Kidwell wants Arcadia players to 'have fun and make memories'

ARCADIA – In his second season as Arcadia's head coach, Derek Kidwell wants his players to keep a proper perspective. "Just find a purpose, each and every day go out and get better," Kidwell said when asked what his message to the players was. "Just don't try to get through it, find something to get better at each and every day, and then, when we have chances to compete, whether it's 7 on 7s or in our first scrimmage, just go out, have fun and make memories." The Redskins didn't win a game last year, but there are some encouraging signs for the program. Last year, Arcadia had just 16 players on its roster. This year, that number is up to 28. Kidwell said that in his second season at the helm, there's a sense of familiarity that he didn't have in 2024. "We know the kids," he said. "Me being in the building all year really, really helped. We got a couple kids who didn't play last year back out this year." Even with those positives, the Redskins already have faced some adversity. Their quarterback, sophomore Tripp Brubaker, was injured during the summer. "We're not really sure when and if we'll get him back," Kidwell said. So, Arcadia did some shuffling on offense. Sophomore Nick Moes, a tight end, has been moved to quarterback. "It kind of limits our passing game," Kidwell said. "One, because Nick was a very good matchup, a very good tight end for us, and he's not a natural quarterback." But he is big, listed at 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds. He will be joined in the backfield by Lamarion Tucker. The senior tailback – who didn't play a season ago – is listed at 5-foot-11, 250 pounds. "We're gonna run both those guys a lot this season," Kidwell said. Helping them do that will be an offensive line that brings back some impressive players. It starts with left tackle Blayne Colman, a senior who is one of the team leaders. "Blayne's a very good football player, probably the No. 1 leader on our team, both verbally and leading by example, work ethic," Kidwell said. "He shows up every day, he's accountable, he holds other kids accountable, but he does it in the right way. He's not always negative about things. He sees the positive in a lot of things, he loves to compete, three sport athlete, and just one of those kids that you always enjoy coaching." Also on the offensive line will be Zach Altvater at left guard and Owen Smith at center. That creates a strong left side of the line for Arcadia. "(We'll) just be a power run team for the most part, and hopefully shorten the game, control the clock and play good defense and see what happens for us," Kidwell said. As for the receivers, the team is without Kale Price, who is out with an injury and won't return for a few weeks. David Medina, Colin Nusser and Liam Brockschmidt are expected to see time at the position. "They're the ones that played a lot for us last year so they kind of understand our offensive concepts and our passing game," Kidwell said. On the defensive side, Arcadia will show some different fronts, depending on what the opposing offense does. "Lot of flexibility," Kidwell said. "We've got a lot of kids in the secondary, we've got some depth, finally, in the secondary, so we're fortunate there. We'll probably play quite a few kids to give kids experience for further down the road." Up front, Kidwell said the Redskins will look, again, to Colman to lead the way. "He also probably will be one of our prominent defensive players as a defensive end, also," Kidwell said. "So, if we can keep him healthy, our chances are pretty good to be competitive and have a real good defense this year." Tucker will play at linebacker, but could move up on the line to bring pressure in passing situations. Moes will play the inside linebacker, Nusser will be at free safety and Medina and Brockschmidt will return at the corner spots. "We've probably got about eight starters back, on both sides of the ball," Kidwell said. "We shouldn't be caught off guard when we start the season with Cory-Rawson next Friday. "For us, it's just gonna be a matter of, 'Are we conditioned enough?,' because we play a lot of kids both ways and on special teams," he said. "We've got to stay healthy during the season, also. At certain positions, we don't have a lot of depth."