Mariposa retools offense after graduation

The Mariposa High School football team might lack some of its big-play ability from last season. The Grizzlies lost a big chunk of their offensive production with the graduation of running back Kama’Re Bailey, receiver Jadin Battles and quarterback Aaron Lerma.

“We’re still going to stick with what we’ve been doing,” Grizzlies coach Ryan Oliphant said. “We can’t fill their shoes, but we still have talented players. I told our guys we’re going to have to work harder than last year’s teams. Last year, we had guys that could break a big play at any time.

“We’ll be OK. We may just have to grind it out a little more.”

Mariposa will be young, but like most small towns, the Grizzlies have a group of kids who grew up playing together.

Now it’s time for players like quarterback Jake Mayberry, receiver Zack Smith and linebacker Jake Williams to step up into leadership roles.

“I’ve played with the guys in this group since we were 7, 8 and 9 years old,” said Smith, who begins his third varsity season. “We have that group chemistry. We know each other well. We’ve been a successful group since we were young, and we’ve had a core group that has stayed the same.”

The Grizzlies have a lot to replace:

▪ Bailey accounted for 1,805 yards of offense – 1,328 rushing yards and 477 receiving yards – to go with 24 total touchdowns.

▪ Battles made 88 catches for 1,146 yards and eight touchdowns.

▪ Lerma passed for 2,375 yards and 20 touchdowns.

“All that was huge,” Oliphant said. “They played together the last three years. They came up working together and had good chemistry and were huge for us as juniors and seniors. That was reflected in the points that we put up last year.”

Junior Josh Land has the inside track early to replace Bailey as the featured back. At 5-foot-5 and 155 pounds, Land gives the Grizzlies speed out of the backfield.

Oliphant likes the work Mayberry has put in during the offseason in taking over for Lerma at quarterback.

Smith, 6-3 and 180 pounds, gives the Grizzlies experience and a big target on the perimeter.

“Zack is a three-year starter at receiver and is another big body,” Oliphant said. “I see him filling the role Jadin did for us last year. He’s also a good character guy.”

The defense will be led by returning all-Southern League linebacker Williams, who recorded 127 tackles, and fellow senior Jacob Baca, who finished with 105 tackles and three sacks.

“Jake Williams is an absolute stud, and Jacob Baca received honorable mention last year, but he was just as deserving as everyone else,” Smith said.

Even without some of the big names, the expectations haven’t changed. The Grizzlies expect to challenge for another Southern League championship.

“I’m ready to play more offense if needed,” Williams said. “I’ll do whatever the coaches ask me to do. I’m ready for it. We’re going to be the team that chips away at other teams and wears them down. We want to get them tired and then hit them hard.”

This story was originally published August 27, 2015 at 9:42 PM with the headline "Mariposa retools offense after graduation."