The NMU football team played its annual spring game in the Superior Dome last weekend. It was an actual game rather than a scrimmage like it has been in past years and proved to be an exciting game.
The White Team defeated their Green opponents, 24-10. Head coach Bernie Anderson said that he is thankful no one was injured in the game and he is highly anticipating the fall season.
“We had a great turnout at this group promotion and it was good to see everyone at 100 percent health and ready to play,” said Anderson. “We love to get involved in events like these and show that we are a part of the community.”
The Wildcats will have 24 seniors returning next season which is the largest group of seniors they have had return to the sport yet. Anderson said that with this many veterans returning, he has very high expectations on getting Northern football back to where it belongs.
“We have never had this many seniors return to the sport at once and I can’t help but anticipate a great fall season,” Anderson said. “This team has the heart and desire to win. Now it’s just a matter of how badly they want it. The past is done and now we look towards the future.”
Junior quarterback Carter Kopach is one of many that will be returning this fall season in hopes of ending his final season on a high note. Kopach’s 2010 season came to halt last fall as he had a ruptured Achilles during practice.
Kopach said that he is quite anxious to get back on the field and get the season underway.
“I was just in shock when I was injured last season and felt like I really let my teammates down,” Kopach said. “Thankfully I’ve had a wonderful coaching and training staff that had helped me on the road to recovery and I should be good to go come the start of the fall season.”
Kopach said that the key to this team’s success is due to the years of working together which has really formed a special kind of chemistry, a chemistry that doesn’t just happen overnight.
“That’s truly the benefit of having so many seniors return, is that you’ve worked with these guys for so long, everyone is on the same page,” Kopach said. “We have each other’s backs and everything that we control on our end, we do it well and that’s why we are going to go far this season.”
The NMU Wildcats will begin their fall season on Sept. 1 as they take on the Minnesota State University-Mankato Mavericks. The Wildcats were defeated by the Mavericks in the first game of last season with a score of 6-7. The ’Cats hope to return the favor this time around.
Sophomore defensive lineman Price Burton said that the spring session was a way to get the team back in the groove after a disappointing season it had last year.
“There’s no reason to even try and sugarcoat it. We just had a disappointing season last year and we just didn’t meet expectations,” Burton said. “The key thing to our success is just focus on less turnovers and have our defense stay focused. This season is our wake-up call, and we want nothing more than to win a national championship.”
