Mount Pleasant football's quarterback Jacob Richtman finding his role on field
MOUNT PLEASANT -- Jacob Richtman knew he had a small window of opportunity, and that window is quickly closing.
Richtman, a senior at Mount Pleasant High School, is the starting quarterback for the Panthers, who have an 0-7 record heading into Friday's Class 4A District 3 game at Clinton.
Despite all the adversity around him, Richtman has made the most of his one year as starting quarterback, although the Panthers' record certainly doesn't reflect that.
Richtman, whose father, Mike, was head football coach at Iowa Wesleyan University from 2016-20, is seeing his years of hard work pay off.
"We haven't had the season we hope for, but I wouldn't trade anything for it. I love these guys. Going out there tonight was one of the most special moments of my life and I'll never forget that," Richtman said after last week's 41-33 loss to Burlington in the Panthers'' home finale. "It's pretty tough knowing that I'll never be able to come back here and play in front of my home fans. I'll never have that chance of our tradition of meet me at the flagpole. We really focused on having a culture change, so I'm really hoping that what we've done will go further for next year's seniors and years after that so they can have those moments."
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"He's been really working hard preparing for this the last couple years," Mount Pleasant head coach Shawn Striegel said. "He played a lot of safety for us last year and got a lot of reps at quarterback for the JV team. That has really prepared him to come in and be the varsity starter this year. He has done a very nice job for us."
Richtman started off on a hot streak. Through the Panthers' first four games, he was among the 4A leaders in numerous passing categories. But the Panthers ran into a rugged Fort Madison defense in the district opener and Richtman struggled.
Still, he has completed 138-of-233 passes for 1,416 yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. He has completed 61.9 percent of his passes, averaging 10.3 yards per completion. He has a 115.2 passer rating.
Mount Pleasant has battled through myriad of injuries on the offensive line and in the backfield. The Panthers are averaging just 75 yards per rush, which puts more of a burden on Richtman and the passing game.
The Panthers' running game was bolstered last week as the offensive line was intact for the first time all season and Payton Hagans was back to full strength. Mount Pleasant rushed for 173 yards on 39 attempts against Burlington. Hagans gained 113 yards on just 21 carries.
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That, in turn, helped open up the passing lanes for Richtman, who completed 19-of-27 passes for 236 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
"That's really going to help a lot. Our offensive line is healthy for the first time all year. Now we just have to keep things moving forward," Striegel said.
The Panthers had a chance to knot the game in the closing minute, but Gabe Robinson batted away Richtman's pass in the end zone with 4.4 seconds left.
"It's really what you practice in your backyard, a winning play at the last second. We couldn't convert on the last play and that's basically the biggest difference tonight," Richtman said. "We knew what kind of a team Burlington was and we knew the only way we were going to have a chance is if we came out and played hard and with the attitude that we deserve to be here. That's what we did from the whistle."
Richtman said he works on his game regularly with his father. They spend many hours studying film, and during the offseason they go to Mapleleaf Stadium to work on Richtman's technique.
"Every Saturday morning we go through a couple hours of film. He's helped me a lot on that," Richtman said. "He's my role model. He's been everything to me. He's helped me become the player and man that I am and my character."
"Jacob is a real student of the game," Striegel said. "He spends a lot of time in the weight room to make himself better. He plays at a high level and he works hard at it."
Richtman said he hopes to play football in college and major in criminal justice.
While the Panthers came up short in their Homecoming game against Burlington, it was a night -- and week -- Richtman always will treasure.
"It's been awesome. We had a tradition here today for Homecoming we toured the schools. I remember he first week or so being here, being a new student and seeing all the Panther football players come to our school. I remember that moment. It's so dear to my heart," said Richtman, whose family moved to Mount Pleasant when he was in elementary school. "It was special. It was really special, all the cheers and screams helping us try to get a win tonight. It was really special."
Matt Levins is a sports reporter for the USA Today Network in Burlington, Iowa, who has covered local sports for 32 years at The Hawk Eye. Reach him at mlevins@thehawkeye.com.
This article originally appeared on The Hawk Eye: Mount Pleasant football's quarterback Jacob Richtman finding his role
