Coal City aims to rebound

Veteran Coal City football coach Lenny Onsen knows exactly what he is looking for in the upcoming 2011 season: a good “bounce-back year.”

“Expectations are always high here at Coal City,” said Onsen, who is entering his 12th year as head football coach for the Coalers. “It is important that we get back to where we were and are right in the mix for a run at the state championship.”

It’s not like the Coalers have been in a prolonged slump. They slipped to 4-5 last fall, their first losing campaign since Onsen’s initial year as head coach back in 2000 and just their second since 1986. The program won a Class 2A state title in 1993 and placed second in 2004. Onsen was an assistant coach on that state championship team and was the head man of that state runner-up squad seven years ago. He sports an 83-38 record in his 11 seasons and has directed his teams to the state playoffs eight times.

Onsen had his first chance to see his 2011 squad face off against outside competition at the University of St. Francis 7-on-7 Passing Jamboree at Memorial Stadium on June 11. The Coalers’ skill-position players had the opportunity to run pass patterns in non-contact drills against three other schools, all much larger than Coal City. And, for a first glimpse, Onsen was quite pleased.

“We got a chance to see a lot of kids play today,” said Onsen. “They all got a lot of reps and got a little taste of where they stand against other teams. We’ve only done one week of workouts coming into this so I know the kids were excited to play on the turf today and see how they stack up.”

Onsen had a young team in 2010 and still considers his squad a young one for this coming fall.

“We started six sophomores last year, so while we have some experience coming back we will still not be a senior-dominated team,” said Onsen. “I do look for a lot of improvement and growth this year as our younger kids mature and get stronger physically.”

The offense will be led by a pair of seniors, including Onsen’s son, Cody, who returns this fall as the Coalers’ quarterback. Fellow senior Matt Halloran, a wide receiver, will be Onsen’s top target in the passing game. Cody Onsen threw for over 1,300 yards and 11 touchdowns last season and Halloran was the leading receiver with 26 grabs and eight touchdown receptions.

“We try to run a fairly balanced offense,” said the elder Onsen, “but it is probably about a 60-40 run-to-pass ratio. We like to be able to mix up what we do depending on what type of defense we are facing.”

Other names to look for on offense include junior running backs Mark Norton and Alan Potter. Norton averaged nearly four yards per carry last season as the club’s third-leading rusher. Senior wide receiver Ryan Bonarek also is an experienced player that will have an impact on the Coalers’ attack this fall.

Senior linebacker Dominic Durando heads up the list of returnees on the defensive side of the ball.

“Dominic is a great athlete,” Onsen said,” and I expect some very good things from him this year, both as a player and a leader on our team.”

Junior twins Jake and Michael Czaja will be names to watch this season on both offense and defense. Junior Dylan Hakey, a wide receiver and defensive back, is another young athlete that Onsen likes to talk about.

“We have a good nucleus of kids coming back,” said Onsen, who has been on the football staff at Coal City for a quarter of a century. “I fully expect us to have that bounce-back year that we are looking for.”

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