a look at the rest of the preseason top 10 in Oakland County:

2. Birmingham Brother Rice — Talent on both offense and defense. In other words, the Warriors should be their usual balanced selves and one of the state's best. On offense, senior QB Frankie Popp threw for 1,600 yards and 15 touchdowns last year, numbers which could improve, since he has one of the state's best wideouts to throw to in senior Kevonte Martin-Manley. Defensively, Brother Rice might have one of the best secondaries in the state with the return of junior SS Loran Jaddou, junior FS Jimmy Pickens and senior CB Michael Brown. Also back for Brother Rice is senior linebacker Justin Cherocci, who led the state in tackles last year. Line play, particularly on defense, could be a concern for the Warriors.

3. Clarkston — Scoreboard operators who work Clarkston games should be very busy this year. The Wolves' offense could be as lethal as anybody's in the entire state with all the returning firepower. The backfield combination of senior QB Tyler Scarlett and senior RB Dakota Bender is outstanding. Both had tremendous junior seasons and could be even better this year. The Wolves have four starters back along the offensive line, as well, with seniors Bryan Haslinger, Dan Davis, Jeff Deane and Greg Keller. Junior WR Chris Canea and senior Dustin Gamble will be nice receiving threats. The defense could be a concern, which might prevent the Wolves from reaching their potential. Still, that unit returns senior LB Jordan Clark, senior DB Andrew Schram, Gamble at DB, Deane at DT, senior DL Steve Carpenter, senior LB Zach Collins and senior FS Derek Booker. After seeing rival Lake Orion break through and finally reach the state final last year, will should no doubt add to Clarkston's motivation this year.

4. Novi Detroit Catholic Central — The Shamrocks have gone six years without a state title, but they return a roster deep and experienced enough to end that drought. Senior RB Anthony Capatina, senior FB/DT Niko Palazeti and senior OL/DT Jeff Sherman all return after being named all-Catholic for the Central Division as juniors. Senior LB/TE Mike Kinville, senior LB/RB Butch Herzog, senior QB Sam Landry and senior DB/RB Jon Savakus also headline a team full of solid, two-way players. The biggest key for Catholic Central will be getting a couple of wins in league play against the trio of Warren De La Salle, Birmingham Brother Rice and Orchard Lake St. Mary's.

5. Orchard Lake St. Mary's — There might not be a more motivated team in the area than St. Mary's, which is none too happy about missing the state playoffs last season and is hungry to get back into state title contention this year. The Eaglets should be able to do so with a roster filled with skill and strength. There might not be a better quarterback in the state than senior Robert Bolden, and dual-threat signal caller who has committed to Penn State. St. Mary's also has another Division I recruit in senior RB/FS Earnest Thomas, who has committed to UCLA. St. Mary's is also stacked along the line with seniors Chris Elliot, Phillip Schoof and Joe Kowalski playing both ways, and senior Justin Ruby contributing on the defensive line. Senior CB/RB Gary Hunter and senior LB/TE Mike Padula should also have an impact.

6. Rochester Adams — The Highlanders went 8-1 during the regular season and won the OAA White, yet ended the year feeling like their season was a disappointment. Such was the case after Adams suffered a first round loss in the state playoffs at home to Birmingham Brother Rice. Even though Adams graduated an outstanding group of skill players in QB Andrew Waszak, WR Cody Wilson, WR Joe Reynolds and RB Beau Barterian, the Highlanders should be just as stout this year. The main reason is that Adams might as good as anybody up front. Senior OL/DL Jordan Sanders is entering his third year on varsity and is poised for a big year after playing with a bad knee for most of last year, senior OL/DL Nick DeMiro was an all-county Dream Team lineman last year, while senior OL/DL Tom Roncelli will also be hard to deal with. Junior QB Andrew Hammett should be a capable replacement for Waszak on offense and a good player in the defensive secondary. Senior slotback/DB Tyler Martin, senior DE Matt Rea and senior FB/LB Mark Benecquisto will also be key players.

7. Farmington — The Falcons appeared to be going through somewhat a rebuilding year last year with a core of sophomores on the team and an 0-3 start. Then, Farmington reeled off six straight wins to qualify for the postseason and played state semifinalist Southfield tough in the opener, resulting in a lot of excitement going into this year. Junior FS/TE Mitch Sanders led the team in tackles last year, while junior WR/DB Jason Wilson and junior WR/DB Dae'von Scarber were also all-league players in the OAA White as sophomores. Senior RB/SS Kevin Waksmundski is another returning all-league player, while junior quarterback Matt Craven, junior running back Nino Jones-Fletcher and junior linebacker Danny Dedvukaj are also going to play important roles.

8. West Bloomfield — Coming off only its second playoff appearance in school history, the Lakers rightfully feel they can do more this season and contend with Lake Orion and Clarkston in the OAA Red. If not for a pair of double-overtime losses to Clarkston and Troy last year, the Lakers might have finished the regular season 8-1. Senior WR Cameron Fields, who had a great summer and is on the radar of several Division I college programs, leads a talented group of skill players. Senior WR Aaron White and senior RB Vince Simpson will also be playmakers on offense. On defense, seniors Chris Heald and Lawrence Brown lead a good group of linebackers, senior FS Aaron Foster will make it hard for opposing quarterbacks to throw on the Lakers and Matt Judon is back along the line.

9. Walled Lake Western — Defense and good quarterback play usually carries a football team far, and that could prove to be the case for the Warriors this year. There aren't many signal callers in the county better than senior Sam Welch, who is entering his third year as a varsity starter. Welch has accumulated close to 4,000 all-purpose yards and will be both a running and passing threat in Western's spread offense. Defensively, the Warriors should have plenty of experience back with 10 players returning who started at some point last year. Senior linemen Marc Sanchez and Tyler Watko and senior linebacker Jordan Carreathers will help man a solid front seven.

10. Lakeland — With three straight playoff appearances, capped off by a Division 2 district final win over Birmingham Brother Rice last year, the Eagles have made it known that they are a program on the rise. There is some talent to replace from last year's team, but the Eagles are capable of rolling on. Lakeland will have skill at its disposal, thanks to the presence of 6-foot-5 senior wideout Eric Palanca and senior running back Jacob Rhode, a three-year varsity player who is a home-run threat when he gets the ball. Senior Eric Kelly should step into the role as starting quarterback successfully. The defense should also be solid with Palanca, Rohde and Kelly the key players in what could be a shutdown secondary. Mike Rizzo and P.J. Fricks will be a good duo at linebacker.

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