2022 season preview: Burleson Elks

Aug. 26—Not everything in sports, progression-wise, is linear. Just ask Burleson Head Coach Jon Kitna.

In Kitna's first year with the Elks, Burleson went 6-4, just missing out on a playoff berth. In 2021, Burleson posted an 8-4 record and won its first playoff game since 2015 before falling in the area round to Lovejoy, 28-23, on the last play of the game.

By most accounts, the expectation for the Elks this year should be to increase their win total by a couple wins and make an even deeper playoff run.

But that's linear progression — and not exactly how Kitna looks at it.

"This isn't the same team so we have to figure out, what is our ceiling now?" Kitna said. "If we go out and play our A game, what is that? How good is that? Then once we figure that out, our job as coaches is to get us to play as close to our ceiling as possible week in and week out.

"Every team is new. It's not like we bring everybody back, so we should progress like this or this. It's a brand-new team and we graduated a lot of good players. We lost a great quarterback, a receiver that was an all-state football player, some guys on defense that were all-district players. So there's big shoes to fill for some guys, but it's not up to those guys, it's up to us as coaches to put them in position to be successful and do the things they do best."

Kitna said he believes the 2021 Elks played very close to, if not right up against, their ceiling. After going 7-3 in the regular season, Burleson beat Mesquite Poteet, 70-48, in the bi-district playoffs for the Elks' first playoff win in six seasons. Then Burleson's area-round game went down to the wire vs. state-ranked Lovejoy — a team that went on to reach the fourth round of the playoffs, where it lost to eventual state champ South Oak Cliff.

"We played close to what our ceiling was last year," Kitna said. "It came down to the last play against a really good Lovejoy team. We'll find out what our ceiling is early on and then we'll try to play up to what that ceiling is."

Kitna has always been big on his program's culture and instilling important values in his student-athletes — using the acronym 'R.E.A.L.' as a guide — Reject passivity; Empathize with others; Accept responsibility; Lead courageously. And now in his third year at Burleson, he believes the Elks are heading in the right direction.

"I think you're always developing that," Kitna said. "I don't think there's a destination. I think we're on the right track. Our kids play hard, they work hard, they like being around each other. So, that's very positive. We're always developing our kids and trying to get better each day that we go out there. I like where we're at right now. I think, like every coach, you wish you were a little bit further along, but I think we're in a good spot."

In addition to graduating a strong senior class — and the departure of quarterback Dylan Raiola, the No. 1-ranked prospect in the nation for the Class of 2024 — the Elks will face a challenging schedule this season. Seven of Burleson's 10 opponents qualified for the postseason last year.

"We've got a tougher schedule this year, I believe, than we've had in the past with the non-district games that we lined up with Frisco Lone Star and Weatherford [in addition to Burleson Centennial]," Kitna said. "We did that on purpose. We want to play the best that we can get. Our three non-district opponents all made the playoffs last year and then we start out with Midlo Heritage, who, I think they've gone three or four rounds deep for 5 years in a row, and Mansfield Summit, who has gone to the semifinals the last 2 years, so our first five games are a gauntlet. But I love it that way. That's why I love Texas high school football."

No matter the challenges, Kitna said he likes his team's chances, especially considering the players he and his staff get to work with.

"Our kids give us everything we ever ask," Kitna said. "They're doing phenomenal in the classroom. They're stand-up guys. They're being 'R.E.A.L.' in everything that they do. They're multi-sport athletes. They work their tails off in the weight room. They run everywhere on the football field. They play as hard as they can. They're coachable. They're 'yes sir' guys.

"That's everything you could ever ask for as a coach. Now our job is what do these guys do best and let's put them in position to do that week in and week out. If we do that, then we've got a chance to play up to our ceiling."

OFFENSE

As the Elks enter year No. 3 under Jon Kitna, they will also have a new quarterback for the third year in a row.

Last season, sophomore Dylan Raiola stepped into the starting role after the graduation of Jalen Kitna, the Elks' 2020 starter who is now playing at the University of Florida.

In his varsity debut, Raiola was one of the most productive quarterbacks in the state — throwing for 3,341 yards, 32 touchdowns and only five interceptions — to earn All-Johnson County co-MVP honors. But Raiola — who committed to Ohio State University in May — moved to Chandler, Arizona, leaving the door open for someone else to take over at quarterback for the Elks.

Enter sophomore Jamison "JT" Kitna — the youngest of Jon Kitna's three sons — who is in line to be the next starter.

Similar to Raiola last year, JT Kitna has already received a few offers from Division I programs (Texas Tech, Duke and Houston) despite having never taken a varsity snap.

"JT's got great athleticism and the ability to improvise and get out and run," Jon Kitna said. "That's something that is really helpful for him. He's worked his tail off. The kid's 6-2, 205 and he can throw it all over the yard. He loves throwing the deep balls. But he really just loves the game. He loves watching it. He's studying it all the time. He's already got opponents broken down — 'Dad, this is how I see them on defense.'

"So that kind of football junkie stuff is what our quarterbacks develop into. I think Jalen was that way and he set the standard. Dylan certainly followed that and I think JT is following that as well. If you catch a kid that is a sophomore and is 6-2, 205, that's a little bit rare."

While the quarterback is such a vital piece to a football team's success, it's also a position of dependence, Jon Kitna said.

"The quarterback position is predicated and so dependent on the people around you," he said. "And the people around Dylan played really well last year. So we've got to get people that haven't played a lot at our skill positions and get them to play well, and I think we'll be just fine. But we're not afraid of [replacing Raiola] or scared of it. We're happy for Dylan getting to be back near family in Arizona so they can see him play. And JT is certainly not afraid of what's in front of him."

While the loss of Raiola is big, just as big of a loss is the graduation of all-county co-MVP Luke Peterson, who hauled in 70 receptions for 1,467 yards and 22 touchdowns a year ago. In fact, Burleson graduated nearly all of its offensive production, including running back Reece Williams, receiver Abreham Word and tight end Isaiah Lopez, each of whom were all-district performers.

But Kitna said they have young and talented players waiting in the wings to take over after developing in their system.

"At receiver, we're loaded with guys you've just never heard of but we've been developing for two years," he said. "Two guys that are seniors, Rylee Webb and Christian Negrete, they have great ability to be diverse in our system — they can go running back, they can play slot, they can play outside. They understand it all. We've got a couple juniors this year that are 6-2/6-3 outside receivers in Mason Ferguson and Chase Torres.

"And then one kid we're super excited about that I don't know that I've ever had a kid like this in my system with the shiftiness and the quickness and the football IQ and how he sees it like a quarterback, and that's Fabian Bosquez."

Kitna said he also has a freshman, Jayden Flournoy, who he believes can be an all-district player on both sides of the ball that they hope to develop early on so he can make an impact as well.

"It's really a pretty dynamic group that we're excited about, it's just a group that nobody has heard about and that's fine with us," Kitna said.

One of Burleson's best players on defense from a year ago, Jaden Balina-Ayers, will see a large role on offense to help offset the loss of so much offensive production.

"We spent a ton of time with Jaden on offense this year," Kitna said. "He's pretty dynamic with the ball in his hands. He's 6-2, 215 and built like a rock and he can run and catch. He'll play some tight end and some running back."

In addition to Balina-Ayers, Kitna said there would be competition in camp and early in the season at running back.

At tight end, Kitna said he's eager to see what junior Seth Sargent can do.

"He's 6-4, 225 and he's got just a great tight end body," Kitna said. "He loves blocking. He plays with the same passion as [Rob] Gronkowski. Just fun-loving, loves the physical nature of it. We're excited about him."

On the offensive line, Burleson brings back three starters in center Joel Smith, left tackle Nate Baldwin and guard Izaiah Perry.

"We're confident with those three and the young guys we get to add with them," Kitna said. "Those three are super athletic and they do a great job of communicating and sorting things out in our zone run scheme. They afford us the ability to be able to run the football on the edges as well as inside and kind of pound it."

One thing Kitna said he's anticipating this year is for Burleson to be versatile on offense.

"With the five or six receivers and tight ends we have, I think we're going to have a chance to be pretty multiple and be able to split guys out," he said. "We can spread people out and play in empty and throw the ball around the yard and then with that same personnel we can bring it back in and run the football."

Kitna said the key on offense — with only four experienced returners — will be those four leading the way and the offensive line being solid.

"I think the key is going to be our seniors and guys who have played to play like seniors and guys who have played," he said. "Two of the three guys up front were all-district selections last year. We need Joel Smith to be the best center in our district. We need Nate Baldin to be the best left tackle in district. If they play well, we're going to play well.

"I'm a firm believer in that, if your offensive line is good, you've got a chance to be good every week. The stuff outside — the ball getting thrown around and your running back running for 1,400 yards or whatever it is — that gets a lot of attention but that only happens when your offensive line comes to work every day and that's what those guys have done. We just need them to play up to their standard. If they play up to their standard, we're going to be fine everywhere else."

Additionally, Kitna said he expects big things out of senior kicker, Ty Bailey.

"He's worked his tail off," Kitna said. "I think he has a chance to play at the next level and beyond if he continues to develop. We're excited about his leg strength and his creativity in kicking. We're pretty pumped about him. Not a lot of people probably talk about their kicker but I think he's got a chance to be really good for us."

DEFENSE

The Elks bring back five starters from a defensive unit that allowed just under 27 points per game a year ago.

Just as there was progression on defense from year 1 to year 2 under Jon Kitna and his coaching staff, the Elks' head coach believes a third year in their unique defensive scheme will result in more success.

"It's the third year for these guys in this system," Kitna said. "When we got here, nobody had ever played in this 3-3 stack hybrid defense. We tried teaching them as much as we could during COVID but we were teaching kids and coaches at the same time. Now, they've got 2 years under their belt. ... Our guys just really understand the defense better now. We saw it last year about the last third of the season, our guys really gained an understanding of the defense and that's when we turned things up. I think we'll have a chance to start it that way this season."

Kitna raved about the football IQ of his defensive returners.

"Between [Dylan] Dubouis, [Kyndall] Cassidy, [Jess] Ackerman and [Jaden] Balina-Ayers, their football IQ is so high that they're going to give us a shot to be in the right places and align right on every play," Kitna said. "So we're excited about that. Those guys can play a lot of different positions."

Going into the season, the Elks have high expectations for senior Kalun Blair.

"We think he's got a chance to be an all-state football player this year," Kitna said. "Last year was his first full year ever playing football so he just played defensive end and that's it. We're going to stand him up and use him more as a weapon and be a little more diverse with him.

"We're going to keep his hand off the ground this year and let people deal with him and try to figure out where he's going to be on every snap. We could line him up at corner, he might be left end, he might be left linebacker, he might be back at safety. He's going to be all over the place. He's got Power 5 physical talent, he just hasn't played a lot of football. His talent, the way he can run and jump, his explosiveness, his ability to rush the passer and he can run with anybody, so we're going to use him as much as we can in a diverse role."

In addition to Blair, Kitna said he likes the experience and leadership from his linebackers.

"It starts with Dubois and Cassidy, two guys who played as sophomores and played a lot," he said. "They have a great understanding of our defense. We add Jess Ackerman, who was dealing with injuries last season so he didn't get to play quite as much, but he packs a punch. He's powerful. He can run. Kaiden Beard is another one we feel like offers us a lot of flexibility there where they can play a lot of different places.

"Obviously Jaden Ayers played a lot at linebacker and safety for us last year and he will play a lot on defense but he'll have an expanded role on offense. Those guys bring a lot to the table and we're excited about them."

The position unit that has seen the most improvement on Burleson's defense is the line.

"They've had a great offseason," Kitna said. "These kids have gotten bigger. Last year we didn't have a kid over 215 pounds on our defensive line and I'm not sure we'll have a kid under 235 this year so our kids have worked hard at it.

"We're really excited about Cam Martin. He's had an incredible offseason. He's put on 35 pounds of muscle. I think every one of his lifts have gone up at least 75 pounds. He's going to anchor our defensive line. MJ Jones coming back has played a lot of football for us the last couple years. He's a terror inside. Both of those guys are really good.

"Peyton Rizzo will be a junior. He got to a point last year at the end of the year where we couldn't block him in practice. He's incredible using his hands. On the other side Dylan Bomer is phenomenal. He's really had a good offseason. We've got a young guy, Josh Andrews, that's going to be a sophomore at 6-5, 235 pounds and he's long and loves playing. Those guys are going to be really good for us this year."

On the back end, the Elks have a couple of players returning but will also have to rely on a couple of newcomers.

"We lost two key guys in the secondary but we like the guys coming back, like Cayden Cartmill, and this being his third year in the system," Kitna said. "David Amezcua, who sees the game like a quarterback, we're confident about him playing back there. We're really excited about Jaiden Reed, who is a junior corner/safety. He's a striker. He can hit you. We've got some guys on the back end that we think can make plays when the ball is in the air. We've got some young guys who haven't played a lot but we think have great range and can do a lot of different things for us back there."

For Burleson to field a strong defensive unit, Kitna said he is looking at two things.

"We've got to do a better job of limiting peoples' yards per carry," Kitna said. "I'm not a person that looks at yards per game — it's yards per carry. We have to limit yards per carry. I think last year we were at about 4.5 yards per carry. That needs to be closer to 3 yards per carry. Secondly, we need to create more turnovers. This defense is predicated on turnovers. We've got to get the ball out and be ball focused and we've got to make ball carriers nervous to have the ball in their hands because we've got 11 guys who are going to try to get it out. If we can keep them to somewhere around 3 yards per carry and create twice as many turnovers as we did last year then we'll be really, really good."