ROCHESTER — With every new season comes a sense of renewed hope and a new set of challenges for any given team, but that is especially true for the 2024 Rochester football team.
The Warriors are back in the 1A Evergreen League, which was their longtime home before spending the last classification cycle in the 2A EvCo.
Rochester still has a pair of 2A opponents this season in Black Hills and Aberdeen, but nearly all of their practice time has been spent preparing for their new foes.
Cautiously optimistic heading into 1A Evergreen
Rochester doesn’t expect to just walk in and dominate its new league. Elma defeated two 2A teams last fall, Tenino is expected to be better than last fall, and, of course, there’s Montesano, a 1A powerhouse that hasn’t missed a state tournament since 2006.
“Montesano is one of those top teams,” Rochester coach A.J. Easley said. “They’ve had just a tremendous amount of success for a long period of time. They’re super prepared for everything that you’re gonna do.”
All that said, however, there’s also a sense in the Rochester locker room that if Warriors play their best football, they could win the league title. That wasn’t always the case in the EvCo, where it’s often Tumwater and W.F. West at the top.
“It wasn’t just that we were in 2A, you’re in one of the best 2A leagues in the state,” Easley said. “For however many years, it was basically fighting for third place … This is where we grew up, and this is where we should be.”
A return to the Evergreen also means that the Scatter Creek Showdown in a league matchup again, something Easley also said is how it should be.
Running back room an expected strength
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Rochester football season without the ground game. Ethan Rodriguez and Xander Peterman are back to lead the running back rotation, but Easley mentioned several other backs that will likely get carries throughout the year.
“We’re probably seven deep at running back,” Easley said.
Maddox Rodgers and Owen Simpkins can be bruisers out of the backfield, and so can Tristan Nelson, who added around 20 pounds of muscle since last season. Easley also mentioned Chris Tartios and Dominic Delgado, the latter of which ran an 11.1 100-meter dash two springs ago.
The Tenino Wing-T of yesteryear rolls on in Rochester, where former Tenino offensive coordinator Rob Bates is now Easley’s co-OC.
More shots through the air?
Rochester and passing the football rarely go hand in hand. In 10 games last fall, the Warriors threw the ball just 11 times, only completing four of those passes for 64 yards.
Easley knows, though, that as the season progresses, the Warriors will have to incorporate the passing game more, especially against quality opponents.
“That’s gotta be an aspect,” Easley said. “Cause at some point, we’re gonna have to make teams respect it.”
