Football preview 2022: Clear Creek Amana is strong up front, needs new skill players to emerge

Editor's note: This story is part of the Press-Citizen's team-by-team high school preview coverage. Coming tomorrow: Iowa City High.

Though it was not a perfect year for the Clear Creek Amana Clippers in 2021, it is clear that the football team has a lot to build upon.

The team finished with a 6-4 record. That earned the Clippers a playoff berth and allowed them to reassert themselves as a team to watch in Class 4A football.

Looking back at 2021

In Matthew Haddy's inaugural season as head coach, the team had its share of highs and lows. The campaign began exceedingly well, with a 5-1 record.

But things began to fizzle as the year went on. CCA lost three of its final four games. The final loss came at the hands of the Winterset Huskies, who took down the Clippers 24-17 in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs.

While the team's change in trajectory could be viewed as cause for concern, Haddy said that it was just a result of improved competition.

"Two of our three losses were to teams that made deep playoff runs," Haddy said. "Our other loss was to Pella, who is another consistently strong program. So, we view those games as eye-openers for where we still need to get to in terms of competing with the teams atop the 4A mountain."

Fourteen seniors departed from that team, including starting quarterback Ben Swails, leading receiver Harrison Rosenberg, and leading rusher and tackler Gage Freeman.

New additions

With the losses of offensive starters mounting, it will be intriguing to see who will fill those roles, namely at quarterback.

Since Swails took all of the Clippers' varsity reps under center, fans have heavily speculated who will be the team's new signal-caller.

Haddy answered that question during fall practices when he named senior Jackson Schmidt as his starting quarterback.

Schmidt played wide receiver primarily last season but also showed off his athleticism by making some plays in the run game.

He caught five passes for 75 yards and had 18 carries for 67 yards and a touchdown.

Now, as he prepares to make the transition to being the team's full-time starting quarterback, Schmidt said he has to build strong bonds with his teammates to have success.

"Being a leader is a big part of my role," Schmidt said. "I have to keep working with my guys so that they can put their trust in me and know that I am going to get things done."

Potential wild cards

Another big blow to the Clippers' offense was losing Rosenberg, whose 855 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns earned him all-state second-team honors.

Hoping to step into that role is senior Reese Hoffman, who caught 10 passes for 79 yards in 2021.

Knowing the importance of being a reliable offensive weapon, Hoffman said he wants to have the biggest impact on the team as he possibly can.

"I want to give our team the best chance to win games," Hoffman said. "A big part of that will be to help pick up my teammates. Obviously, we are going to have mistakes, but that is just a part of the game. We have to be able to flush those mistakes and not let them affect the next play."

Joining him as players with more magnified roles are linebackers Brock Sherman and Nick Johnson, who have a chance to become one of the best defensive duos in the state.

Combining for 72 tackles and seven tackles for loss last season in rotational roles, the duo should benefit tremendously from the talented defensive line in front of them.

Key matchup this season

The Clippers kicked off the season in exciting fashion in last year's 36-35 road win over the Marion Wolves.

This time, the Wolves will come to Clear Creek Amana in hopes of spoiling its home opener on Aug. 26.

Preparing for yet another climactic game, senior offensive lineman Jack Downes expects the Wolves to play with an edge.

"Marion has a grudge against us," Downes said. "We know that they want to come back and beat us, so we know that we have to stay strong and focus on whoopin' them."

Reasons for optimism

Though the loss of skill position players has been oft-mentioned, the Clippers are bound to be strong in the trenches.

Their offensive line brings back three starters — Downes, senior Caleb Allan and sophomore Vinnie Keller. The reliable trio will be vital to helping out Schmidt and other new faces in the offensive backfield.

"Our entire offensive line group has really stood out early on," Haddy said. "Those guys have done a really good job of putting in work over the summer to get stronger and to be more confident in their assignments."

Much of the same can be said for the defensive line, which will also be bringing back key figures.

As good as Allan was on the offensive line, he may have been a better defender, racking up 29.5 tackles, three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss.

Another notable player is sophomore Brody Clubb, the team's returning leader in tackles. He also had a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss.

With offenses so talented in 4A football, if the Clippers' defense can consistently click throughout the season, it can be just what they need to make a deeper run in the postseason.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Clear Creek Amana football hopes to ride strong line play in 2022